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

In the spirit of community and conviviality, parishioners are invited to bring a dish to share at Fr. Raymond's farewell reception on February 27 to supplement the catered food. Anyone who wants to bring a brunch-appropriate offering (especially quiche!) should contact George Pineda via email or phone (312) 203-9494 no later than noon on Thursday, February 24.  

6:00 p.m. Evening Prayer via ZOOM

VIA YOUTUBE or FACEBOOK LIVE

The Order of Worship for the Mass may be viewed here.

Image: Jesus heals a blind man, Egyptian illuminated manuscript, 17th century

Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022

8:30 a.m. Morning Prayer via ZOOM

Mass Setting: John Ireland (1879-1962) Communion Service in C

Click to join us VIA YOUTUBE or VIA FACEBOOK LIVE

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

Image: Mission to the world, Jesus Mafa Project, Camaroon, 1970s

Dear people of Ascension,

May I say of us collectively that we at Ascension are what are now called ‘late adapters’? We’re still drawn to or remain at Ascension due to the Latin chant and our ad orientum high altar. Lectors and preachers are grateful for a light bulb in the ambo, but, please, no microphone!

The pandemic, however, brought more technology to Ascension in several months than might have resulted from a decade of committee wrangling! I’m proud that – except for a Sunday in May 2020 on which I mistakenly live-streamed the Sunday mass to my personal Facebook page rather than the church’s – we’ve made it possible every Sunday and at least once a week on weekday evenings, for all with a device to remotely participate. I’m also grateful that those of us wondering, “Where is all this going?” rightly guessed that it, technology and the place of it in our worship, wasn’t likely to go away.

Some, I know, don’t feel any meaningful connection to the mass remotely. Others, though, regularly express thanks and offer ‘feedback’(as only Ascension folk can do) as if they had been in the pews. All in all we were prudent, I believe, to take this journey and make the long-view investment we have.

As for explaining the brief blessing of the technology that I will offer on Sunday, I defer to Gary Alexander, who welcomed me to copy below an email he sent to me a few days ago. Please do join us Sunday; you may do so in person or remotely.

Patrick +

Fr. Patrick Raymond, Rector

"St. Clare of Assisi is the patron saint of televisions and computer screens, believe it or not. An early follower of St. Francis, Clare founded The Order of Poor Ladies, which eventually became known as the Poor Clares. Late in her life, she fell too ill to attend church, and one day the images and sounds of the entire Mass appeared in full on the wall of her room. This story would have been well-known to Italian native Pope Pius XII, who in 1957 named her the patroness of this new invention—television—that, in his words, “is a wonderful instrument… which can be the source of very great wealth, but also of deep troubles.” This may be why he chose a saint steeped in humility, poverty, and love of God as its patroness."

Rector's note: the rite we will use on Sunday may be found in the order of worship following the Confession and Absolution and before the Peace.

I will be leading a conversion on Zoom Tonight, Wednesday, February 16, at 5 pm to talk about what our hopes are for outreach in the coming year and beyond. This will likely be the first of many conversations to come.

Here comes Lent ...

I. Palms/Ashes Ash Wednesday will be March 2, in the week immediately following Fr. Raymond's last Sunday at Ascension. (Masses with imposition of ashes will be offered at 7:30 a.m., Noon and 6:30 p.m.) I will be taking responsibility for preparing the ashes, traditionally made from palm crosses and fronds brought from home and elsewhere by parishioners. Please do bring them! We'll have a labeled basket available in the narthex for the next three Sundays.

II. Devotional Invitation In preparation for Lent, I have 10 copies of Holy Solitude: Lenten Reflections with Saints, Hermits, Prophets and Rebels available for $6. You can pick one up after Mass or stop by the church during the week. I hope you’ll purchase a book early as it includes many helpful suggestions for preparing yourself and your home for the holy season of Lent. If you’d prefer to purchase the book elsewhere, copies are also available on Amazon or Indie Bound.  

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

Our website home page --

Participate in Ascension masses at our YouTube Channel. (Look for other connections options soon.)

Our Facebook page:

via Zoom (click here)

8:30 a.m. Morning Prayer via Zoom

7:30 A.M. Morning Prayer via FACEBOOK LIVE 

6:00 p.m. Evening Prayer via Zoom

For our prayers: The Rev. Canon Paula Clark, August 'Augie' Alonzo, Jim Berger, Taffy Wehe, Beth Hall, Sue Lenz, Ben, David D. Jones, Gina, Tom Baer, Edward Minieka, Brenda Martins, Claire Green, Carey Weiss, Larry Kimmel

Birthdays: Rachel Bridenstine, 2/14; Joel Hammer, 2/18

Anniversaries: Jim and Susanne Lenz, Marriage, 2/17/1968

Requiescat in pace: Richard Young, Priest, 2/15/1996; Elfie Christiansen Smith

Ken Kelling, Sr. Warden; LaVerne Rollé Saunders, Jr. Warden;

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.