Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Ascension Celebrates it 125th Anniversary on Sunday

ALL BAPTIZED CHRISTIANS ARE INVITED TO RECEIVE THE HOLY COMMUNION

LORD, LET US PRAY AND WORK TO HEAR YOUR WORD, CHANGE OUR HEARTS
AND GO FORTH TO DO YOUR WILL, EMPOWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT


Dear Friends, September 26, 2011

I hope you are enjoying summer's final weeks, keeping up with prayers and doing God's work daily.
Please be sure to read the faith story in the Gospel lesson at the end of this e-letter.

Please plan to attend the service of Blessing of the Animals on Saturday, October 1 at 5:00. Even if you don't have a pet, this is a wondrous event and the animals seem to know what is happening! And, the next day, October 2, there will be no 8:00 service as we will be celebrating Ascension's 125th anniversary immediately following the 10:00 service. A scrumptious luncheon will follow! If you have not made your reservations, please call the office TODAY and leave message, including your name and the number of people who will be attending with you. $10 per person. Thanks!

Our sexton, Angel Perez, has informed the Wardens that the doors to the outside, as well as some interior doors, are not being locked after people leave. This is a security must and if you are the last one out, or if you think you are, please lock all doors that you used. Thank you.

Yesterday, Rev. Pat prepared a special selection of readings to highlight the meaning of the Ascension, so that we may next week celebrate our Anniversary more meaningfully. We also did some sketching of ideas for the East Wall decor, an ongoing exercise.

Come and gather 'round, as scripture comes to life..
You will be lifted up and rewarded.


We are off to a busy and energetic year with Rev. Pat.
You are personally important to help write our next chapters!
Please make your personal commitment to be present in person on Sunday mornings -
to give Pat your ongoing Welcome, to support her and to share in the promise and fulfillment
of the ministries, old and new, that are to be ours and hers.

please make a note - Rev. Pat wants to hear from us - phone number 732-428-2000 ;
e-mail: patcashman2010@gmail.com ;
mailing address: The Rev. Patricia Cashman, 185 Bennington Hills Court, West Henrietta, NY 14586


Kindly keep in your daily prayers all those in need of healing, those who serve in our military forces and those who travel.
Please also keep in your daily prayers the ministries coming to life and all those who lead them, particularly Rev. Pat.
To assist in our spiritual life, Forward Day by Day booklets are $.85 each in the Tower Room.

Are you important?...YES, YOU ARE!!! .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.
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, to enrich our own life and the life of that person.
Be on the lookout, and ready to share your faith story.

ONGOING REQUEST: the MEEK food cupboard, to feed our brothers and sisters, needs your financial contributions [envelopes in church] and food donations [place items in back of church/Tower Room], and also seeks volunteers to assist in this ministry. Please call Sally Green, 865-1125, if you can assist as a volunteer. Checks, made out to Maplewood Edgerton Emergency Kupboard, may be sent to the Church Office.

CAN YOU ASSIST?? Every Wednesday afternoon, in the Great Hall, volunteers are needed to help with the youth-oriented joint venture with Mary's Place and Nazareth College. Also, drivers will be needed around 6 PM to return participants to Mary's Place on Lexington Ave. Call Rev. Pat to explore this new ministry. This past Wednesday, about 60 people were on hand, with many children. CAN YOU HELP??
.
YOUTH NEWS AND INFO-please note these dates/opportunities and stay tuned every week:

* CHECK OUT the Youth Group Team. DON'T HESITATE TO JOIN IN! Call Rev. Pat. The Church Community
Youth Partnership (CCYP) can use your help.
* Worship & Children, 10 AM Sundays - If you took Safe Church Training, please call Diane Santiago 254-8782 or email Diane57350@aol.com.
* STAY TUNED!!!

ALL ABOARD!! - CARE CLOSET Our new ministry to the neighborhood is off to a strong start.. Would you like to help? Next store hours are Sat, Oct 8, for cleaning supplies. NEEDED: laundry detergent, dish soap, all-purpose cleaner, sponges. Please call Nancy Lennox, 663-5805 or Rev. Pat. Give this a try - You won't be sorry! And youth in our neighborhood will thank you!! This is mission with a real purpose, helping real people.

PLEASE MARK THESE DATES:

September 27 - AA&A [Art, Ascension & Alice] Theology, imagination and fine art discussed, as we learn the story of Ascension. Everyone welcome - no prior study needed. Call Alice for directions. 663-9449
October 1 - Blessing of the Animals at Saturday 5 PM Eucharist. Tell a friend and bless your pet with others!
October 2 - 125th Anniversary Catered Luncheon. Fun and Fellowship. Please Call 458-5423 now . $10/person
October 4 - Women of Ascension invited to join Cathedral Community at Sacred Heart. Rosary and supper, starting 6 PM. Please call Cleo 359-0075 or Ellie 663-5312 or Jan 621-3900
October 6 - Women's Club adventure on Erie Canal.
October 8 - Dream Discussion Group in Chapel @ 3:30 PM, Eucharist at 5.
October 15 - Diocesan event - Opening Our Gifts
October 16 - Crop Walk - details to follow

NEW LOOK! Our Messenger monthly newsletter format is being freshened. Your input of spiritual experiences is needed [pictures are encouraged]!! Check the new feature on page one of a recent edition and please participate. This is part of the New Season of Ascension.

COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS WELCOME!! 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!

COME & SING A NEW SONG!! THE CHOIR WANTS TO WELCOME YOU!!! Do you like to sing? Can you be available Wednesdays [no rehearsal Sept 28] 7:30 - 9 PM and on Sundays 9:15 - 11:30? Please contact John Allegar to discuss. 816-560-2726 or email at John.Allegar@gmail.com

NEW - PASTORAL CARE TEAM to begin. Rev. Pat's is putting together a team to visit those who can no longer come to church. You will be trained to bring communion to those at home. Please pray on this and, if called to answer, phone Rev. Pat to volunteer. In this way, many will be reached.

In addition, there are many who would love a call and an invitation to church. 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. Will you take up this ministry to the glory of God and to our spirits? To explore this, please contact Laurie Phillips, 865-2802 or email LBP@rochester.rr.com

If we wish to learn the true Meaning of Life, grow as Christians and share our love of God, we need to know and be able to share the stories of the Bible. Thursday Bible Study is in the Library at 9 AM. Please 'Come and See'. This is a time for reflection on Jesus’ teachings and how we model our faith to family, friends and all whom we meet. God’s Word guides such a process. Much food for thought and often refreshments to share. The study is of the Gospel Lesson for next Sunday, found below.

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! Many Thanks! Please include this ministry in your daily devotions:

Lord God, let our minds be like Jesus, thinking of others. Help us to exemplify for the prisoners, guards and staff of the Monroe County Facility and Jail, and the NY State Facilities the spirit of obedience to Your Law and the inspiration of the Fulfillment. Make us instruments of Your Love reaching behind bars and barriers.


WISH LIST Can you help? These are needed for ministry.

* Boombox

* Small grand piano or high quality upright or studio piano for the church to assist in worship.


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 icebreaker. So is sitting with a new person and guiding her/him in the service, if this is a

first or second time with us. We never know when we may entertain angels unaware!


Do you have a pocket card to hand to a friend who asks where you go to church? These cards are
on the table in the back of the church. Please take a few and be ready to share. We have some pocket crosses,

also, in the drawer for anyone who answers the call to "Come and See".

This is all part of the Growing Season of God.

Every season offers beautiful music to lift our hearts . Here, in honor of St. Francis Day and

the Blessing of the animals is a version of All Creatures of our God and King:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ureL6INzp3U&feature=related


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. If you would like other kinds of information, or have any suggestions
for this e-letter, please give me a shout. Thanks!

With summer providing a bounty of produce, here is a recipe for Pumpkin Scones.

Healthy and tasty!

[We can also make extra for someone in need of our kindness.]



Blessings and all good wishes,
Dyson
D. Dyson Gay
585-671-0364
dysongy@aol.com

.
Ma Brown's pumpkin scones from New Zealand
________________________________________
These are a great way of using up left over pumpkin.

2 tablespoons of butter
1/2 cup of sugar - part brown or all brown
1 egg
1 cup cold mashed pumpkin [canned in a pinch]
2 cups of white flour
4 teaspoons of baking powder.

Cream the butter and sugar. Add egg and beat. Add pumpkin and beat. Add dry ingredients and mix in well.
Knead the dough and roll out to about 3/4 inch thick. Cut into suitable size pieces. Brush with milk.
Bake at 250C/480F for 10-12 minutes..

*****************************
.
Matthew 21:33-46
Jesus said, "Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. Finally he sent his son to them, saying, `They will respect my son.' But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, `This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.' So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?" They said to him, "He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time."
Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures:
`The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
this was the Lord's doing,
and it is amazing in our eyes'?
Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls."
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.


Have a Blessed Week!

Monday, September 12, 2011

As summer comes to an end

Dear Friends, September 12, 2011

I hope that everyone is enjoying summer's final weeks, keeping up with prayers and doing God's work daily.
Please be sure to read the faith story in the Gospel lesson at the end of this e-letter.

Yesterday, the 10th Anniversary of 9/11, Rev. Pat preached about remembrance, reconciliation and
walking with Jesus as we ask for God's power to bring peace. Our 10 AM service was graced by four
RFD firefighters and two RPD police officers, to each of which groups Rev. Pat presented a quilted flag
of appreciation [by the Ascension Piecemakers - thanks, quilters], after offering a prayer of blessing and
dedication for each.
Come and gather 'round, as scripture comes to life..
You will be lifted up and rewarded.



We are off to a busy and energetic year with Rev. Pat.

But you are personally important to help write our next chapters!

Please make your personal commitment to be present in person on Sunday mornings -
to give Pat your ongoing Welcome, to support her and to share in the promise and fulfillment
of the ministries, old and new, that are to be ours and hers.

please make a note -
Rev. Pat wants to hear from us - phone number 732-428-2000 ;
e-mail: patcashman2010@gmail.com ;
mailing address: The Rev. Patricia Cashman, 185 Bennington Hills Court, West Henrietta, NY 14586

UPDATE re Faith Budget Thanks!... and Please Help... Our response has totaled $10,000+ of the $14,000 budgeted. If you as a parishioner have contributed to the Faith Appeal, thank you!. There are still a few days to send in your note of commitment if you received the appeal letters and have not contributed.

Kindly 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 Tower Room.

Are you important?...YES, YOU ARE!!! .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.
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, to enrich our own life and the life of that person.
Be on the lookout, and ready to share your faith story.


ONGOING REQUEST: the MEEK food cupboard, to feed our brothers and sisters, needs your financial contributions [envelopes in church] and food donations [place items in back of church/Tower Room], and also seeks volunteers to assist in this ministry. Please call Sally Green, 865-1125, if you can assist as a volunteer. Checks, made out to Maplewood Edgerton Emergency Kupboard, may be sent to the Church Office.

WOMEN'S CLUB Next meeting will be Thursday, October 6, on the Erie Canal's Colonial Belle at Noon. Cost is $31.04 per person and everyone, guys and gals, cordially invited to enjoy this. Reservations due by Sept 18th. Come and bring a friend! To sign up, please call Cleo Bell, 359-0075 or Ellie Swarts, 663-5312.


YOUTH NEWS AND INFO-please note these dates/opportunities and stay tuned every week:

* CHECK OUT the Youth Group Team
. DON'T HESITATE TO JOIN IN! Call Rev. Pat. The Church Community
Youth Partnership (CCYP) can use your help.
* Worship & Children, 10 AM Sundays - If you took Safe Church Training, please call Diane Santiago 254-8782 or email Diane57350@aol.com.
*
STAY TUNED!!!

ALL ABOARD!! - CARE CLOSET Our new ministry to the neighborhood is off to a strong start as of Saturday, 9/10. Would you like to help? Please call Nancy Lennox, 663-5805 or Rev. Pat. Give this a try - You won't be sorry! And youth in our neighborhood will thank you!!

SAVE THE DATES - Take up a New Opportunity!
September 13 and 20 - Tuesdays @ 7 PM. Look at Matthew's Gospel anew, for unique details and spiritual guidance. Call Alice for directions at 663-9449. Great new opportunity.
September 14 - Language Enrichment Afterschool starts. This is our joint venture with Mary's Place and Nazareth College. Call Rev Pat to explore how you can help in this exciting new ministry.
September 17 - Dream Group Workshop - If you are interested in your dreams and Personal Growth and Spiritual
Development, please phone Rev. Pat for the upcoming DREAM WORKSHOP on Sept 17 at 3:30 PM, Eucharist to follow.
September 22 - John Allegar Organ Recital, Sacred Heart Cathedral 7 PM. This will be a great concert!
September 25 - IMAGINATION SUNDAY: to prepare for our 125th Celebration on 10/2. On 9/25 bring colored pencils/markers, paper and a clipboard [or something to write on] as we look forward and back ...FUN!!
September 27 - AA&A [Art, Ascension & Alice] Theology, imagination and fine art discussed, as we learn the story of Ascension. Everyone welcome - no prior study needed. Call Alice for directions. 663-9449
October 1 - Blessing of the Animals at Saturday 5 PM Eucharist.
October 2 - 125th Anniversary Luncheon at the Church. Fun and Fellowship.

NEW LOOK! Our Messenger monthly newsletter format is being freshened. Your input of spiritual experiences is needed [pictures are encouraged]!! Check the new feature on page one of a recent edition and please participate. This is part of the New Season of Ascension.


COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS WELCOME!! 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!

THE CHOIR WANTS TO WELCOME YOU!!! Do you like to sing? Can you be available Wednesdays 7:30 - 9 PM and on Sundays 9:15 - 11:30? Please contact John Allegar to discuss. 816-560-2726 or email at
John.Allegar@gmail.com

NEW - PASTORAL CARE TEAM to begin. Rev. Pat's is putting together a team to visit those who can no longer come to church. You will be trained to bring communion to those at home. Please pray on this and, if called to answer, phone Rev. Pat to volunteer. In this way, many will be reached.

In addition, there are many who would love a call and an invitation to church. 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. 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

If we wish to learn the true Meaning of Life, grow as Christians and share our love of God, we need to know and be able to share the stories of the Bible. Thursday Bible Study is in the Library at 9 AM. Please 'Come and See'. This is a time for reflection on Jesus’ teachings and how we model our faith to family, friends and all whom we meet. God’s Word guides such a process. Much food for thought and often refreshments to share. The study is of the Gospel Lesson for next Sunday, found below.

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! Many Thanks! Please include this ministry in your daily devotions:

Jesus you said we must learn to give up our life to receive Life. We pray for

all those who serve others as their ministry and as their careers. We bless them for making the service of others a central part of their life. We especially pray for the volunteers of Cephas some of whom have visited weekly in Attica and other prisons since 1973, after the Attica riots.

Want to help? -

Volunteers Sought for Flu Vaccine Study


Research volunteers are needed for an investigational high-dose flu vaccine study at Vaccine Research Unit. Participants should be 65 or older and in good health.

Participation will require one or two clinic visits and weekly phone calls during flu season. Compensation is available and parking costs will be covered. For more information, call the Medical Center Vaccine Research Unit, 273-3990.

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 icebreaker. So is sitting with a new person and guiding her/him in the service, if this is a first or second time with us. We never know when we may entertain angels unaware!

Do you have a pocket card to hand to a friend who asks where you go to church?

These cards are on the table in the back of the church. Please take a few and be ready to share. We have some pocket crosses, also, in the drawer for anyone who answers the call to "Come and See". This is all part of the Growing Season of God.

Every season offers beautiful music to lift our hearts . Here is a piece in commemoration
of 9/11, that has a most beguiling character

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-JqpQyYNVI

To see some pictures of the Youth Group BBQ, please see link/cut&paste @

http://churchoftheascension.shutterfly.com/#%26emid%3dsite_weeklydigest%26cid%3d

SHARE3SXXXX

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. If you would like other kinds of information, or have any suggestions

for this e-letter, please give me a shout. Thanks!

With summer providing a bounty of sweet tomatoes, here below is a recipe for Fresh Tomato Soup. [We can also make extra for someone in need of our kindness.]



Blessings and all good wishes,

Dyson
D. Dyson Gay
585-671-0364
dysongy@aol.com

****************************
.

FRESH TOMATO SOUP

Printed from COOKS.COM


1 c. (2 stalks) chopped celery
1 sm. onion, chopped
1 carrot, grated
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/4 c. butter
4 1/2 c. chicken broth, divided
1 qt. fresh tomatoes, peeled & chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 tsp. sugar
1/4 c. flour

Saute celery, onion, carrot and green pepper in butter in large heavy pan. Add 4 cups broth, tomatoes, salt, pepper and sugar; heat to boiling. Reduce heat; simmer for 20 minutes. Blend flour with remaining 1/2 cup broth. Stir gradually into soup. Cook until slightly thickened, stirring frequently. Serve hot. Yield: 2 quarts.

.
******************************
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Matthew 20:1-16

Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o'clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; and he said to them, `You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o'clock, he did the same. And about five o'clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, `Why are you standing here idle all day?' They said to him, `Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, `You also go into the vineyard.' When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, `Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.' When those hired about five o'clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, `These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.' But he replied to one of them, `Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?' So the last will be first, and the first will be last."