The theme on the third Sunday in Advent, December 11, will be Ministering with Refugees in Baghdad. Last fall, Ascension joined several other parishes in the Diocese of New York in helping to build a community center in a refugee camp in Baghdad, Iraq. This ecumenical work is sponsored in part by the Anglican Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf in the Episcopal Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. On Sunday, December 11, the Ven. Bill Schwarz, Archdeacon of that diocese, will be our guest preacher and forum leader at Ascension, and will tell us more about the challenges and blessings of this vital work. For photos of an art workshop held last spring in the new space, see here. At the time, Archdeacon Schwartz wrote “It all looks so normal! For these girls, normality is a real treasure.” Here is a link to learn more about the Diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf.
Newsletter
Parish News: April 26
In this week’s newsletter, Mother Liz celebrates Earth Month alongside Eastertide, noting how resurrection speaks not only to humanity but to “the groaning of the whole creation” and God’s determination to make all things new. She observes that when Mary Magdalene mistakes the risen Christ for a gardener, we glimpse the deep interconnection of all beings—and when we touch creation’s wounds with reverence and compassion, we meet God. Quoting Robin Wall Kimmerer, the rector reminds us that “when we work to heal the earth, the earth heals us,” and invites us to deepen our love and commitment to our fragile, beautiful planet.
