SEPTEMBER2020 … · 1 day ago · Churchlifeafterthe“blizzard” ofCOVID-19 SEPTEMBER2020...
16
Church life after the “blizzard” of COVID-19 SEPTEMBER 2020 WWW.ASCENSIONPITTSBURGH.ORG LivingThroughthe LongWinterAhead 2 Letter from the Rector Jonathan Millard shares the “blizzard, winter, ice-age” analogy & its translation to our church life 8 Music & Worship Update Update on our worship teams and resources to help you worship at home 4 Sustaining Through Prayer Multiple prayer practices available through Ascension for spiritual sustenance 11 Children’s Ministry Update State of Children’s Ministry and invitations for new par‐ ticipants The Ascent
Transcript of SEPTEMBER2020 … · 1 day ago · Churchlifeafterthe“blizzard” ofCOVID-19 SEPTEMBER2020...
Church life after the “blizzard”of COVID-19
SEPTEMBER 2020 WWW.ASCENSIONPITTSBURGH.ORG
LivingThrough theLongWinterAhead
2Letter from the Rector
Jonathan Millard shares the“blizzard, winter, ice-age”analogy & its translation toour church life
8Music &Worship Update
Update on our worshipteams and resources to helpyou worship at home
4Sustaining ThroughPrayer
Multiple prayer practicesavailable through Ascensionfor spiritual sustenance
11Children’s MinistryUpdate
State of Children’s Ministryand invitations for new par‐ticipants
TheAscent
PAGE 2THE ASCENT
Iwrite this on a warm summer’s day, yet we are inthe middle of a long “winter.” A winter that beganwith the blizzard of COVID-19 that swept throughour city, nation and world near the start of thisyear. The blizzard brought many of our towns and
cities to a near standstill, and much of life as we knew itto a stop. After the blizzard, winter. A long winter. Wedon’t know when springtime will come. Indeed, perhapswinter will prove to be the start of a mini ice age.
I’m very grateful to Andy Crouch, Kurt Keilhacker, and DaveBlanchardwho introduced this analogy of “blizzard, winter, ice-age” in their article, “Leading beyond the blizzard: Why everyorganization is now a startup,” published in The Praxis Journal.
As a church we, like so many other organizations, have had topivot, making decisions in days that might otherwise havetaken months. Since our regular pattern of corporate worshipwas put on hold on March 12th a lot has changed.
This month’s Ascent highlights how ministry and mission arecontinuing at Ascension in this long winter of the pandemic. Asyou will see there are many and varied opportunities for us tocontinue to worship God, serve others, and stay connected.
As I look back on the last five months, I am deeply grateful forour church family, and for staff, vestry, clergy and lay leaders,for so many who have worked hard, expressed support andbeen gracious and understanding. THANK YOU.
Notwithstanding all that is good in the ministries that havebeen sustained and all that we have to look forward to, I don’tthink anyone thinks this is ideal. Far from it. We truly lament allthat is lost, especially for our children, young people, and theelderly. For so many in our congregation, neighborhoods, andworkplaces this has been a season with many losses, sickness,death, strained relationships, and unfulfilled longings. We areplanning a Service of Lament in October to mark these realities.
There are no shortcuts through grief and in the months aheadthrough this long winter I pray that we will bring our disap‐pointments and longings before the Lord. Let the cry of thePsalmist be on our lips: “How long, O Lord?”
Reflecting on Psalm 13, The Rev. Nicky Gumbel, in The Bible inOne Year, writes:
“In [this] psalm we see four things that you should continue todo during difficult times:
• Keep praying - David continues to cry out to God, ‘Look onme and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes’ (v.3).He pours out his heart to God. Don’t give up praying evenwhen God seems far away.
• Keep trusting - ‘But I trust in your unfailing love’ (v.5a). ‘I’vethrown myself headlong into your arms’ (v.5a, MSG). It is rela‐tively easy to have faith when things are going well, but thetest of faith is when things do not appear to be going well.
• Keep rejoicing - He does not rejoice in the trials, but inGod’s salvation. He says, ‘my heart rejoices in your salvation’(v.5b). ‘I’m celebrating your rescue’ (v.5b, MSG).
• Keep worshipping - In spite of everything he has beenthrough, David is able to see the goodness of God: ‘I will sing tothe Lord, for he has been good to me’ (v.6). He remembers allthat God has done for him.
As you begin to praise and worship God, it brings perspectiveto your problems. Sometimes, I find it helpful to look back onmy life and thank the Lord for bringing me through so many ofmy own personal struggles, disappointments and bereave‐ments, and to remember how through it all ‘he has been goodto me’ (v.6).
Lord, I worship you today. Thank you for your goodness to me.For all the battles ahead, I trust in your unfailing love. [Amen]”
By JonathanMillard, [email protected]
Living Through theLongWinterAhead
PAGE 3THE ASCENT
Service of LamentLament offers us a way to turn our deepest pain into prayer beforethe Lord. When Christians lament, it is an act of worship. And Godknows there has been untold loss and suffering this year: some aremourning the death of loved ones; all have been affected by theglobal pandemic. Racial oppression, political polarization, and eco‐nomic uncertainty have left many deeply troubled and/or hurt.Marriages have been strained, relationships damaged, and dreamsshattered. How are we to respond to all this misery and sorrow?We lament.
On October 28th we will gather as a community of faith to pourout our grief, pain and longings to the Lord as we seek his healingpresence, mercy and love. More details will be provided in thecoming weeks.
How long, O LORD?Will you forget meforever?How longwill you hideyour face fromme?How longmust I takecounsel in my soul andhave sorrow in myheart all the day?Psalm 13:1-2; ESV
PAGE 4THE ASCENT
The Anglican tradition offers us a wealth ofprayer practices that unite us to God (and withone another) and sustain us spiritually. At As‐cension we offer daily, weekly, and monthlyopportunities for prayer. Here are some of the
ways you can participate:
Daily PrayerMorning PrayerMonday through Friday teams of Ascension members lead dailyprayer. This offering is available on our Ascension website viaour YouTube channel. (While it is intended as Morning Prayer,you can access it any time of day that works for you.) In additionto praying a confession, psalms and collects (a form of prayerthat includes an address to God, a petition and a conclusion), wealso hear whole portions of God’s Word, plus a brief reflectionon the day’s scriptures. Importantly, we have the joy of seeingvarious church friends as they lead us. Morning Prayer typicallytakes about 15-18minutes. Check it out: https://www.ascension‐pittsburgh.org/join-us-monday-through-fridays/.
Weekly PrayerThe Great LitanyThe word litany means prayer or supplication and refers to astyle of prayer that follows a pattern of petitions or requests,followed by fixed responses. It is a form of prayer for “occasionsof solemn and comprehensive entreaty” (2019 BCP p. 99). TheChurch has long turned to this type of prayer in times of nationalanxiety or disaster – what an appropriate prayer practice “forsuch a time as this.”
Beginning Wednesday, September 16th and continuing for tenconsecutive weeks, we invite you to join in praying the Litany“live” via Zoom. On Wednesdays, the call will open at 6:45pmwith a prompt start at 7pm. Join us once or join us for many. Ittakes about 15 minutes to pray. Please email me for details.
10For@4: Weekly Zoom Prayer GatheringsWhen COVID-19 caused us to suspend meeting together physi‐cally, we activated an online weekly Zoom prayer meeting:10For@4: HealthcareWorkers (Wednesdays). 10For@4 is short‐hand for “Ten minutes of prayer for a particular group at 4:00pm.” We now have two additional groups: 10For@4: Children &Youth (Tuesdays) and 10For@4: Peace, Justice and Racial Recon‐ciliation (Thursdays).
These prayer times follow similar pattern: co-leaders open bypraying a collect, then we offer prayers for individuals, followedby “one word” prayers for 3 - 4 specific needs, and, closing witha scripture verse and a spontaneous prayer. If you are interestedin praying with us, please email me for more information.
Monthly PrayerOpen Air Soul Care: A Quiet Morning for Spiritual Reflectionin the CourtyardIn this season of hyper distraction and persistent stress, it is dif‐ficult to settle ourselves – our minds, bodies and souls – enoughto enjoy the Lord’s presence. Yet we can help one another slowdown, get quiet and seek God when we gather together.
We are offering three opportunities this fall for quiet morningsof attending to our hearts and souls. Think of these as mini re‐treats. Our time will include space for silent prayer, scripturereading and individual reflection. We will also enjoy the beautyof God’s creation in the courtyard.
Each Soul Care session will have a different theme. Register forone, two or all three. Space is limited; registration is required.Wewill meet in the Courtyard 9:30 - 11am on the following Satur‐days: September 26, October 24 and November 21. Register us‐ing the Congregational Care Hub (https://www.ascensionpitts‐burgh.org/being-the-body-of-christ/).
Ongoing PrayerPrayer RequestsEach week our intercessory prayer team (trusted people ofprayer) prayerfully intercede for requests that come to us fromthe congregation. Team members receive a weekly update ofprayer requests and praise reports. To honor confidentiality, in‐tercessors are provided with the first name and last initial ofthose seeking prayer, followed by a summary of the need or re‐quest (if requested, requests may be offered anonymously or forthe ministry staff only). The intercessors pray for requeststhroughout the week. We join you in prayer, trusting in the Lordto minister to your needs.
To submit a praise report or prayer request, send an emailthrough the Congregational Care Hub https://www.ascension‐pittsburgh.org/being-the-body-of-christ/ or please email me.
Prayer Practices thatUnite and Sustain UsBy AndreaMillard,Directorof PrayerMinistry&[email protected]
PAGE 5THE ASCENT
By MarilynChislaghi,[email protected]
We have been pleasedto welcome 26adults into mem‐bership since thepandemic began in
March. Our membership classes wentvirtual, and we’ve been pleased thatthese efforts have been blessed ofGod.
The next Explore Ascension class (viaZoom)will be held on Thursday, Septem‐ber 17 at 7pm. This class is for all thosewho are new to Ascension, who wish tofind out more about Anglicanism in gen‐eral or Ascension in particular. It is alsopart of the pathway to membership.Please register for the class by emailingMarilyn and she will send you the Zoominvite.
The class is in two parts. The first part in‐volves one hour of homework. Severalvideo clips on important moments in An‐glican history are on a dedicated playliston Ascension’s YouTube channel. Partici‐pants are asked to watch the videosprior to the class. The Zoom class will lastfor an hour and 15 minutes. JonathanMil‐lard will lead participants in a discussionof key distinctives of the “Anglican way”and of Ascension in particular. There willbe opportunity for questions. Those whowish to become members will be askedto fill out a membership application andwill then meet one-on-one with one ofour clergy prior to being welcomed toAscension in one of our services (or vir‐tually if that is the preference).
The next new
members class is
Thursday, September
17 at 7:00 p.m.
PAGE 6THE ASCENT
AdultDiscipleship
Community Groups
The Christian life was nevermeant to be lived alone.The scriptures - Old andNew Testament - indicatethat God’s primary way of
working in the world is through thepeople of God, the community of faithrelated to him and to one another. TheNew Testament is full of “oneanother” passages (love one another,bear one another’s burdens, forgiveone another) indicating the impor‐tance and the nature of a life livedtogether.We aremeant to be “individ‐ually members one of another” as theone body of Christ (Romans 12:5), sothat together we may encourage andenable one another on the path of dis‐cipleship and witness in the world.
At Ascension, the spaces we have createdto foster these intentional and purposiveinterpersonal relationships among thebody of Christ are Community Groups(CGs). We encourage every member andevery regular attendee of Ascension tojoin a group. We have 25 groups (andgrowing!) meeting all over the city (for amap see the Community Groups page onAscension’s website at www.ascension‐pittsburgh.org). The groups are diverse interms of when they meet and how theyorganize their activities, but each CGloosely follows the pattern of the earlychurch: fellowship, sharing a meal, wor‐ship, study, and prayer (Acts 2:42-6).
If you are interested in being connectedwith a group in your part of town, pleasesend me an email or sign up on the Ascen‐sion website!
ConfirmationConfirmation is a step all members of As‐cension are encouraged to take. In confir‐mation, we make a mature confession offaith, publicly renewing the vows andpromises made at Baptism. But we alsoask the Holy Spirit for daily growth in wis‐dom, courage, and humility before God inevery aspect of our life and work, to re‐ceive a fuller measure of the Holy Spirit’spower and blessing to fulfill your commis‐sion as a follower of Jesus to serve as hiswitness to the ends of the earth. In prepa‐ration for confirmation, an 8-monthcourse is offered, which includes meetingonce a month (via Zoom for the time be‐ing) and exploring topics such as exploringthe history and theology of Anglicanism;spiritual gifts; vocational flourishing;sacramental theology; and living a life ofprayer and worship. These classes will betaught by the Ascension clergy. Althoughthese class sessions are primarily for thosewho are going through the confirmationprocess, they are open to all interested inthese topics.
We will be meeting for the course on thesecond Tuesday of each month from 7– 8pm (beginning on Tuesday, October13). We will kick off the course with a“Meet and Greet” in person (safely dis‐
tanced) after church on Sunday, October11, giving us a chance to meet one anotherbefore we move to the Zoom platform.
Confirmation will take place on AscensionSunday May 16, 2021. Our Bishop will bepresent to lay hands upon your head andpray for “daily increase in the Holy Spirit”to strengthen you for the calling of bap‐tism (Preface to Confirmation). In Scrip‐ture there is a rich theology that groundsthe liturgical practice of the laying on ofhands. Laying hands upon a person is away of giving them a particular job or of‐fice (Numbers 27:18ff; Deuteronomy 34:9;Acts 6:6) and in Acts the apostles prayednew believers to be filled with the HolySpirit with the laying on of hands (Acts8:17-18; 19:5-6). In this sense the bishopsolemnly directs all confirmands to carryout their worldly vocations (their task oroffice) to the glory of God by the power ofthe Holy Spirit.
If you are interested in participating inthese class sessions please contact me orAndrea Millard (andrea.millard@ascen‐sionpittsburgh.org).
By KarenStevenson, [email protected]
PAGE 7THE ASCENT
Porch PodsYouthMinistryUpdateByAlex Banfield-Hicks, Director of Youth and [email protected]
When we first had to shut the doors of ourYouth Group space in March, the teamtransformed an empty room into alivestream studio! Look at our CAYGYouTube channel to find the early produc‐
tions, followed by an excellent nine-week series calledNEAR, and notice how much shorter our hair was then.
As soon as the weather improved, we switched from smallgroups meeting on Zoom to backyard Bible studies meeting inthe open air. Thanks to CAYG Summer DirectorWesWilliams forhis insightful Bible study guides into the Book of Acts that re‐sourced nine different Bible studies happening throughout theweek and across the city. Thanks to our other Summer Director,Sam Ferguson, for leading a team in no less than three of these.And thanks to the Cagwins, Sams, Scandretts, Stouts, Tinkers,and VanderMolens for hosting some of these groups on theirproperties! Six months into doing Youth Ministry in “Covidtide”,what have we learnt?
• Small groups, which were a vital part of traditional CAYG atAscension, are now essential for we cannot meet in biggroups anymore.• Meeting in person is much better than online when it comesto cultivating friendships, engaging with the scriptures, andpraying together.• More air is better than less, so we meet outdoors and main‐tain a safe distance.• Apparently, it can rain quite a bit in Pittsburgh.
So, what will Ascension’s Youth Group experience look like in thefall? Canwe continue tomeet in small groups, in person, outside,and not get rained on?
Over a hundred years ago the architects of Craftsman stylehomes in Pittsburgh’s East End must have had us in mind! And Iam thrilled that families around Highland Park are sharing theirporches with us! Porch Pods is the plan for CAYG in the fall!
Just as iPods presented a new opportunity for listening to musictwenty years ago, Porch Pods are a new opportunity for all of usat CAYG to learn to listen to God and to each other. CombiningScriptural discovery and group spiritual direction, with oneleader and about five “CAYG-ers”, Porch Pods will be starting aten-week series the weekend after Labor Day. Middle SchoolPorch Pods will be meeting from 7 - 8:30pm on Fridays and HighSchool Porch Pods from 7:30pm on Sundays. Leaders will gatherfor a physically distanced dinner on my covered back patio be‐fore we head off to our various Porch Pods.
We potentially have up to fifteen porches available to us, but Iwould love you to pray that:
• A sufficient team of leaders will be raised up to lead thesePorch Pods• Chefs will be willing to cook dinner for one of these Fridayor Sunday evenings.
Please contact me if you would like to find out more.
PAGE 8THE ASCENT
The last several monthshave seen a significantshift in the opportunitiesavailable to musicians andartists in our church. Not
only has the pandemic made it ill-ad‐vised to gather in large groups, butone of the primary ways in which weare accustomed to worshiping to‐gether, namely singing, appears tocontribute to the spreading COVID-19.
So what do we do—as ministry membersand a congregation—when our familiarframework for worship feels like a houseof cards?We lean hard on the foundationand cornerstone of our faith—JesusChrist. We listen to the Spirit, and thosearound us, for new and fresh perspec‐tives. Then, we live well in this season,praying that we would be the like theperson the psalmist described: “the one...who going through the valley of miseryuses it for a well.” (Psalm 84:5-6)
These pages contain some of the waysthat each area of the Music & WorshipArts Ministry will be leaning, listening,and living well with one another this Fall.Unless otherwise indicated, please emailChris Massa for more information.
Music &WorshipArts:
Nesting intheWell
Carol Amidi, Bird’s Nest in a Well, 2020.
By Chris&EliseMassa,Director&AssociateDirectorofMusic&WorshipArtsMinistry
Worship at Home Resources
Spotify PlaylistListen to songs for the season and newsongs that we hope to introduce to thechurch. Search for "Ascension Pitts‐burgh" to find the playlist!
(un)Ordinary TimeA free art devotional by Ascensionartists for the season’s lectionary read‐ings. Download from our new website,and follow Church of the Ascension onInstagram for weekly posts.
Song StoriesAll music in our worship services has astory.You can read the stories for theupcoming week’s music by going toour website, or following Church of theAscension’s Facebook Page.
PAGE 9THE ASCENT
Music &WorshipArts
Music TeamSmaller teams will continue recording on Saturdays. Play a stringedinstrument?We'd love to talk to you! Also, members can join our "Al‐bum of the Month" discussions of various genres and music, recom‐mended by fellow ministry members. In August, we shared ourthoughts on Urban Doxology's title album (right). September? EricClapton's Unplugged!
Choirs (Adults & Kids)Join us for the first ever virtual choir season! The adult choir willstrive to sing one virtual hymn or anthem a month. Weather permit‐ting, there may also be opportunities to sing outside. For childrenPre-K and up, contact Jane Banfield Hicks ([email protected]) to see how the children may be leading our congregation inworship this year.
Worship ArtistsUnited Adoration (UA) is a non-profit that seeks to empower artists,and the local church, to create art that is meaningful to their commu‐nities. Bi-weekly Creative Sessions invite artists of all disciplines tocreate based on a particular theme, and receive feedback from otherartists. Monthly Worship Art Shares (1st Fridays) is a space to sharethe fruit of the Creative Sessions, or non-related projects. Join theSlack Workspace UA-Creates, and look for the channel #UA-Pitts‐burgh. Email Elise Massa for more info.
NewWebsite: https://sites.google.com/view/ascensionmusicandworshiparts
PAGE 10THE ASCENT
Making College Countin COVID-Times
In theworld of collegeministry,the beginning of the fall se‐mester is like waking up onChristmas morning full of ex‐citement and anticipation. The
students we have come to know andlove so dearly are rejoining us, andthere are new students who areeagerly beginning their collegecareers. Usually I'd be telling youabout all of the events and activitieswe have planned to meet new stu‐dents and welcome them into theVenite family. However, this yearthings are going to look different.
While we still intend to meet, welcome,and invite students to Venite and Ascen‐sion, the COVID-19 pandemic forces us toreevaluate all of the plans and strategieswe've typically relied on. Thankfully, wehave had some opportunities this sum‐mer to experiment - following all theproper safety protocols, of course - andhave been able to begin imagining whatcampus ministry could look like for thefall 2020 semester.
One of these experimental events wasour "Make College Count" day away atLaurelville at the beginning of Augustaimed at helping rising freshmen startthinking about the transition from highschool to college. We went on a journeyof self-discovery, asking ourselves thequestion, “Who am I?” as we worked to‐gether through a variety of low ropes ini‐tiatives. We competed in a metaphoricalphoto scavenger hunt as we sortedthrough our motivations and desires all
bound up in the question, “Why am I go‐ing to college?” We spent some time insilence and solitude reflecting on “Whodo I want to become?” And we circled upto pray for one another, commissioningour students for their upcoming semes‐ter. Though there may have been bound‐aries we had to work with - wearingmasks, physical distancing, staying out‐doors - it was encouraging to see thatnone of these prevented or limited thework of the Spirit of God in the heartsand minds of these students.
Nothing, not even a pandemic, can stopGod’s work. We can still pray for andwork toward the Kingdom to come “onearth as it is in heaven.” Though we stilldon’t knowwhat exactly is in store for uswith this fall semester, this experiencehas helped to give us some new and cre‐ative ideas as to what is possible as wellas uplift our spirits because more is pos‐sible than we had initially thought. Weare hoping to continue utilizing outdoorspaces and activities for our Venite gath‐erings as long as the weather allows usto and as long as there are students herein Pittsburgh.
If you’re a college student looking to getconnected in a faith community, we’dlove to have you join us! Please reach outto me. We can’t wait to meet you!
Venite CollegeMinistryUpdateBy LeahHornfeck, Associate forYouth and [email protected]
PAGE 11THE ASCENT
Children’sMinistryBy CatherineSlocum,Directorof Children’[email protected]
The first few months of thepandemic
Through the initial monthsof the pandemic, Children'sMinistry at Ascension hadto radically shift delivery ofour children’s program but
has continued to strive to teach thelove and grace of God to our youngestmembers.We have had a ton of partic‐ipation from all kinds of people onmany fronts. It has been fun to watchconnections develop and the programunfold. Here is a glimpse of what hashappened so far.
Each Sunday morning children are invitedto participate in Kids’ Church (AscensionYouTube channel) beginning at 9:30am.Here are some highlights: The children areencouraged to memorize a weekly Bibleverse and we often hear from a few kidswho memorized the verse that week. Wealso feature an adult teaching the upcom‐ing verse. We spotlight a member of thecongregationwho provides ideas for waysto grow and learn. We have heard fromvisual artists, an organist, a weaver, a doc‐tor, a composer, gardeners, meal makersand others! We have also had variousmembers of the congregation share somereally fun songs. Last but not least, wehave come to know Sally Lolly, a puppetcharacter who helps with the ‘liturgy’ andwho has come to be loved by kids and par‐ents alike.
During our corporate livestream serviceour pastors give an interactive children’s
talk. Beforehand, the children have beenasked to send in recorded responses. Thetopic of the children’s talk often syncswith the theme on the weekly Sunday Pa‐per activity sheet which is available on ourwebsite.
Every week a prayer team (meeting viaZoom) is lifting our youngest members upin prayer along with their families.
To learn more about these opportunitiesplease email me or join our private Face‐book group, Ascension Children's Ministry,for updated information and fun videosfor the family.
As we enter the ‘pandemicwinter’In September we will enter the seventhmonth of the pandemic. It isn’t goingaway quickly, and as Father Jonathan ar‐ticulated in his cover article, it has beenlikened to a long winter. After careful con‐sideration of all factors, it was determinedthat we should not have an in-person chil‐dren’s program this fall. While this is cer‐tainly disappointing, during this ‘winter’we will continue everything that we havedone to date, doing our best to keep upand even increase the quality of our Kids’Church program. I have been blown awayby the participation to date from musi‐cians, presenters, videographers, andthose praying for the children each week.If you would like to volunteer in some ca‐pacity this fall, please reach out to me.
Let me offer two more invitations. If you
would like to chat about the joys or diffi‐culties of this season as you navigate itwith your children, please reach out to me.If you would like prayer, please reach outto me. I am reminded that in times pasthouseholds prepared carefully for seasonsof winter, stocking their pantry shelveswith all kinds of necessities. I am confidentthat God will not only provide all we needfor this winter we did not foresee, butsomehowwill bring about flourishing dur‐ing these days as we continue to proclaim,in all the ways that we currently can, whoHe is and what He has done for us. He isfaithful. I leave you with Isaiah 55:10 – 11:
“As the rain and the snow come downfrom heaven, and do not return to it with‐out watering the earth and making it budand flourish, so that it yields seed for thesower and bread for the eater, so is myword that goes out from my mouth: It willnot return to me empty, but will accom‐plish what I desire and achieve the pur‐pose for which I sent it.”
PAGE 12THE ASCENT
AscensionMeal Ministry
O.W.L.S.Older,Wiser, Lively Saints!By AnnTefft, [email protected]
The Ascension OWLS Fellowship will begin itsfall speaker series with a Service of Holy Eu‐charist on Thursday, September 10 at10:30am. Jonathan Millard will celebrate andI will give a short homily on “Seeking God’s
Transforming and Healing Power.” Gather your thoughtsby looking over Matthew 9:18-34 and come prepared totell others what you think.
While it will be necessary to be six feet apart and to wearmasks, some fellowship sure beats no fellowship! I know thatmany of us are looking forward to soaking up the beauty ofour worship space once again.While wewill be unable to sing,there will be inspiring instrumental music to sing within yourheart and a celebration of our Lord’s Supper. I welcome yourresponses via email: “Yes, I want to come” or “No, here are mydesires and concerns”. Like most of us, I am looking forward towhen we can once again share lunch and fellowship together.In the meantime, as the pandemic continues, let’s walksteadily and keep our OWLS fellowship active in the waysthat we safely can, so we don’t skip a beat when life as weknow it opens once again.
Since the beginning of the pan‐demic, Ascension’s two mealministries have served 9 indi‐vidual or family units and haveblessed them with almost 100
meals. The Soul Food Meal ministry wascreated two decades ago for those grievinga loss, suffering an illness, or in some otherneed.
The Newborn Meal Ministry is for those whohave recently added a child to their family. Wehave included a picture of little Peter, born toYuyu and Qin who immigrated to the US fromChina and have no family support in Pittsburgh.The community group they belong to and thewider meal ministry of Ascension were incredi‐ble blessings to Yuyu and Qin. In their ownwords, “We couldn't imagine what it would be
like if we didn't get help from everyone, espe‐cially for the first few weeks! With everyone'shelp, we are back on our feet now.”
Jill Shook coordinates both meal ministries anduses electronic meal registries to efficientlycommunicate the needs of an individual or fam‐ily to those participating. We have need for afewmore cooks. And, if you don’t want to cook,gift cards can be sent or meals can be orderedand delivered. During the pandemic safety pro‐tocols have been in place surrounding the me‐chanics of delivery and all have been safe thusfar. If you want to sign up for this ministry,please email Jill directly at [email protected]. Participants engage as they are able. Maythe Lord bless you as you serve!
PAGE 13THE ASCENT
Special NeedsMinistry
As the rain and the snow comedown from heaven, and do notreturn to it without wateringthe earth and making it budand flourish, so that it yields
seed for the sower and bread for theeater, so is my word that goes out frommy mouth: It will not return to me empty,but will accomplish what I desire andachieve the purpose for which I sent it.(Isaiah 55:10 – 11)
I have been thinking a lot about these versesin light of all that has been limited by virusconcerns this spring and summer. For ourspecial needs group, we certainly do missgathering together in person for CapernaumClub each month and WINGS on Sundaymornings. We miss doing our work in theparish hall and participating in the service bywalking up the offering. And like everyone,we miss singing with the congregation in thesanctuary!
Beginning in July, and continuing through thefall, we have been using the Stories of God’sPeople from the Godly Play curriculum tolearn more about God’s Word together. Eachweek wemeet on Sunday morning at 9:30am(via Zoom) to visit and to pray, and to takesome time to look at God’s Word presentedas a visual story. Each person is invited toshare something in their house that mighthelp tell the story. In this way, we havelearned more about God’s love for us, andalso learned more about each other. God cer‐tainly has been faithful to us by being nearduring these times! A weekly video lesson isposted on Ascension’s website for our friendsand their caregivers to watch when they areable.
If you would like to participate in the weeklyZoom calls, or support and encourage ourFriends with special needs by writing lettersor an occasional phone call, we would love tohave you join us! Please contact me for moreinformation!
By KeiraFuener,Directorof [email protected]
PAGE 14THE ASCENT
InternationalMinistryBy LuAnnPengidore,Directorof [email protected]
If you are an international thatis living, working, studying,visiting or supporting familymembers in Pittsburgh, pleasejoin us in one of these activities
at Ascension and get to know otherinternationals and members at As‐cension. If you are interested ingetting more information on any ofthe programs or activities listedbelow, or if you want to volunteer insome capacity, please contact me!
First Things First:Introducing a Couple of ourStudents!
Anastasia Goldina and her husbandMikhail are both art lovers and antiquedealers. They resettled in Pittsburgh fromMoscow three years ago and have beeninvolved at Ascension for two years.Anastasia speaks seven languages andchallenges herself to keep improving.Anastasia has taken three classes at As‐cension and then began to help with theMonday morning class led by LuAnn
Pengidore and Timmy Podnar. She hasalso led two art museum field trips andhas led an online Norman Rockwell dis‐cussion. Mikhail has attended Bible dis‐cussion classes with Chris Thieman andRobin Capcara and has one on one con‐versations with Ann Tefft. We are veryhappy to get to know them and theyhave really been an asset to the program!
English as a ForeignLanguage Classes this FallMonday, Wednesday, and Thursdayevenings from 6:30 – 8pm
The International Ministry will have 12different classes from levels 0-6 thatmeet twice a week with 26 teachers andassistants leading. These classes includebeginner, intermediate, advanced con‐versation, idiom, and reading and discus‐sion classes. All of our classes will meetonline this fall. Testing will take place inperson the first twoweeks of September.
Safely Distanced Bi-weeklyField TripsThis fall, the international ministry willcontinue to take safe biweekly field tripson Friday nights or Saturdays around thePittsburgh area. This summer, we havetaken all kinds of field trips, including thefollowing:
• 2 outdoor history tours, one of Oaklandand the other of downtown Pittsburgh
• 2 bicycle trips along the Allegheny riverand around Moraine State Park
• Tour of the summer flower show atPhipps• Tour of the Carnegie Art Museum photoexhibit by Le and Teeny Harris• Hike through Schenley Park• A visit to the Westinghouse Memorialwith Melita Carter (who worked forWestinghouse)• A virtual tour of the Strip District• A career counseling workshop withJoan Anson• An online discussion of Norman Rock‐well paintings with Anastasia Goldina• A discussion of healthy eating accom‐panied by a summer salads & wrapscooking class with Jen Conlon• An Independence Day picnic on July 4thwith several Ascension families
English Learner Bible Stud‐ies OnlineThere are many studies of Scripture in‐ternationals are invited to attend!
PAGE 15THE ASCENT
• Join Meg Sateia and Jess Bennett for a study of Proverbs onMonday mornings at 10:45am.• Join Barb and Jim Franzen on Monday evenings at 7pm asthey go through books of the Bible.• Join a graduate study with Robin Capcara on Tuesday morn‐ings.• Join Timmy Podnar in a small group study that goes throughmuch of the Old Testament and sees the promise of the Mes‐siah. Time is to be decided.• Join a Wednesday night study with Josh and Jess Bennet at5pm.• Join a Thursday night intermediate study with Ann Tefft andDenise Bozich.
Community GroupsInternationals can join one of the Venite groups for those whoare college aged. There are also young professional groups in theEast End or Squirrel Hill.
Conversation Partners OnlineMany members of Ascension meet weekly online with one stu‐
dent and discuss the news or holidays or topics that studentsfind interesting. This is a great way to increase English languagecompetency!
Church on Sundays, a Discussion Group,and Walks in the NeighborhoodSome of us (teachers and students) attend church from 10 -11:15am on Sunday mornings and often go for walks too. As witheverything in the pandemic, we wear masks, sit 6 feet apart andmaintain safe distance on our walks. We also hope to add a dis‐cussion group in the Hunt Courtyard immediately following theservice.
Prayer Group FormingI am looking for 3 - 4 people whowill commit to pray for our stu‐dents, classes, teachers, and any special needs we have. Thiscommitment is for the academic year – fall and spring semesters.If you would like to participate and receive email updates fromme, please contact me.
People Still Need to Eat:Meal Ministry in a Pandemic
Staying at home is a good choice for many to staysafe with disease spreading in our city. But someof us do not have a home, and others cannotstock theirs with food to eat. Many were in pre‐carious economic straits before the pandemic,
and now their situations are worse. With all this, ourchurch remains committed to serving meals to those inneed.
We continue to provide meals for East End Cooperative Ministry(EECM) once a month and for Shepherd's Heart on the Sundayswe reserved last December (approximately 6 times this year). Intotal, on an annual basis, we prepare the equivalent of approxi‐mately 1440 meals distributed to both of these great ministries.
Volunteers are still welcome for this work.We cook in the churchkitchen where we can spread out, and we wear masks. To main‐tain sufficient distance, we have no more than three householdsrepresented. Cooks from different families remain apart. How‐ever, members of a single family, who do not maintain distanceat home, can work close together. Most recently, we have beenmeeting to cook in the kitchen on Sundays after the 10amlivestream service, but in some cases we can cook at other times.
Total cooking time varies between 1 and 3 hours, depending onwhich meal we are preparing--sometimes we cook both to‐gether. But folks can leave whenever they need to. Kids are mostwelcome. If you would like to watch a great visual of this min‐istry in motion, please see Episode 10 of Ascension Kids’ Church,available on the Ascension YouTube channel!
One part of the work, alas, is not safe with the disease: we canno longer serve themeals ourselves. So, at EECMwe drop off thefood at 5:30pm Tuesday for the staff to serve to the residents. AtShepherd's Heart we cannot go upstairs to the sanctuary wherethe meal is served, but we can help the staff by transferring thefood into take-out containers (about 120 of them!) in their largekitchen on the 1st floor.
Here are our remaining cooking dates this year. Please contactme if you are interested.
Sunday Sept 27 EECM and Shepherd's HeartSunday Nov 1 Shepherd's Heart onlySunday Nov 22 EECM only
By [email protected], 412-452-1935
PAGE 16THE ASCENT
AWorshipping Community;Equipping God’s People; Sharing
Christ’s Healing with a BrokenWorld
AgapeYearBy ErikaTwitchell, Co-Director,[email protected]
Agape Year is an eight-month long Anglican, mis‐sional gap year for recenthigh-school graduatesbased in Pittsburgh. It
seeks to anchor young adults in thestory of God through the family ofGod to live their lives as citizens of thekingdom of God. Co-directors Nateand Erika Twichell worship at As‐cension and are missionaries with theSociety of Anglican Missionaries andSenders (SAMS).
A Different Goodbye:Agape Year 3.0It was a sticky summer afternoon. Ipoured the leftover morning coffee overice, grabbed the computer, sat down onthe much too warm sofa while starting aZoom meeting. Soon, Nate, completewith his Covid beard, appeared on thescreen, soon followed by Christian. Wehad sent our missional fellows, Nate andChristian, home in mid-March amidst theunexpected upheaval of the pandemicwithout our usual time of wrap up andpreparation for what lay ahead. We hadhoped to bring them back to Pittsburghthis July for a proper goodbye and debriefbut had to cancel those plans as cases
surged throughout the country. As I satin our living room and as they sat in theirown homes many miles apart connectedvirtually, my heart was heavy with disap‐pointment. This was not how it was sup‐posed to be.
While Covid-19 changed what was “sup‐posed to happen” for Agape Year in thespring and summer, it did not, nor couldit, change the powerful work that Godwanted to do in our fellows’ lives. As wesat with our fellows via Zoom, we re‐called the ways in which God had beenpresent, the seeds that He had planted,and the work that could not be undone.This work was evident in Nate and Chris‐tian’s reflections on the ways they expe‐rienced belonging to the family of God.Through worshipping at Ascension,building friendships through the VeniteCollege Ministry, serving alongside theYouth Group and International Ministries,they saw the kingdom of God in livingcolor. Thank you for your Christ-like wel‐come to our fellows. That welcome hasrippled across their identity in Christ.
A Hopeful Welcome: Intro‐ducing Agape Year 4.0This fall we will welcome four missionalfellows into our community. Our year will
look different in light of Covid-19. We willnot be able to worship with you in thesame way as we have in the past. Wehave adapted some of our ministry part‐nerships. We will travel less broadly, butdive into God’s work here. One thing weare certain of: God will show up. He willcome close to us. He will speak and wepray our missional fellows will have earsto hear, eyes to see, and hands to act.Will you join us in praying for each ofthese young adults? Help us to watchand pray. Jesus, prepare our hearts towonder.
Aidan FindleyNashville, TNAvid guitarist and classic rock enthusiast
Ethan AlbertDavison, NCEnneagram expert and lover of hoodiesweatshirts
Eva DidotHarrisonburg, VACrepe maker and entrepreneur extraordi‐naire
Amara BaileyAliquippa, PAResident artist and fashionista
WorshipServices
Website
Address
Phone/Fax
About TheAscent
Sunday 10:00 am Livestream on YouTube with walk-throughEucharist from 11:30-12:30
4729 Ellsworth Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15213
(412) 621-4361 / (412) 621-5746
www.ascensionpittsburgh.org
The Ascent is published monthly by Church of the Ascension.Marilyn Clifton Chislaghi, EditorKristen Parise, Publisher
