May 4, 2023

“Hail the day that sees him rise!”

  On Thursday May 18 the Church will celebrate the Feast of the Ascension, one of the seven Principal Feasts. (The others are Easter, Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, All Saints’, Christmas, and Epiphany.) Sadly, event though the Ascension is one of the big seven, it goes largely unnoticed by most Christians. This year the Episcopal Churches of the Eugene-Springfield area will be celebrating the Ascension together. St. Mary’s will be hosting. The evening will begin with a family friendly meal at 5:30 (For RSVP information, please contact the church office.) The worship service will begin at 6:00 pm and a dessert potluck will follow.

  Even though most in the church give the Feast of the Ascension little notice, I hope that we will come and give some attention to building community with our Episcopal neighbors. As our parishes dwindle in size, we are blessed to be in community of several Episcopal Churches with whom we can share community and mission. We are starting by sharing services and Resurrection hosted last year’s All Saints’ Day service. As the months and years go by, I anticipate that the area churches will be doing more and more together, sharing classes, groups, and resources. Each parish is different, but we are stronger and can accomplish more together than apart.