This Week at Ascension + May 25, 2022
"Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." - Psalm 96
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Tonight, May 25, 2022
Commemoration of
Bede the Venerable
In-person and Live-streamed Said Mass at 6:30 p.m.
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Thursday, May 26
The Feast of the Ascension
7:00 p.m. In-person & Live-streamed
Solemn High Mass
Image: Altarpiece from Thuison-les-Abbeville: The Ascension, 1490/1500,
The Art Institute of Chicago
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Sunday, May 29, 2022
The Seventh Sunday of Easter
9:00 a.m. In-person Sung Mass
with Organ and Hymns
11:00 a.m. In-person & Live-streamed
Solemn High Mass
Image: Praying hands, Albrecht Dürer, (1471-1528) Albertina Museum, Vienna, Austria
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Litany in the Wake of a Mass Shooting
Last year, my son was in first grade, and I remember thinking often that he was the age of the children who were shot and killed by a gunman at school in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. This morning, as I walked my son to school, I quietly thought about all those parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, aunts, uncles, and teachers who lost a beloved child yesterday at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. I hugged Albie extra close before sending him through the doors to his school.
I am at a loss for words. The friends and colleagues I’ve talked with today have all said the same thing. In the days and weeks, you will likely hear more from me about senseless gun violence, but this morning, I invite you to take a moment and pray for all who have lost their lives to it using this Litany in the Wake of a Mass Shooting from Bishops Against Gun Violence.
—Mtr. Murphy-Gill
“A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.”
(Matthew 2:18)
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Pray, Beloved
You may have noticed a small change to one of things the celebrant says as we begin the liturgy of the Eucharist. Instead of saying, “Pray, my brothers and sisters, that this my sacrifice and yours …” both Fr. Heard and I have been replacing “my brothers and sisters” with “Beloved.”
This invitation to prayer by the celebrant is referred to as the Orates Fratres, which translates to “Pray, brothers …” While in the past the use of the masculine brothers may have meant to include all of humanity, not just males, in common English, we don’t always hear it that way, hence the addition of sisters. The purpose here was to be inclusive in keeping with our Anglical tradition of using the vernacular.
Language is alive and, as with all things living, it changes and continues to change as it lives on. Given the conversations and recognitions our culture and our church have been having regarding gender, it has become clear that even brothers and sisters doesn’t mean quite what it used to mean. Brothers and sisters is heard as exclusive, especially by many who experience their own gender in less rigid definitions, as well as their allies.
I recall, while a student of theology at Catholic Theological Union nearly 15 years ago, a fellow student commented that the use of the possessive pronoun their was a good gender neutral substitute for when you didn’t know the gender of the one doing the possessing. As a lifelong nerd of English grammar, I was aghast. “No,” I thought, “you absolutely cannot say, ‘That is their book,’ you must say, ‘That is his or her book.’” My tune has changed thanks to conversations and listening to the personal experiences of those for whom gendered language is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the harm they’ve experienced as a result of rigid norms. I’ve recently realized that when I say, “Pray, my brothers and sisters,” my words aren’t heard by everyone as an invitation to bring our whole selves in offering to God.
There’s also more at stake than inclusion. The use of the term brothers has meant to imply a kinship in Christ, a belovedness both between one another as Christ followers. Brothers and sisters doesn’t quite capture that sense of communal care and love quite like Beloved. Likewise, when I invite you, Beloved, to pray with me as we prepare to make Eucharist each week, I do so in recognition of your belovedness—and my own—to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Often people skilled in the art of translating languages will say that a good translation will capture not only the words of the original text but also the spirit of it. It is my prayer, Beloved, that this small change does exactly that.
—Mtr. Murphy-Gill
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On Trinity Sunday, June 12, I will be celebrating my 50th Anniversary to the priesthood. I was ordained a priest on St. Barnabas Day, June 11, in 1972. It is a particularly gratifying milestone in my life, since I have experienced health issues that could very easily have prevented me from arriving at this point in my life and ministry.
With Fr. Heard’s kind support, I have invited Fr. Sam Portaro to preach at both the 9 a.m. Sung Mass and the 11 a.m. Solemn High Mass. I have also planned a reception to follow High Mass with the generous support of George Pineda.
My three children from Canada, Sam, Claire, and Johanna, will be present, as well as my spouse Mark and his son Zachary, with his mother, Carol, who live here in Chicago. I’m also hoping to have a group of professional colleagues from my Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) ministry as well as a few long-time friends from Canada join me. Most of all I want the time to be a celebration of the Feast of the Blessed Trinity and of the Ascension Community, who have provided me the opportunity to continue a ministry of Word and Sacrament. I hope you will take the time to join in and celebrate with me.
Blessings,
—Fr. Petite
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George Pineda recently attended a Society of Mary meeting in Sea Girt, New Jersey and has some news to share:
Most members of the Society of Mary (SoM) lead their lives including traditional Marian devotions such as praying the Angelus and the Rosary, participating in Mass on the major Marian feasts and solemnities, and active engagement in apostolic work.
As of May 14, 2022, the Society of Mary (HQ) is adopting a new constitution. The partnership between our Anglican League in England and the United States will now be independently governed. With the adoption of this new constitution, the SoM USA will become by “affiliation-only” by name to the Society of Mary (HQ) organization. This means that SoM USA will not be considered as part of England Headquarters.
Society of Mary (HQ) Organization is granting the SoM USA full independence and control of how they govern the SoM organization in the US. This also means that the Board of Directors and its leaders of SoM USA will need to form its own constitution.
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Pastoral Listening Sessions to begin Sunday, June 5
Join Fr. Petite in St. Michael Hall at 1 p.m. on Sunday, June 5 for the first of a planned 4-part series on learning pastoral listening skills. The first session will be called Creating Sacred Space: The Importance of Hearing and Responding to the Story. The following sessions are below with planned dates.
- Session Two (June 19): Moving from a Friendly Visit to a Pastoral Conversation: Who does the talking and what to talk about
- Session Three (June 26:) Feelings as Messengers: The Suffering is not your Problem to Solve.
- Session Four (July 10): Prayer: Entering the Canopy of Vulnerability
Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP so we know how many sandwiches to order.
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Confirmations and Receptions June 11
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This spring, Bishop Chilton Knudsen will preside at four diocesan confirmation and reception services open to candidates from all congregations in the Diocese of Chicago. At least one member of Ascension will be received into the Episcopal Church on June 11 at St. James Cathedral. If you are interested in being confirmed or received or have questions about what this might look like for you in the future, please reach out to Meghan Murphy-Gill via email or by calling the church.
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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.
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Contribute to This Week at Ascension
If you would like to include an announcement in our weekly newsletter, please email your contribution to office@ascensionchicago.org by Monday at noon. Include a photo if you can!
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Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has set September 17 as the day he will ordain and consecrate the Rev. Paula E. Clark as the Thirteenth Bishop of Chicago. The service will take place at the Westin Chicago Lombard in Lombard, Illinois.
Read more about the Consecration here.
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Organ and Choral Repertoire for May 29, 2022 |
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ORGAN
Offertoire pour l'Ascension
Alexandre Eugène Cellier (1883-1968)
At the Entrance Procession
483 ST. MAGNUS (descant: DW)
At the Offertory
219 ACH HERR, DU ALLERHÖCHSTER GOTT
At the Communion
306 SURSUM CORDA (9 a.m.)
889 (Cantate Domino)
UNION SEMINARY (11 a.m.)
At the Retiring Procession
542 ST. JOAN(descant: DW)
ORGAN
Dimanche dans l'Octave de l'Ascension
V. Postlude
Charles Tournemire (1870-1939)
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Mass Setting
Adrian Batten (c. 1590-1637)
Short Communion Service
Offertory Motet
Christopher Tye (c. 1505-1572)
Omnes gentes plaudite manibus
(prima pars)
Communion Motet
Christopher Tye
Omnes gentes plaudite manibus (secunda pars)
Chanted Mass Propers from the Graduale Romanum
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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
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Ascension Connections
(with your click and God's help)
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Meeting ID:
792 031 7452
Password: 1133
Join-by-Phone Option: (312) 626-6799
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Weekly Ascension Schedule
For connections:
SUNDAYS
9:00 a.m. In-person Sung Mass
11:00 a.m. In-person and Live-Streamed Solemn High Mass
MONDAY-FRIDAY
WEDNESDAYS
6:30 p.m. Said Mass
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For our prayers: Ted Saunders, August 'Augie' Alonzo, Taffy Wehe, Beth Hall, Sue Lenz, Ben, David D. Jones, Gina, Tom Baer, Edward Minieka, Brenda Martins, Claire Green, Marion Cantore, Lee Gould, Gertrude Isaac, Ken Kelling, Marty Stenson, Daniel Martins (Bishop),
Paula Clark (Bishop-elect)
Birthdays: Ian Barillas-McEntee, 5/23
Anniversaries: Jay & Cheryl Peterson, 5/26/1967; Tim & Mary Jane Kowalski, 5/26/1985
Requiescat in pace: William Floyd Ware, 5/23/1985; Kay Maruoka, 5/26/2004;
Dolores M. Baran, 5/27/2008
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.
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The Rev. Thomas Heard, Interim Rector
The Rev. Meghan Murphy-Gill, Curate
Susan Schlough, Treasurer
Br. Nathanael Deward Rahm BSG, Parish Office
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Vestry of Church of the Ascension
Ian Barillas-McEntee, Jim Lo Bello, Ken Cozette, Marlea Edinger, Sean Hansen, George Pineda, Joshua Simpson, Sam Sommers, Enrique Vilaseco, Vestry
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.
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