We hope you have a chance to get away this summer and enjoy some rest and re-creation. Meanwhile, the Church of the Ascension is still here, and we need to pay salaries, keep the electricity on, support our various programs, and keep the doors open for the many, many summer visitors that pass up and down Fifth Avenue and stop in to pray or simply enjoy the quiet and beauty of our church.
So, a reminder: If you’re going away, still please keep your pledge up to date. Thank you!
Listen to the sermon preached by the Rev. Liz Maxwell on the First Sunday after Epiphany, January 11, 2026.
This week, Mother Liz reflects on the Epiphany story’s blend of wonder and peril: the Magi’s awe-filled journey guided by a star, set against Herod’s fear-driven violence. She connects this ancient “realpolitik” to our own moment, naming contemporary acts of state violence and the ongoing harm to immigrant communities. Epiphany’s revealing light exposes both the world’s cruelty and God’s vulnerable, self-giving love. In that light, we are asked to choose what kind of power claims our allegiance—and to seek courage, compassion, and solidarity with our most vulnerable neighbors as we build beloved community together.