Collection Counters & Ushers ​Collection Counters are responsible for counting and depositing money received as pledges and other donations at all church services. Our team of Ushers always aim to greet members and visitors in a way that makes them feel welcome and included in our church family. If you are a newcomer please ask one of our ushers for one of our "Get Acquainted" information folders.

Get Involved There are many ways to get involved at Church of the Ascension. In addition to attending services , participating in Bible Study , attending fellowship events and dinners , and subscribing to our newsletter , we have many opportunities to get involved in our community! Our Acolyte Guild, Altar Guild, Men's Group, Ushers & Counters, and Women's Group are very active. Read a bit more about each group below! There are also events throughout the year that could use a helping hand - check the calendar to stay up to date on these events, or email the church office at ascension@rochester.twcbc.com to learn more. Acolyte Guild Ushers Altar Guild Women's Group Men's Group Calendar

Services We are glad to offer in-person services each Sunday at 8:00am and 10:15am, with Bible Study beforehand beginning at 9:00 am. ​ We are taking a break from our regular live-streamed services on YouTube and Facebook, but we hope to resume on one or two Sundays a month soon. We also offer a Noonday Prayer service on Tuesdays an 12:00 pm. ​ ​ ​ ​ Passcode: 420173 ​ Music Our services include music lead by Mitchell Miller . Church of the Ascension is the home to one of Rochester's best organs--a Skinner organ donated by a parishioner who purchased it from the Rochester Auditorium more than 50 years ago. The organ has more than 3,500 pipes and attracts many talented musicians. ​ Children's Programs Special programs are offered for children and teens including the Ascension Youth Choir, Sunday School, and new after school tutoring programs designed to help each young person individually . ​ Home Visitation For those who are temporarily or long-term unable to attend in-church services and receive the Holy Eucharist, home visitations can be arranged through the church office (585) 458-5423. Weekly Worship Schedule Noonday Prayer, Tuesday 12:00 pm Wednesdays in Lent, 6:30 pm Eucharist, Sunday 8:00am and 10:15am Bible Study, Sunday 9:00 am

History of Op. 711 Church of the Ascension is the proud owner of notable organ builder E.M. Skinner's Op. 711, built in 1928 in Skinner's Boston workshop. Op. 711 is a large 4 manual instrument in an orchestral style, originally installed in the Masonic Temple of the Auditorium Theater in Rochester. The previous Warren organ at Ascension was rapidly failing, and it was decided in the early 1960's to replace this instrument. Op. 711 conveniently became available, and was purchased by Church of the Ascension in 1966 for $3,000. It was removed from the Auditorium Theater by Roberts Organ Company during that summer. There was insufficient room in the existing chambers, and a second level was built within them to house the greater number of pipes as the organ waited disassembled in semi-trailers. New swell boxes were prepared and installed, and can still be seen protruding from the top of the organ case. The organ was thoroughly cleaned before installation, and was first played in a dedicatory service on June 18th, 1967. A major dedicatory recital was held at 3:00 pm on Sunday November 12, 1967 performed by Charles Brown, then organist and choirmaster. All of this work, encompassing more than $20,000, was generously underwritten by Mrs. Wilhelmina Beach who had been an active member since 1923, in memory of her husband Harry A. Beach. A full list of stops and assists is given below, and a more comprehensive history is available in the church office upon request. ​ Since its installation, Op. 711 has needed very little work besides regular maintenance. Its 3,500 pipes have sounded out joyfully each Sunday, bringing beauty to worship and joy to many. After nearly 100 years of service to the Auditorium Theater and to Ascension, it is in need of restoration in order to safeguard its future with the church. This restoration will entail removing and cleaning each pipe, cleaning the chambers where the pipes are housed, re-leathering all the wind chests to make them airtight, rebuilding mechanisms related to the key and stop action, and finally putting all of the pieces back together. One estimate for this project is $1,550,000. After this work the organ will have a much cleaner, more transparent sound, and it will be more reliable. This restoration would make Ascension a more desirable location for concerts, and indeed a destination instrument for organ recitals. Already the organ is appreciated by the local community including Eastman students, and was recently featured in the national convention of the Organ Historical Society in 2018. For more information on supporting the organ fund please visit our page or contact the church office. Giving Stoplist Skinner Organ Company Opus 711 1928 4 manuals, 50 stops, 56 ranks Moved in 1967 from Masonic Temple, Rochester, New York ​ GREAT ORGAN 16' Double Diapason 61 8' First Diapason 61 8' Second Diapason 61 8' Flute Harmonique 61 * 8' Gemshorn 61 * 4' Octave 61 4' Flute 61 * 2 2/3' Twelfth 61 2' Fifteenth 61 1' Harmonics III 183 8' Tromba 61 * 4' Octave Tromba 61 * Chimes 25 tubes * enclosed in Choir 8' ​ PEDAL ORGAN 32' Resultant -- 16' Diapason 56 16' Diapason (Gt) -- 16' Bourdon 44 16' Salicional (Sw) -- 16' Gedeckt (Ch) -- 8' Octave (Diap) -- 8' Flute (Bdn) -- 8' Cello (So) -- 8' Still Gedeckt (Ch) -- 5 1/3' Octave Quint -- 4' Super Octave (Diap) -- 16' Ophicleide 56 16' Waldhorn (Sw) -- 8' Tromba (Ophic) -- 4' Clarion (Ophic) -- Chimes (Gt) ​ SOLO ORGAN 8' Flauto Mirabilis 73 8' Gamba 73 8' Gamba Celeste 73 4' Concert Flute 73 8' French Horn 73 8' Orchestral Oboe 73 Tremolo 8' Tuba Mirabilis 73 4' Tuba Clarion 73 COUPLERS Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal Choir to Pedal Solo to Pedal Swell to Pedal 4 Choir to Pedal 4 Solo to Pedal 4 Swell to Great Choir to Great Solo to Great Swell to Great 16 Swell to Great 4 Choir to Great 16 Choir to Great 4 Solo to Great 16 Solo to Great 4 ​ Solo to Swell Swell to Choir Solo to Choir Swell to Choir 16 Swell to Choir 4 Solo to Choir 16 Solo to Choir 4 Great to Solo Swell 16 Swell 4 Choir 16 Choir 4 Solo 16 Solo 4 ​ ​ ​ ​ SWELL ORGAN ​ 16' Contra Salicional 73 8' Diapason 73 8' Rohrflöte 73 8' Salicional 73 8' Voix Celeste 73 8' Aeoline 73 4' Principal 73 4' Flute Triangulaire 73 2' Flautino 61 2' Mixture V 305 (17-19-22) (15-19-22-26-29) 16' Waldhorn 73 8' Trumpet 73 8' Oboe 73 Vox Humana 73 4' Clarion 73 Tremolo ​ CHOIR ORGAN 16' Bourdon 73 8' Geigen Principal 73 8' Cor de Nuit 73 8' Viole d'Orchestre 73 8' Dulciana 73 8' Unda Maris (TC) 61 4' Flute d'Amour 73 2 2/3' Nazard 61 2' Piccolo 61 1 3/5' Tierce 61 8' English Horn 73 8' Clarinet 73 Tremolo ​ 8' Harp (TC) pf 4' Celesta pf ​ A DJUSTABLE COMBINATIONS Solo 6 (thumb) Swell 8 (thumb) Great 8 (thumb) Choir 6 (thumb) Pedal 8 (toe) General 6 (thumb & toe) Coupler Cancel (thumb) General Cancel (thumb) Set (thumb) Pedal Combs on Solo pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Swell pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Great pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Choir pistons On/Off ​ REVERSIBLES Solo to Pedal (thumb & toe) Swell to Pedal (thumb & toe) Great to Pedal (thumb & toe) Choir to Pedal (thumb & toe) Great to Solo (thumb) Solo to Swell (thumb) Swell to Great (thumb) Choir to Great (thumb) Solo to Great (thumb) Swell to Choir (thumb) Solo to Choir (thumb) Sforzando (thumb & toe) ​ INDICATOR LIGHTS Choir Swell Shoe - 6 Swell Swell Shoe - 6 Solo Swell Shoe - 6 Crescendo Pedal - 6 Sforzando ​ EXPRESSION Balanced Pedal - Choir Balanced Pedal - Swell Balanced Pedal - Solo Crescendo Pedal

Food Ministry Feeding the body as well as the soul has always been an important part of life at Ascension. We host seven annual dinners: ​ Summer Picnic in the Park, Seneca Park Zoo, August 7, 2022 Lobster Dinner, September, Date TBD Welcoming/Homecoming Sunday, late September Roast Beef Dinner, Saturday, mid-October Christmas Party, Sunday, mid-December Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper, Tuesday February 21, 2023 - 5:00 PM Pasta Dinner, Saturday, mid-March Chicken and Biscuit Dinner, Saturday, late April Please join us in fellowship and food!

Ascension Youth Choir If you love music and are in grades 3 through 10, The Church of the Ascension Youth Choir is for you! Join us for rehearsal to make new friends, learn to sing together, and have lots of fun! AYC learns and performs a diverse and educationally enriching repertoire ranging from traditional sacred hymns to gospel and folk tunes at venues across the Greater Rochester community. Best of all, our program is free of charge. Our team of star volunteers and staff works tirelessly to make sure AYC is accessible to any interested student. For more information on enrolling in our program, or with questions on accommodations for your family (transportation or otherwise), please email or call the church office. ​ The AYC team would like to thank all of our donors for making this ministry possible. If you are interested in making a contribution to our program, please contact our church office at (585) 458-5423. Blessings - we are grateful for you!

Welcome to Church of the Ascension All are welcome in Christ's community Weekly in-person Worship Holy Eucharist, Rite II Sundays at 8:00a m and 10 :15am ​ ​ Our Rector Father Abi John We are pleased that The Rev. Abidhananthar John (Fr. Abi John) h as been installed as our new Rector. Since being called to Ascension, Fr. Abi has begun many important new ministries including his New American ministry, welcoming refugee families in the neighborhoods around Ascension and has overseen the reopening of our Sunday School. He has also been appointed as an advocate to the Global Episcopal Mission Network by Bishop Stephen Lane. ​ Fr. Abi John was ordained in 2004 in the Church of South India. He is blessed with his wife Angeline, who is a qualified post graduate science teacher and worked in India. As a fa mily, with their two children John and Alfina, they are committed to serve the church with the people of God for a meaningful faith engagement. ​ about Fr. Abidhananthar Weekly Worship Schedule Noonday Prayer, Tuesday 12:00 pm Eucharist, Sunday 8:00am and 10:15am Learn more Service Archive Food Ministry Help Out Our Organ Be the first to learn about Ascension news and events by subscribing to our Newsletter

Men's Group The men's group heads up parish clean-up days. They also put on the Shrove Tuesday pancake dinner (the night before Ash Wednesday) and help Kevin Gall with the annual Lobster Dinner.

Altar Guild The Altar Guild would love you to join us. We are a dedicated group divided into teams that rotate the duties on a monthly basis. It involves setting up for services, follow-up after the services, and changing the hangings according to the color of the season.

Location Church of the Ascension is located at 2 Riverside St., Rochester, NY 14613 in the Maplewood Historic District. It is a short walk from beautiful attractions such as Lower Falls Park, Maplewood Park, and the Maplewood Rose Garden. Please click and follow the "directions" link on the map below for Google Maps directions. ​ Driving Ascension is located near the intersection of Lake Avenue and Ridge Road. From downtown Rochester, head north on State Street, continuing to follow it as it becomes Lake Avenue. Turn right into the upper parking lot just past Riverside Street. From the Greece area, follow Ridge Road headed East, turn right at the intersection with Lake Avenue, drive 2.5 blocks south and then turn left into the church lot. From Irondequoit, follow Route 104 headed West, turn left at the intersection with Lake Avenue, drive 2.5 blocks South and turn left into the church lot. ​ Bus Ascension is conveniently located along the 22 bus route from downtown, with the most convenient stop being Lake & Riverside. The church is also less than half a mile from the Ridge & Lake stop on the 40 bus. ​ Parking Ascension has two parking lots. The Upper Lot is directly off Lake Avenue, by the ramp/accessible entrance to the Sanctuary and is the most convenient for attending Sunday Services. The Lower Lot is off Riverside St. and is particularly convenient for events in the Great Hall and accessing many of the important ministries in the Church's lower level (church dinners, MEEK, Care Closet, NA/AA etc.).

The Rev. Abidhananthar John Rev. Father Abidhananthar John, Abi John, has been an ordained priest since 2004 under The Church of South India and currently serves at the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, New York at The Church of the Ascension. He has pastored to both rural and urban congregations in the Madras Diocese and served among the grassroots level for Dalit Christian Communities. For a decade, he has served as the Director of Dalit and Adivasi concerns in the Diocese of Madras for a four- year term. He writes sermons in Tamil to equip the lay leadership towards a bold theological vision. Abi served in nearly 78 parishes in 8 different Pastorates which gave him ample opportunities to have team time with leadership. As the associate director for the lay department in the diocese of Madras, Father served in Saint George’s Cathedral as its associate priest. Under the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, Abi was called as Rector at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church during 2017 – 2018. Here, the issues of poverty, unemployment and drug addiction prevail. He was actively engaged with the local community and paved a way for building hopes to make the American Dream possible for his parishioners. His association with the fire department made some remarkable avenues in the growth of the church, also. Eventually, he was called to be the Priest-in-Charge at Saint James’ Episcopal Church, Watkins Glen and Saint John's Episcopal Church, Catharine, New York. He envisioned many programs during the covid pandemic, especially calling women from both churches to align together with the International Women’s Conference which has been continued since 2017. The last conference was held on Zoom. Abi and Angeline coached the people of God for a meaningful ministry in Schuyler County… Christmas Caroling, Summer School of Love for all children, and sharing Pongal and the feast. Abi wrote the curriculum for the Summer School of Love, involving laity and the public to carry on the vision. The Pongal Festival enhances the plural design of God. Barnie Parker Sharing Shed was begun allowing for food items for poor and needy people to be available, anytime. The International Women's Forum Seminars led to “Women Helping Women” a training for unemployed women sponsored by a grant from the S E District. There have been rural migrant ministries at local dairy farms, Valentine’s Day programs with the elders and widows, a Children's Scripture Program, Portable Gardens for the young children in collaboration with Girl Scouts to bring awareness about our planet and its eco systems. The Learning Pod Program sponsored by the Lions Club helped students during the worst of Covid-19. Community gardens, at both the churches, helped to stock the shed. Free coffee in the winter was handed out during February before school or work. These are some of his initiatives during Abi’s ministry at St. James’ and St. John’s. During his service at Watkins Glen, Abi also helped a youth to discern his calling to do ministry by enrolling at CRCDS. After a two-year contact at Watkins Glen, Abi had an invitation from the Church of the Ascension, and the vestry called him as a priest in-charge on September 13, 2021. Eventually he was installed as the Rector of the Parish on November 12, 2022 after being called in March. He is deeply engaged in the refugee ministry and joyfully works with the people of Ascension in doing effective ministries. Since 2019, Father Abi has been a member of COM and his passion for mission, prayerful and diligent ideas and his experience in the Church do complement the discernment engagement to COM towards a powerful ministerial engagement. He engages with a diocesan team in equipping young people to discern their ministerial call for a passionate ministry grounded with the philosophy of love. ​ He studied under the late Dr. James H Cone, the Father of Black theology, at Union Theological College (Sacred Theology-STM 2014-2016) New York, which envisaged him to do a comparative study between three religious philosophies grounding three great personalities, Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X and Ambedkar. He also did his research on Dalit Christian Reservation, Dalit Politics in Tamil Nadu as well as about the Dalit Religion. In India, he has organized many seminars, rallies, and workshops to educate and empower Dalits to assert their rights. He had his schooling at Dharma Murthy Rao Bahadur Kalevala Cunnane Chetty Hindu Higher Secondary School, Tiruvallur, TamilNadu, India. He is a political science graduate (B.A., M.A., M.Phil.,) from Madras Christian College, Chennai, and completed His Bachelor of Divinity (M.Div.,) at Gurukul Theological College, Chennai. He was an active member of the Student Christian Movement of India and represented it in a political camp held in Italy at Agape Ecumenical Center, Prelim, in the year 2002 as an exchange student. He was a resource person at New York SCM- WSCF team in March of 2014. He achieved the highest level as resource person at the College in the year 2003 and was honored with eight awards in the class. Father Abi John was also awarded the “Derick Prize for Regions” by the Senate of Seram pore in the year 2004. Currently, he is doing his part time doctoral program at CRCDS while Church of the Ascension continues to grow in numbers, programs, and spiritual services which are open to all people of all genders. Beyond his work in the church, he is pursuing a Doctorate at Colgate-Rochester Divinity School, where he studies part-time on his day off. Church of the Ascension is proud to support his endeavors and leadership through loving team wo rk. ​ To be in touch with Father Abi please email him at ascpriest@aol.com .

Acolyte Guild In contemporary Anglicanism, acolyte is a general term which covers not only servers, torchbearers, and lighters of candles but also crucifers, thurifers, and banner-bearers. It usually takes two years for Acolytes to learn all of their duties for the different Church services. Their jobs include the correct use of candles in the service, carrying the cross, assisting the clergy with the Eucharist and Baptism services, receiving the offering and sending people to the altar for Communion. Occasionally, they assist with wedding and funeral services. ​ Upon completion of two years of faithful and dedicated service, a cross on a ribbon is awarded the Acolyte. For each additional year of service, a small cross is attached to the ribbon of the two-year cross.