This Week at Ascension + June 21, 2023

"Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." - Psalm 96

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Feria Mass



Evening Prayer at 6:00 p.m. via ZOOM

In-person and Live-streamed

Said Mass at 6:30 p.m.

Unction will be available for those who wish it.

VIA YOUTUBE or FACEBOOK LIVE

Saturday, June 24, 2023

The Nativity of

Saint John the Baptist

Said Mass at 10 a.m.

The Fourth Sunday

after Pentecost

June 25, 2023

7:30 a.m. Morning Prayer via ZOOM

9 a.m. Sung Mass

11 a.m. Solemn Mass -

In-person & Live-streamed -

The 11 a.m. Order of Worship may be found here.

Jesus Sends out the Twelve Disciples, Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (1794-1872),

Woodcut from Die Bibel in Bildern, 1860

Click to join us VIA YOUTUBE

or VIA FACEBOOK LIVE

From the Curate

Dear Friends, 

One of the gifts of being a family-size parish is the closeness we experience with one another. We all know each other’s names and often even more than that. Many of you have been worshiping together for decades and consider each other like family. Having served among you for two and a half years, one thing I’ve observed is the informal and easy way in which many of you care for each other, offering rides to doctor’s appointments, delivering fresh baked cookies, or simply calling each other on the phone. Family members take care of each other without question and without pretense. It’s simply what we do. 

Following three pandemic years and several years of significant transition for our church, we are beginning to rebuild, reconnect, and grow, incorporating new members into our family. As we do this important work, it will become increasingly important to create some more formal systems (formal, as in existing, not stuffy) in order to make sure everyone is receiving the love, care, and support that this congregation is so good at giving. This is why last Sunday, I held two info sessions on becoming a lay pastoral visitor. Those who attended the sessions heard me talk about three different levels in which anyone can get involved: Sunday Eucharsitic Visits, Pastoral Visits, or On-Call Care Visits. 

You can learn more about what each of those levels means on this information sheet. Please take some time to read and reflect on what kind of visitor you might be to your fellow parishioners and then use this link to sign up. I envision this program as taking some time to build, and that’s OK. The best programs tend to have good, strong foundations—and we already have that going for us with the care that already takes place here. Let’s use that foundation to build something that enables us to love a little better and a little more. 

I assure you that this lay pastoral visitors program will not replace the pastoral care that your clergy already provide! I continue to make visits throughout the week as it is a central piece of my ministry. But as I reminded you last Sunday, we are all called to bless, sanctify, and reveal what God has already made holy, and I’m excited to continue this work together. Please reach out to me in person, by phone, or email if you have any questions or would like some assistance discerning whether you’re being called to this ministry.

—Mtr. Murphy-Gill



Continued Support for the Quevedo Family

Thank you to everyone who picked up a prayer card. After both masses, every prayer card was gone! If you weren’t able to get a card and still would like to support the family, one way you can do so is through gift cards. 

We have found that Target gift cards are helpful because it allows the family to use the card for a variety of needs, from clothing for the children to groceries to items such as hand soap. If you’d like to supply a gift card, please deliver it directly to clergy on Sunday, or during the week to Br. Nathanael in the office. Do not leave it in St. Michael Hall with the other donations. 

For those who will be purchasing a home good* indicated on your prayer card, please return your donations to St. Michael Hall by July 9. Look for the table with the signs that say, “Please leave donations here.” 

We are so thankful for all your help and generosity!

—The Outreach Committee

*Please do not purchase items that are not on the cards. Right now, we are not collecting furniture but may later as we continue to assess and meet this family's needs.

Pilgrimage Opportunities

The General Theological Seminary and Virginia Theological Seminary have joined forces to offer two pilgrimages. The first is 19-31 August, titled “Pilgrimage through Grace & Gardens in England’s ‘green and pleasant land.’” The second will happen 6-17 January 2023 as an “Epiphany Pilgrimage to the Holy Land.” For more information, please visit the bulletin board near the restrooms to see the brochures.

Create Beauty for the Altar at Ascension

Do you enjoy the flowers on the main altar on Sunday morning? Do you have fun when you get to create something unique? Then you need to consider becoming a part of the Ascension Flower Guild!  If you're interested, please email Cheryl Peterson. 

Summer Retreat Saturday, July 29

Step out of your busy life from 11 am to 3 pm, Saturday, July 29, to spend some time with yourself, fellow spiritual journeyers, and God. This retreat will take place at Ascension and will be led by Lauren Schwer, Director of Ignatian Spirituality at Loyola University Chicago. We’ll learn how to spend time daily in reflection on God’s presence as well as explore the things in our lives that can prevent us from living the lives that God calls us into. Lunch will be provided. Look for the sign up sheet at coffee hour (so we know how much lunch to order) or email Mtr. Murphy-Gill to RSVP.

Prayer Requests

Do you have a need for special prayer in your life? Whether your prayer needs are because you have an upcoming surgery, an ill family member, or you’re just feeling particularly lonely lately, Fr. Heard and Mtr. Murphy-Gill would like to know.

We’ve created a way for letting us know about your requests for prayers in a way we hope makes it easy for you to reach out, though you can always call the church or reach out to one of the priests personally. 

Share your prayer requests here.

For our prayers:

Bethany Cramer, The Gibbons family, Noah Riggenbach, Sgt. Manuel Arroyo, Nat Simpson,

The Quevedo family, Andrew Abbott, Suzanne Dines, James Christiansen, Nikki Shaw, Lee Gould, John Schram, Gertrude Isaac, Thomas Wikman, MB Hwang, Juanita Malone, Oksana, Tyler, David S. Jones, Richard Francis Tracz, Robert Browning, Natalia & Victor, Dorothy, Victor Fernandez,

Claire Green, Beth Hall, Sue Lenz, Brenda Martins

Anniversary:

Victor & Marjorie Lofgreen, Marriage, 6/20/1993

Ian Barillas-McEntee & Guido Moret, Marriage, 6/24/2022

Requiescat in pace: Michael Schuldberg,

Alfred John Landwer, Jr., 6/19/1987

Lorraine Leonard Burita 6/20/2004

Michael Paul Clark, Sr., 6/20/2022

Lynn Scott, 6/22/2013

Daniel F. Thomas; 6/23/2002

Juanita Warfield, 6/23/2008

Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them;

May their souls and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Prayer for the Rector Search Committee

Almighty and everliving God, ruler of all things in heaven and earth, hear our prayers for this parish family. Strengthen the faithful, arouse the careless, and restore the penitent. Look graciously on your Church, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a rector for The Church of the Ascension that we may receive a faithful pastor, who will care for your people and equip us for our ministries; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



Organ and Choral Repertoire for June 25, 2023

Between Masses, please don’t forget that The Choir of the Ascension has recorded upwards of 60 tracks that you can listen to anywhere you have an internet connection. They can be found here: https://soundcloud.com/choir-of-the-ascension

Weekly Ascension Schedule

For connections:

via Zoom (click here)

SUNDAYS

7:30 a.m. Morning Prayer via Zoom

9:00 a.m. In-person Sung Mass

11:00 a.m. In-person and Live-Streamed Solemn High Mass

VIA YOUTUBE or FACEBOOK LIVE

MONDAY-FRIDAY

8:00 a.m. Morning Prayer via FACEBOOK LIVE

6:00 p.m. Evening Prayer via Zoom

WEDNESDAYS

6:30 p.m. Said Mass

VIA YOUTUBE or FACEBOOK LIVE

Wardens and Vestry of Church of the Ascension

LaVerne Rollé Saunders, Sr. Warden;

SeniorWarden@AscensionChicago.org

David Reeves, Jr. Warden;

JuniorWarden@AscensionChicago.org

Ian Barillas-McEntee, Jim Lo Bello, Ken Cozette, Marlea Edinger, Sean Hansen,

David A. Robertson, Elizabeth Simpson, Joshua Simpson, Samuel Sommers, Clerk



Susan Schlough, Treasurer

Finance@ascensionchicago.org

Br. Nathanael Deward Rahm BSG, Parish Office

Office@ascensionchicago.org

Approved minutes of Vestry meetings are always available online to parishioners who request the link. If you would like Internet access to these Vestry Minutes, please email the Parish Office and request the link. Once you access the web page, you can read all recent Vestry meeting minutes.

The link remains live indefinitely. Any parishioner who has the link will not need to request a new link from month to month.