C H U R C H O F T H E A S C E N S I O N, 1 K I N G S L E Y A V E, S I N Y

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1 Vol 3 issue 3-36 September 20, 2018 Our mission is to celebrate God s transforming Love in Jesus, by following where Jesus Love is calling us to serve the community C H U R C H O F T H E A S C E N S I O N, 1 K I N G S L E Y A V E, S I N Y Ascension This Week My sisters and brothers, the Church is the family of God, the body of Christ, and the temple of the Holy Spirit. All baptized people are called to make Christ known as Savior and Lord, and to share in the renewing of his world. (From The Examination.) On Sunday, September 23 we return to two services: 8 am Said Eucharist. Fr Bill Baker will be our celebrant. -10 am Sung Eucharist. Mo DeLillis will be our celebrant. 11:15 Coffee Hour Inside this issue: This issue is devoted to Bill Baker s ordination to the priesthood, at the Cathedral on September 15, the party at the rectory that evening, Fr Bill s first mass and the picnic in his honor on Sunday, September 16. Many thanks to those who sent photos and wrote about these events! Please go to the Church of the Ascension webpage to see more photos. A chronicle of the ordination service is on the next page.

2 Page 2 On Saturday, September 15, 2018, 27 friends and parishioners from Ascension, St. John s and St. Paul s traveled to The Cathedral of St. John the Divine to witness William Michael Baker (now to be known as Father Bill) be consecrated a priest of the Episcopal Church. The service started promptly at 10:30 AM with the magnificent organ booming out Christ is made the sure foundation, as the very long procession came down the aisle. First the 10 candidates with their presenters: Father Bill was in the lead with his presenters- his father, Mr. James Baker, Ms. Clara Sanzetenea and The Rev. Alejandra Trillo, both from Iglesia San Andres, Yonkers. The next group comprised supporting clergy and finally The Rt. Rev. Andrew M.L. Dietsche, Bishop of New York. The service began with the Bishop questioning the presenters and ordinands whether the candidates had satisfied the requirements of ordination and were qualified to be ordained. The ordinands then signed a declaration that they do solemnly engage to conform to the doctrines, disciplines, and worship of the Episcopal Church. The Bishop then turned to the congregation, asking Will you uphold them in this ministry? ( We will! ) The scripture readings and Gospel continued the theme of being called to serve God and how each of us are given grace according to the measure of Christ s gifts to equip the saints for the work of ministry. This was not just about the ordinands. This is about you & me! ( Gulp. ) The Rev. Anna Pearson, Rector of the Church of the Holy Apostles, Manhattan gave a fascinating sermon about her daily experiences as a priest in Manhattan walking from her apartment to her church a few blocks away and the varied encounters she has with people on the street who see her in her clerical collar. The encounters range from rude to respectful, but her reaction to them was always kind. It made me wonder how we as laypeople might alter our interactions with people we encounter on the street if we knew that they knew we are Christians- just by looking at us? Would you treat people differently? After the Bishop s Examination of the Ordinands, they were consecrated as priests. (You can view Father Bill s consecration, which is posted on the Church of the Ascension s Facebook page.) At the Offertory we sang Here I am, Lord which we also sang at Father Bill s First Mass on Sunday morning. Communion followed, and many of us were fortunate to be sitting in a section where Father Bill was assigned to assist with Communion. The service concluded with Lord, you give the great commission, once again encouraging the newly consecrated priests in their ministries. The entire weekend was a tremendous beginning to Father Bill s ministry, but also a new chapter in Ascension s life on Staten Island. I hope that as God calls all of us to new challenges, our answer will be: Here I am, Lord. Beth Brown, Warden

3 Page 3 Left: The choir sang God of Great and God of Small as a offertory anthem. Below: Cindy McCloskey sang a solo verse. "poem about a special mass" A holy day a holy hour a holy year a holy flower beyond the stained glass windows you sang to my soul to eternity to love to peace to joy welcome to this church 1,000 welcomes and prayers endlessly singing themselves through stained glass windows and candle light footsteps to the alter day and night and your spirit sang to me and to the church with prayers that breathe And when Spring comes a holy flower stands to where you sang where you began thank you for blessing me and all those souls and prayers that breathe when I'm in need I'll call your name and through holy flowers to peace and rain thank you by Eva Tortora

4 Page 4 Many of us, both young and old, were honored to be part of the service on Sunday.

5 Page 5 Fr Bill s parents on the left they travelled from California to be here for his ordination. Bill Sorensen, the birthday boy, on the right. The picnic was splendid! Father Bill's picnic was surely a success! All those prayers for good weather certainly worked out for us! There were so many people, I made so many new friends! I shook Father Bill's hand for the first time! I updated everyone on how my writing is going, and found a lot of motivation in the hearts of friends at the picnic. I want to write more and more, and become more successful! The food at the picnic was the tastiest things I'd ever known! One tasty bite after another! I'm on a special diet, and there were so many things that I could eat! The barbeque was really fun, and everyone had lots of hot dogs and hamburgers! The spread of food was amazing. People worked so hard to cook delightful treats! There was even a raffle going in the front of the church, and coffee and rolls downstairs. I appreciated the meal and the day and thank you thank you thank you to the church. I did get some raffle tickets, that was exciting! Worth the excitement, for sure! Thank you again! EVA TORTORA

6 Page 6 At the picnic and the party on Saturday evening, we had the pleasure of meeting Fr Bill s friends and relatives who travelled from Omaha and other places to be with him on this day.

7 Page 7 Last call: News from the Diocese- As we have donated to Puerto Rico, Haiti, Mexico and other areas of natural disaster, the South Indian state of Kerala has suffered from serious flooding caused by the extraordinary rains during this year s monsoon season. Ascension will be sending an Outreach donation to the Diocese this week. If you haven t already contributed and would like to please make your check payable to Church of the Ascension and indicate India on the memo line. Thank you for your contribution. 1 Kingsley Ave, Staten Island, NY Find us on Facebook@AscensionChurchSI Visit us on the web at

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