Latest News – Page 2 – The Church of the Ascension in the City of New York

For Welcome Back Sunday, Mother Liz explores the parable of workers hired throughout the day but paid the same wage, provoking questions about abundance and what we fear in sharing generously. She welcomes back summer travelers and the returning choir, inviting us to trust in God’s abundance and practice generosity as we gather to do the urgent work we’re called to together.

On the 25th anniversary of September 11, Mother Liz invites us to remember those lost, the first responders’ sacrifice, and the courage and compassion that arose amid devastation. Ascension will be open for prayer and reflection from 8 am to 5 pm, with bells tolling at 8:46. She shares a prayer from Bishop Allen Shin, calling us to confront hatred, resist violence, and make peace.

This week, Mother Liz reflects on a season of profound loss—iconic global, national, and parish figures, as well as global crises—and offers Wendell Berry’s poem “The Wild Geese” as solace. The poem speaks to summer’s end, remembrance of those gone before, and the quiet faith that what we need is already here. “And we pray,” wrote Berry, “not for new earth or heaven, but to be quiet in heart, and in eye clear.”

Father Ed explores René Girard’s mimetic theory—how we unconsciously learn what to desire through imitation. Drawing on gospel examples like John the Baptist’s death and Pilate, he suggests Jesus repeatedly helps listeners recognize their unwitting participation in violence. This Sunday’s gospel shows Peter spectacularly illustrating this mimetic contagion. Father Ed invites us to examine how we’re unknowingly directed toward violence, subtle or overt.

This week our associate rector, Father Ed, reflects on late summer’s quieter rhythm in the city and the subtle shifts in energy he observes while making pastoral calls. He contrasts the effects of anxiety-inducing news cycles with the neurological benefits of worship and faith community—the oxytocin and endorphins that come from fellowship. He encourages us to keep returning to church, trusting that our shared spiritual practice sustains hope.