During the 10 AM service yesterday, Rev. Canon Dr. Denise Yarbrough's sermon followed the Gospel lesson of Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well. Her sermon pointed out that Jesus had defied the traditions of the day by having a personal and political conversation with 1. a woman, 2. a Samaritan 3. a woman of questionable reputation. She pointed out that throughout history there have been restrictions on interaction with individuals who represent a different race, ethnicity, political belief, religion, etc. Since Jesus was comfortable in defying the social restrictions of the day, it seems reasonable that as true followers of Christ, we also should be willing to enter into an open conversation. Even when we have differing beliefs and opinions, we should be willing to discuss our differences in an open forum. Please refer to this site to review sermons weekly: http://ascensionroch.blogspot.com/
Please keep in your daily prayers all those in need of healing, and those who serve in our military forces. To assist in our spiritual life, Forward Day by Day booklets are $.85 each in the back of the Church [Tower Room].
If we want to grow and share God's prosperity of faith, we must love God, love our friends and then speak openly to them. A congregation grows starting with each faithful person. God will help us share the Bread of Life.....God will help us live into our Baptismal Covenant of sharing His word and our lives and resources [which is the true Meaning of Life]. We never know how ready a friend may be to hear a word of encouragement in faith. We never know when God will bring someone to speak to us, and enrich our own life.
CLERGY SEARCH COMMITTEE: Warden, Don Taylor, announced that the Search Committee has completed their search process and is close to scheduling a candidate to interview with the Vestry for approval. It has been a long, difficult, time-consuming project and we thank the committee for their diligent, hard work on our behalf. Please keep the wardens, vestry, committee and possible candidate(s) in your prayers as this important decision is placed before them.
WOMEN'S GROUP: Our next meeting will take place on Thursday, April 7th at Crescent Beach Restaurant at noon. If you are planning to attend, please notify Jan Wills at 621-3900 by April 3rd.
For our May meeting on May 5th at noon, we will have a presentation by the Wende Clinic on Women's Breast Health. This is the second presentation we have had in their series on Women's Health. For this interesting program, we have invited the women of the Cathedral Community to join us. I encourage everyone to bring a friend or relative to join us for this event. We will provide a salad and dessert luncheon before the presentation. Those willing to contribute a salad or dessert should let Jan Wills know.
FIX UP DAY: The first Spring fix up day will take place next Saturday, April 2nd at 9 AM. We encourage anyone who has the time available to don some old clothes and join in fellowship and some sprucing up of the Church and grounds (if the snow will ever go away). Stuart Denison has promised a batch of his wonderful chili for lunch.
LENTEN BOOK STUDY: PLEASE TAKE NOTE: This week's Book Study will begin at 11:30 am on Wed. The Lenten Book Study is using "The Last Week" by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan. This book is a day-by-day account of Jesus' final week in Jerusalem. Anyone interested in exploring the message in this book are encouraged to attend the sessions for an inspiring discussion of the last week of Jesus’ life before his ultimate sacrifice.
CHICKEN AND BISCUIT DINNER: Our next Church dinner will take place on Saturday, April 30th. The menu for the Chicken and Biscuit Dinner consists of: Chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, vegetable, salad, cranberry sauce and homemade desserts. The cost is $9.00 for adults, $4.00 for children aged 6 to 12 and under 6 will eat free. Patty could always use additional help on clean-up. If you would like to volunteer, please let Patty know (phone: 315-986-5726 or cell: 585-615-6790). Also, if you are willing to make a homemade dessert, please notify Patty Frasca or Joan Swan.
HOLY WEEK AND EASTER SERVICES: Many of us keep calendars that are filled weeks in advance. So we can all be sure to attend the wonderful and important services that are scheduled for Holy Week, I am previewing the schedule. Holy Week will begin with the celebration of Palm Sunday at 8 and 10 o'clock services on April 17th. On Thursday, April 21st, the Maunday Thursday service will be held at 7 PM. Besides the serving of the Eucharist at this service we will participate in the traditional "Washing of the feet". Following the service we will observe the vigil that will continue all night and up to the Good Friday service at noon on Friday, April 22nd. There will be a sign-up sheet for those wishing to keep silent vigil for a period of an hour at any time between these two services. This is a wonderful opportunity to spend some silent time in reflection, prayer and study and to reflect on the sacrifice that this Holy time represents. Security will be provided in the Church throughout the night. There will be a Stations of the Cross event that will take place at 9 am. I believe the event will be in the 19th Ward this year. Our first Easter Celebration will take place on Saturday Evening at 7 PM. This is the first time in a very long time that we have celebrated this most holy service at Ascension. We will celebrate with all of the traditions of this blessed service: fire, bells, music and celebration. The choir will be participating in this service. There will follow the traditional Easter Celebrations on Sunday, April 24th at 8 and 10 AM. All of these are Holy Days of Obligation traditionally in the Episcopal Church. As we prepare to, hopefully, welcome a new priest in the near future, we should all try to dedicate ourselves to this most Holy Week of the Christian year to prepare ourselves for our own personal ministry.
DIOCESAN SUBSCRIPTION UPDATES: A reminder: If you have not completed the individual and family information updates for the diocese, please go on the Diocese web site and update your information or get a form from Mary in the office to complete.
DON'T FORGET - The Ascension Piecemakers Quilt Group is offering a stunning queen-size quilt. This quilt would be a handsome addition to any decor! Coupons are $2 or 3 for $5. All proceeds will go to the Bell Tower Restoration Project. You can see the quilt and get more details each Sunday at Coffee Hour.
TIME TO MARK CALENDARS! There are memorable dinners upcoming.
Saturday. April 30th, 2011 CHICKEN & BISCUIT DINNER
Friday. June 3rd, 2011 LOBSTER DINNER
PLEASE MAKE NOTE!!!
Coffee Hour after the 10 AM Sunday service is a wonderful opportunity to greet friends, old and new, and catch up on news. There are opportunities to host Coffee Hour in the weeks ahead. Won't you help this ministry? If not sure how to host, you may call Nancy Lennox at 663-5805 or Stu or Gene Denison at 663-0988. To sign up - see list in the back of the church or call 458-5423. Thanks!
Please phone or visit a friend who is not able to get out or whom you've been meaning to contact. There are many who would love a call and an invitation to church or an inquiry as to when you might pay a visit. We can invite friends to accompany us to church - and take them out for brunch afterward!
To beautify our worship, in upcoming weeks there are opportunities for altar flowers. We will soon be asked to sign up for Easter Lilies to be placed on the altar in memory of our loved ones. When the fliers are put in the bulletin, please turn them in as soon as possible so Laurie can order the proper amount and can submit the list of memorials to be indicated. As you fill out the sheets, please print so Laurie can use proper spellings in the bulletin at Easter. Will you take up this ministry to the glory of God and to our spirits? To donate, please contact Laurie Phillips, 865-2802 or email LBP@rochester.rr.com
EASTER LILIES: It is again time to consider providing Easter Lilies for the altar in memory of our loved ones who have passed. A reservation form was placed in the Messenger for this month and will also be appearing in the bulletins. Try to complete these forms early and submit to Laurie Phillips with the appropriate payment. You may list up to six names per lily and the cost per lily is $13.00.
If we wish to learn the true Meaning of Life, grow as Christians and share our love of God, we need to know the stories of the Bible. Thursday Bible Study is in the Library at 9 AM. Please 'Come and See'. As we progress through the Lenten season, this is a time for careful reflection on Jesus’ teachings and how we are reflecting our faith. It is a time for repentance and planning for future devotion. There is no better way to undertake self-reflection than to base that reflection on God’s Word. There is food for thought and often refreshments to share. The study is of the Gospel Lesson for next Sunday, found below. No Bible Thumping, just good conversation!!
The Rochester Interfaith Jail Ministry asks your ongoing help - by donating through United Way or directly by check to R.I.J.M., 2 Riverside St., Rochester, NY 14613. This will bring books of healing and group sessions to those needing to start lives anew. Remember the Good Samaritan... Please answer this call. To volunteer, call 254-6790. The invitation to help is ongoing, so you are not late to the party! We recently began doing visits to the young men ages 16-19 in the Downtown Jail. Many Thanks!
PRAM PRAYER: Lord Jesus, help us, we pray, to see Your face in all those who ask us for a drink of water. We do not always recognize that we are meeting You as we sit with those in prison. As they ask us for companionship and friendship, we do not realize that they are offering us Living Water. Our thirst for Your kingdom begins with their thirst for kindness and acceptance. Help us to remember, too that this goes on outside our Sunday worship and outside our regular ministries. Help us to see You in the face of the passersby on the street, on the sidewalk, at work and at leisure. We offer prayers today for the Deputies and Corrections Officers who check us in to the jails and facilities we visit.
There is God's work for each of us when we see new people on Sunday or at an event. Let's introduce ourselves and make them welcome. An invitation to chat at Coffee Hour is a great ice-breaker. So is sitting with a new person and guiding her/him in the materials, if this is their first time with us.
Do you have a pocket card to hand to a friend who asks about Ascension? Cards are on the table in the back of the church. Please take a few, and be ready to share. We have pocket crosses in the table drawer to hand to those who answer the call to "Come and See"..
MUSIC: The anthem for next Sunday is "Lamb of God" by F. Melius Christiansen. To hear a presentation of this choral work by the Concordia Chamber Choir of Athens, Georgia go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDoI5P7ElW4
In the next day or two, Paul Schwartz will post this e-letter on our blogspot. http://ascensionroch.blogspot.com/
If you have a new or better email address for yourself, or know someone who might like to receive this weekly e-letter, please send in that information.
Blessings,
Jan Wills
585-621-3900
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John 9:1-41
9:1 As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.
9:2 His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
9:3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God's works might be revealed in him.
9:4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.
9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
9:6 When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva and spread the mud on the man's eyes,
9:7 saying to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). Then he went and washed and came back able to see.
9:8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar began to ask, "Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?"
9:9 Some were saying, "It is he." Others were saying, "No, but it is someone like him." He kept saying, "I am the man."
9:10 But they kept asking him, "Then how were your eyes opened?"
9:11 He answered, "The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and said to me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' Then I went and washed and received my sight."
9:12 They said to him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not know."
9:13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
9:14 Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.
9:15 Then the Pharisees also began to ask him how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see."
9:16 Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not observe the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?" And they were divided.
9:17 So they said again to the blind man, "What do you say about him? It was your eyes he opened." He said, "He is a prophet."
9:18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight
9:19 and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?"
9:20 His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;
9:21 but we do not know how it is that now he sees, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself."
9:22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.
9:23 Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."
9:24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and they said to him, "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner."
9:25 He answered, "I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see."
9:26 They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
9:27 He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?"
9:28 Then they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
9:29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from."
9:30 The man answered, "Here is an astonishing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.
9:31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will.
9:32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.
9:33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."
9:34 They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out.
9:35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
9:36 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him."
9:37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he."
9:38 He said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him.
9:39 Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind."
9:40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, "Surely we are not blind, are we?"
9:41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, 'We see,' your sin remains.
RECIPE: With Easter only a couple of weeks away, I know that many are making plans to spend time with family members. Often this includes a brunch after attending Easter morning services. I am including a recipe that I used last Easter for a family brunch.
HAM AND CHEESE CORNBREAD CASSEROLE
3 slices thick bacon
4 large eggs
1/4 cu. milk
1/2 cu. butter, melted and cooled
1 - 6 oz. pkg. Cornbread mix (I used Jiffy Cornbread mix)
6 dashes hot pepper sauce (Red Hot)
1 med. onion (chopped)
1 pkg. frozen chopped broccoli (thawed and drained)
1 1/2 cu. ham cubes
8 oz. sharp shredded cheese
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Cook bacon until crisp. Set aside to cool and crumble.
Reserve 1 T. Bacon drippings and drain remaining drippings. Place the reserved dripping in a 9x9 casserole or oven proof skillet. Place in oven.
Beat eggs. Add millk, butter, cornbread mix and hot pepper sauce. Stir in onion, broccoli, ham and 1 1/2 cu. cheese. Remove casserole from oven and pour batter into the hot dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the casserole. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set and golden brown on top. Let rest 5 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with bacon and parsley (if desired for color). Serves 6.
This casserole makes a nice main course for a brunch. I would also serve fresh fruit and hot cross buns or assorted Danish.
HAVE A WONDERFUL AND BLESSED WEEK!
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