“Sin.” A tough word. “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves.” What is sin? The Oxford English Dictionary, calling it “a transgression of the divine law and an offense against God,” does not help much. When someone said to me, “I don’t sin,” I wondered what she meant. Offenses that are on the law books? Some form of moral turpitude? Sin
Lent is my most favorite time of year. It is the one time in our liturgical calendar where we are encouraged to rid ourselves of worldly distractions and return to the most important relationship of all – our relationship with God. It is a time of penitent renewal, through repentance and reconciliation. A time where we uncomplicate the complicated,and are reborn in the simplicity
Storytelling is a wonderful means of cultural transmission. At a time when a majority of the population could not read or write it was a way of passing on information — lessons in behavior; lessons in survival; important life lessons. The Greek myths are full of life lessons and problem solving messages. So, too, are fairy tales. So much of Jesus’ teaching was done
Ascension will have a service on Saturday, 1/6/18, at 10 a.m. to celebrate The Epiphany. Epiphany or Three Kings’ Day is a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus Christ. In Western Christianity, the feast commemorates principally (but not solely) the visit of the Magi to the Christ child, and thus Jesus’ physical manifestation to the Gentiles.
Christmas services and events continue at Ascension through the Feast of the Epiphany on January 5, 2019. This Sunday, December 30th, at 11 o’clock is a Service of Lessons and Carols with readings from the Gospels interspersed with singing Christmas carols and hymns. The music for this service is listed on the lower right sidebar. Twelfth Night Revels, Saturday, January 5, 2019 from 5:00-7:00
Greening the Church, Sunday, December 17, 12:30 p.m. – All are invited to help decorate the church for Christmas. There will be greens to drape, flowers to arrange, cleaning to do and more, all under the expert direction of our own Sara Jones and Sexton, Len Bowman. There will be special refreshments as well- so come, prepare the way of the Lord as we
Singing Our Hope on this Sunday at 12:30pm. Two of the most beloved canticles in our Anglican tradition, the Benedictus (song of Zechariah), and the Magnificat (song of Mary) come from the Advent gospels. Join Mother Liz and Dr. Keene in the parish hall as we sing, pray and explore these texts in a forum following the 11 am Eucharist on December 10.
Ascension Outreach and Resistance Cinema present the documentary film Big Pharma: Market Failure on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 at 7:00pm in the Parish Hall at 12 West 11th Street, just west of Fifth Avenue. The film highlights how “the economics of our dysfunctional healthcare system makes it a problem that transcends normal political and ideological boundaries.” Everyone is invited to attend.
The 2017 Diocesan Convention will take place at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on November 11, 2017. The Rev. Elizabeth Maxwell and parishioner John Thompson will attend the convention and tell us what went on at a forum on November 12, 2017. The Forum takes place in the Parish Hall around 12:30pm, following the 11 o’clock Sunday service. Join us to hear
This Sunday, October 15, 2017 at 12:45pm in the Parish Hall: the Ascension Forum welcomes Marco Saavedra, a 27 year old undocumented writer and painter requesting political asylum in the United States. Marco came to the U.S. with his parents at the age of 3. He currently works at his parents’ well-reviewed Mexican restaurant, La Morada, in the South Bronx. (See a recent New