Church of the Ascension

The Holy Spirit continues to be active in our lives and in the Church pouring out His grace and leading and guiding the Church. We open our hearts to receive His grace, peace, healing and guidance.

Please join Father Daniel Kearney in
celebrating Mass for Pentecost Sunday.
 
https://youtu.be/rYrrZqsdiQo

To pray for a spiritual Communion, please click on the link for that prayer.

Prayer for Spiritual Communion - https://archny.org/acts-of-spiritual-communion/

El Espíritu Santo continúa activo en nuestras vidas y en la Iglesia derramando Su gracia y guiando a la Iglesia. Abrimos nuestros corazones para recibir Su gracia, paz, sanación y Su luz.

Únase a Padre Daniel Kearney para celebrar la Misa del domingo de Pentecostés.

https://youtu.be/f3UdSz4xcUk

Para pedirle al Señor una comunión espiritual haga clic en el enlace de esa oración.

Oración para comunión espiritual -

https://es.aleteia.org/2018/09/29/no-puedes-recibir-la-comunion-mira-como-hacer-una-comunion-espiritual/

Dear Parishioners and Friends
of Ascension,

Today is Pentecost Sunday and it is the last day of the Easter Season. Pentecost celebrates the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and upon the church. The word Pentecost, meaning 50, derives its name from the Feast of Weeks, a Jewish festival of the early harvest celebrated 50 days after Passover. Early Christians reinterpreted the Jewish festival as a commemoration of the coming of the Spirit. On Pentecost Sunday, as we celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we call to mind the gifts of the spirit that we have already received. The use of our gifts release the power of the Spirit. Remember, we receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit every time we are at Mass. When the priest, through the ancient gesture of extending his hands over the bread and the wine, and as the Spirit is invoked, the Spirit doesn’t come down just upon the bread and wine. Rather, the Spirit is again outpoured over each of us. The Spirit is a generous gift of God! Pray today, that the spirit may guide us in using our gifts well for the service of others.

While there have been some very mixed signals coming from government leaders, churches in the Archdiocese of New York are not open as of yet for the celebration of mass. While it was very easy to shut down all churches, the process of re-opening churches is much more complex.

Some guidelines have been issued from the Archdiocese of New York. We here at Ascension are meeting and discussing what the reopening of our own parish will look like. We want to create an environment in which everyone will feel safe (this will include all principles of social distancing.) We will continue to update you through our parish website, and I will continue to communicate with you as more information becomes available about some possible dates for reopening.

In the meantime I can share with you the phases that will take place for the reopening of parishes. These phases have been set up by a team of pastors of the Archdiocese of New York.

These are the phases for reopening:

Phase I – Churches Open for Private Prayer and Confessions (We are currently in Phase 1).

Phase II - Celebration of Baptisms and Marriages (limited to 10 attendees).

Phase III - Celebration of the Rite of Distributing Holy Communion Outside of Mass.

Phase IV – Celebration of Daily and Funeral Masses with Limited Attendance.

Phase V – Celebration of Sunday Mass with Supervised Attendance, Resumption of Full Parish Mass Schedules and Sacramental Activities.

Again, please keep in mind that no dates have been set.

In the meantime, I invite you to continue praying for the many parishioners of Ascension parish who have been affected, and infected with the virus, and the many parishioners who have died.

Peace, Fr. Kearney 

Queridos Feligreses y Amigos de la Ascensión,

Hoy es domingo de Pentecostés y es el último día de la temporada de Pascua. Pentecostés celebra el gran derramamiento del Espíritu Santo sobre los apóstoles y sobre la iglesia. La palabra Pentecostés, que significa 50, deriva su nombre de la Fiesta de las Semanas, una fiesta judía de principios cosecha celebrada 50 días después de la Pascua. Los primeros cristianos interpretaron la fiesta judía como una conmemoración de la venida del Espíritu. El domingo de Pentecostés, mientras celebramos el derramamiento del Espíritu Santo, recordamos los dones del espíritu que ya hemos recibido. El uso de nuestros dones libera el poder del Espíritu. Recuerde, recibimos la efusión del Espíritu Santo cada vez que estamos en misa. Cuando el sacerdote, a través del antiguo gesto de extiende sus manos sobre el pan y el vino, y cuando se invoca al Espíritu, el Espíritu no baja justo sobre el pan y el vino. Más bien, el Espíritu nuevamente se derrama sobre cada uno de nosotros. ¡El Espíritu es un generoso regalo de Dios! Ora hoy, para que el espíritu nos guíe en el uso de nuestros dones para el bien y por el servicio de los demás.

Si bien ha habido algunas señales muy mixtas provenientes de los líderes del gobierno, las iglesias en La Arquidiócesis de Nueva York aún no está abierta para la celebración de la misa. Mientras, fue muy fácil cerrar todas las Iglesias, el proceso de reapertura de Iglesias es mucho más complejo.

Se han emitido algunas pautas de la Arquidiócesis de Nueva York. Nosotros aquí en Ascensión nos estamos reuniendo y discutiendo cómo será la reapertura de nuestra propia parroquia. Queremos crear un entorno en el que todos se sientan seguros (esto incluirá todos los principios de el distanciamiento social.) Continuaremos actualizando a través del sitio web de nuestra parroquia, y continuaremos comunicándonos con usted a medida que haya más información disponible sobre algunas fechas posibles para reapertura.

Mientras tanto, puedo compartir con ustedes las fases que tendrán lugar para la reapertura de parroquias Estas fases han sido establecidas por unos seis u ocho pastores de la Arquidiócesis de Nueva York.

Estas son las fases para la reapertura:

Fase I - Iglesias abiertas para oración privada y confesiones (Actualmente estamos en la Fase 1).

Fase II - Celebración de bautizos y matrimonios (limitado a 10 asistentes).

Fase III - Celebración del Rito de Distribución de la Sagrada Comunión fuera de la Misa.

Fase IV - Celebración de misas diarias y fúnebres con asistencia limitada.

Fase V - Celebración de la Misa dominical con reanudación de asistencia supervisada de la parroquia completa Horarios de Misas y actividades sacramentales.

Nuevamente, tenga en cuenta que no se han establecido fechas.

Mientras tanto, los invito a continuar orando por los muchos feligreses de la parroquia de la Ascensión, quienes han sido afectados e infectados con el virus, y los muchos feligreses que han muerto.

Paz, Padre Kearney

• SATURDAY:4:00 PM to 5:00 PM Bi-Lingual

Rev. Daniel S. Kearney  
Pastor

Rev. Raymond Rafferty  
In Residence

Rev. Daniel Le Blanc  
In Residence

Rev. Msgr. Thomas Shelley
Sunday

Mr. Nelson Falcon
Parish Deacon

             Michael Elmore            Sacristan

1. NYCWell for mental health care (offered in 200 different languages) 

Call 1-888-NYC-WELL or 1-800-621-4673.

Text ‘well’ to 65173 or go to nyc.gov/nycwell for more information. 

2. ThriveNYC mental health programs are available online and/or virtually a. To learn more follow the link https://thrivenyc.cityofnewyork.us/ 

3. Please see hyperlinks for new COVID-19 guides, including: 

Is It Anxiety, a Panic Attack, or COVID-19? b. Grief and Loss During the COVID-19 Outbreak c. COVID-19: Staying Connected With Friends and Family 

4. Centralized COVID19 resources 

‘Text ‘COVID’ or ‘COVIDESP’ (for Spanish) to 692692 to sign up for alerts b. Follow the conversation on Twitter at #AskMyMayor c. nyc.gov/coronavirus d. https://access.nyc.gov/coronavirus-covid-19-updates/ e. https://www1.nyc.gov/site/helpnownyc/get-help/individuals.page 

5. NYC Meal Delivery Assistance for those who cannot access food 
https://cv19engagementportal.cityofnewyork.us/#/display/5e7555117ad6750216160409 

Free meals are available to every New Yorker at over 400 locations 

Text ‘NYC FOOD’ or ‘NYC COMIDA’ to 877-877 for more. b. Free halal meals are also available at these sites. 

More info at http://schools.nyc.gov/ramadanmeals 

To access SNAP (food stamps) 

Go to https://www1.nyc.gov/site/hra/help/snap-online-shopping.page 

NYC COVID-19 Pet Hotline 1-877-204-8821, 8 – 8 pm, seven days a week. 9. NYC-Care for low-cost and no-cost health care services 

If you can’t get insurance, get an NYC Health + Hospitals member’s card. b. Beyond providing critical services, including for emergencies, get: a doctor, affordable medications, help during emergencies, and more 

Call 646-692-2273 (excellent customer service in 250+ languages) 

10. Citywide testing sites for people most at risk 

Open to 1199 workers, health care workers, and residents over 65 b. Call 1-888-OneMED1 or go to onemedical.com & use code NYCCARE30 

11. Geriatric mental health and other senior programs 

1-212-AGING-NYC (212-244-6469) 

12. On March 27th, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that COVID19 health treatment would NOT be considered under the Public Charge rule (https://www.uscis.gov/greencard/public-charge) a. It will not impact your ability to apply for a green card or citizenship 

13. DACA recipients needing help filing or paying for renewals 

Call ActionNYC at 1-800-354-0365 

14. Contact the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs for any other questions 

Call 212-788-7654 (9 am to 5 pm, Monday – Friday) b. Email AskMOIA@cityhall.nyc.gov 

15. NYC domestic violence hotline & borough family justice centers for domestic violence 

General domestic violence hotline:1-800-621-4673 

Family justice center Brooklyn: 718-250-5113 ii. Family justice center Bronx: 718-508-1220 iii. Family justice center Manhattan: 212-602-2800 iv. Family justice center Queens: 718-575-4545 

Family justice center Staten Island: 718-697-4300 

16. Benefits for those out of work OR have had their hours cut. If you recently lost your job or had your hours cut, you're likely eligible for unemployment benefits.

Follow the link for more. https://access.nyc.gov/faq-for-pandemic-unemployment-benefits/ c. And for more information https://on.nyc.gov/2XSLFLj 

17. NYC Taxi is hiring licensed TLC drivers to deliver food to New Yorkers 

Pay is $15/hour, plus mileage and toll reimbursement. b. Sign up at http://nyc.gov/deliverytlc 18. For more information about public school remote learning, activities for students, and technical support a. Go to schools.nyc.gov/LearnAtHome 

19. New webpage full of resources for those people with disabilities 

Visit: https://www1.nyc.gov/site/mopd/resources/covid-19-resources-for-people-with- disabilities

20. Get free financial counseling – secure and confidential a. Book an appointment at http://nyc.gov/TalkMoney 

21. FREE WeSpeakNYC weekly online language classes. Practice your English, make new friends, and learn about services for immigrant residents during the COVID19 outbreak. Sign up at http://wespeaknyc.cityofnewyork.us/wsnyc-online-classes/ 

22. Services for NYC Housing Authority (NYCHA) residents a. Go to http://on.nyc.gov/nycha-covid-19-resources b. Free face coverings, gloves, and sanitizer c. Free door-to-door meal distribution for seniors d. Regular check-in phone calls for seniors & vulnerable residents. e. Thousands of free tablets being delivered to seniors. 

23. Student loan debt tips during COVID-19 

https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dca/consumers/Student-Loan-Debt-Tips-During- COVID19.

24. Freelancers in NYC facing nonpayment issues can file a complaint 

Learn more: https://on.nyc.gov/34hE22g 

For those who are still in a financial position to do so, may we please invite and encourage you to seriously consider supporting Ascension through Faith Direct.  It is safe, simple and convenient. It gives you the option to contribute using a debit card or credit card or your checking or saving account. You can also go directly to this link: https://www.ascensionchurchnyc.org/httpsmembershipfaithdirectnetgivenowny588

Para aquellos que todavía están en una posición financiera para hacerlo, podemos invitarlos y alentarlos a considerar seriamente apoyar Ascensión a través de Faith Direct. Es seguro, simple y conveniente. Le da la opción de contribuir utilizando una tarjeta de débito o crédito o su cuenta corriente o de ahorro. Puede inscribirse en Faith Direct (un sistema automatizado de regalos) visitando el sitio web de nuestra parroquia en ascensionchurchnyc.org. Hay una pestaña en la esquina superior derecha para Faith Direct. También puede ir directamente a este enlace:

https:// www.ascensionchurchnyc.org/ httpsmembershipfaithdirectnetgivenowny588

https://www.wsj.com/articles/pandemic-deepens-catholic-churchs-financial-crunch-from-vatican-to-parishes-11587736691?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=1

FULL TEXT BELOW:

Pandemic Deepens Catholic Church’s Financial Crunch,
From Vatican to Parishes

As coronavirus closes doors, Church loses revenue sources and priests turn to online giving

By Francis X. Rocca | Photographs by Diana Zeyneb Alhindawi for The Wall Street Journal
Updated April 24, 2020 1008 am ET

ROME—The coronavirus pandemic has dealt a blow to the Catholic Church’s finances, threatening its extensive charitable activities and leading bishops and parish priests to slash expenses and seek funds elsewhere.

The impact of the pandemic, which has pulled the global economy into a likely recession, has been felt at the highest levels of the church. The Vatican has temporarily lost its largest single source of income, the Vatican Museums, since their closure last month. The museums typically receive more than six million visitors each year, yielding revenue of some €40 million ($43 million).

“The principal problem for the Catholic Church is that it is asset rich but liquidity poor,” said

The Rev. Anthony Stoeppel, who teaches church finance at St. Patrick’s Seminary and University in Menlo Park, California. “The pope could in theory sell St. Peter’s Basilica but unless he does so he doesn’t have that money.”

Robin Klueber organized the food pantry at the Church of the Ascension on Thursday. Donations have enabled the pantry to provide for the needy twice as often.

The Vatican also normally earns between €40 million and €50 million in rents on real estate properties, mostly in Rome, but those are also likely to diminish during a recession expected to last well beyond the reopening of the Italian economy, now slowly under way. The Vatican has said it would consider requests for reductions in rent payments from tenants suffering hardship.

The Rev. Augusto Zampini, a member of the pope’s task force on the coronavirus, told reporters on Thursday that the Vatican was tapping emergency financial reserves during the crisis and that some senior officials had offered to take pay cuts to ease the financial pressure.

The economic downturn aggravates a dire situation for the Vatican. Pope Francis urged officials last year to address the Holy See’s gaping budget deficit. The bulk of the pope’s world-wide annual charity collection wasn’t going to the poor but being used to plug the deficit, The Wall Street Journal discovered.

In response to the current shortfall, the Vatican has cut costs through various measures, including a freeze on hiring and promotions, a ban on most overtime work, the cancellation of conferences and the suspension of business travel, according to Vatican officials. Pay cuts or layoffs of the Vatican’s approximately 5,000 employees aren’t on the table, the officials said.

The congregation at the Church of the Ascension includes many elderly people with low incomes, making the switch to online giving dificult. Longtime congregant Roberto Rodan prays there daily.

The Vatican regularly receives financial assistance from bishops in rich countries, particularly in the U.S., Germany and Italy, the three top sources of an annual gift from bishops that regularly yields more than €20 million. But church institutions and donors in those countries have also been hit by the current crisis.

In Germany, the Catholic Church’s medical and social service operations make it one of the country’s largest employers, funded largely by a government-collected church tax that brought in more than €6.6 billion in 2018. The current economic crisis will reduce those payments by a large though still unknown amount, said Matthias Kopp, a spokesman for the German Bishops Conference, in part because church taxes aren’t paid on state-backed furlough payments.

In Italy, the Catholic Church’s principal source of funding is a small percentage of income-tax payments that taxpayers can designate for charity. Almost 80% choose the Catholic Church, providing it with more than €1.1 billion last year. Almost €220 million of this money, most of it earlier slated for church construction and maintenance, is now being dedicated to pandemic- related relief, said Stefano Proietti, a spokesman for the Italian bishops conference.

The suspension of Masses in Germany and Italy has in effect cut off weekly collections—a leading source of funding for parishes, which in both countries are responsible for many of their own expenses. Few are equipped to receive donations online.

By contrast, almost 90% of the 17,000 Catholic parishes in the U.S. have some method of accepting online giving, according to a 2019 survey by I Give Catholic, an online platform. But that survey also found that 50% of parishes receive less than 10% of their annual donations online.

U.S. Catholic parishes in recent years have raised more than $5 billion a year through weekly collections from their members, according to Mark Gray of the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University.

Since all dioceses in the U.S. suspended public Masses last month, parishes have rushed to add an online-donations feature or promote it to their members.

“We’ve seen double and triple activity in demand” since late March, said Jim Weigert of Our Sunday Visitor in Huntington, Indiana, which provides payment systems for Catholic parishes across the country. “It’s supercharged the adoption level...from optional, nice-to-have to something you absolutely have to have.”

About 80 of the 195 Catholic dioceses in the U.S., for the most part in rural areas, aren’t self- supporting financially and frequently lack the infrastructure for online contributions, said Kerry Robinson of the Leadership Roundtable, which promotes the adoption of best practices of management and finance in the Catholic Church.

Ms. Robinson said her group has been working with I Give Catholic to channel donations to such dioceses in response to the pandemic. The initiative has raised more than $50,000 since it was launched last month, she said.

Father Kearney, at the Church of the Ascension, said a Small Business Administration loan enabled his parish to retain employees.

Even in New York City, the prevalence of such practices varies by neighborhood. The Rev. Daniel Kearney, pastor of the Church of the Ascension in Morningside Heights, whose congregation includes many elderly people with low incomes, said fewer than 90 of the more than 1,000 parishioners who attend Sunday Mass give online.

Across the Archdiocese of New York, total weekly donations have gone down by half, representing a decline of about $1 million a week, according archdiocesan spokesman Joseph Zwilling. Other dioceses and parishes across the country have placed employees on furlough since the start of the coronavirus emergency.

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has experienced a drop of more than 40% in weekly giving, or approximately $2 million, according to the archdiocese’s vicar general, Msgr. Albert Bahhuth.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan warned Catholics in New York last month that the archdiocese might have to cut wages temporarily, but that option isn’t yet under active consideration, Mr. Zwilling said.

Father Kearney said that his parish qualified for a Small Business Administration loan under the Payroll Protection Program, for which faith-based entities are eligible, and has thus been able to retain its two full-time and several part-time employees. As many as 15% of U.S. Catholic parishes have been able to maintain their pre-pandemic income thanks to the PPP, said Ms. Robinson.

A reminder to take the Catholic Climate Covenant St. Francis Pledge for behavior change (sponsored by the bishops)
https://catholicclimatecovenant.org/program/st-francis-pledge

A video from Pope Francis about Laudato Si week May 16 - 24, 2020 
                             https://laudatosiweek.org

We invite you to watch this 1 min. video:

Pope Francis invites the Church to celebrate Laudato Si’ Week

PRECAUTIONS FOR ALL
AS RECOMMENDED BY
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS/PROFESSIONALS

Sanitize your hands as frequently as possible -- prefereably with soap and water or hand sanitizer.

Keep a safe social distance from those around you to prevent the spread of germs.

If you are not feeling well, please stay at home.  

Reduce the risk of exposure to the elderly and those with existing immune issues.

Avoid touching eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

Cough or sneeze into your elbow (not your hand) and cover your mouth when your cough or sneeze with a tissue then throw the tissue in the trash.

PRECAUCIONES PARA TODOS

Lavarse las manos con agua y jabón con mucha frecuencia. 

Mantenga una distancia social segura de quienes lo rodean para evitar la propagación de gérmenes.

Quédese en casa si no se siente bien. ¡Dios lo entenderá!  No es ningun pecado para no asistir la misa si está enfermo o por razones serias. 

Reduzca el riesgo de exposición para los ancianos y las personas con problemas inmunes existentes. Exhorte a sus vecinos a tomar precauciones y cuidarse también.

No deben tocar sus ojos, su nariz ni su boca con las manos sin lavarse las manos primero.

Tosa o estornude en su codo en vez de su mano, o cubra su tos o estornudo con un pañuelo desechable y luego bótalo en la basura.