This Sunday, we welcome Allegra Lovejoy as our preacher and Sunday Forum leader following the service. Allegra is a staff member at the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary and has been involved with faith-based climate activism since 2014. She is a graduate of Yale Divinity School and Yale School of the Environment, where she studied the intersection of faith, culture, and environment. And she’s an alumna of our Sunday School, so this will also be a homecoming celebration!

The rector writes: “This week is Welcome Back Sunday, the beginning of our program year. The choir returns, we enjoy a specially festive coffee hour and many parishioners who have been away during the summer make their way back to Ascension.” Join us!

From Father Ed: “The author of our Sunday epistles during Creation Season is believed to have been the brother of Jesus…. He invites us into reflecting in some wonderful ways upon what we think and feel about making a better world — a world in harmony with God’s purposes. At our best, we might come to discern what that world can look like in practical terms — maybe even what it must look like if we are to survive, let alone flourish.” Also this Sunday: Our Sunday worship services return to 9 am, 11 am, and 6 pm in the church. And next week: Welcome Back Sunday!

This week, the rector reflects on the “Season of Creation,” a commemoration during Pentecost we have started sharing with other Christian denominations around the world to look at how we care for God’s creation and our fellow creatures. Read this week’s newsletter to discover the many ways we will be exploring this theme, expressing our gratitude for God’s good Earth, and seeking to learn what we can do to protect it.

Please join us this Wednesday, August 28, for our last monthly Parish BBQ following the 6 pm Eucharist (so approximately 6:30 pm). We will grill in the back garden but eat in the front. The church provides items to grill, both meat and vegetarian; please bring your favorite picnic sides and desserts to share!