Welcome! We are looking forward to a great upcoming year. Our programs help young people to encounter Christ and follow Jesus. We seek to partner with parents by providing young people a formation program where they experience Christ through the sacraments, prayer, devotions, and dynamic instruction which fosters an active and conscious participation in the Christian life.
Our Programs:
K4C on Sunday mornings from 10:00am to 11:00am for Pre-school 3 and 4 year old’s and Kindergarten students.
Weekly Youth Faith Formation for 1st – 6th Grade every Wednesday from 5:30pm to 6:45pm. (Parent/Child gathering on last Wed. of each month).
Family Formation (1st Wednesday of the month) from 6:00pm to 7:30pm K-6 Grade (parents come to the parish hall and kids to the classroom).
Year I Confirmation -7th grade – Sunday evenings from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. We increased the price to provide for food and other supplies.
Year II Confirmation (S&L) – 8th grade (must be in Year I before you can register for Year II) from 6:30pm to 8:00pm each Sunday evening. We increased the price to provide for food and other supplies.
A Modified Catechesis of the Good Shepherd format will be offered from 5:30pm to 6:45pm on Wednesdays for 1st and 2nd Grade (2nd grade can choose between the CGS or regular classroom format).
By Registering online you commit to:
~ Bringing your child each time we meet.
~ Allowing us to occasionally post pictures on our website/social media of your child (no names will ever be mentioned).
*We apologize for any inconvenience, but the Teen Volunteer Sign-up is currently full. If you would like to be added to our waiting list, please sign-up below. Thank you for your interest!
October is the month of the Rosary, with the feast of our Lady of the Rosary occurring on October 7th (which also happens to be the first Sunday of the month this year). This is a precious time to grow in our devotion to Mary as the Queen of the Rosary and, through the mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary, to come to know and love Christ our Savior. In honor of the Rosary, we are putting a challenge out to the Ascension community, to get as many families as possible to pray the Rosary. If your family can commit to one Rosary, that’s great. If you can commit to more, even better. The point of this challenge is just to pray the Rosary as a family. The power of prayer knows no limits. Thank you for signing up and may God bless you abundantly.
Greg Bole has worked for years with individuals seeking to become US citizens and other legal considerations immigrants encounter. Greg shared some of his experience and answered questions as our guest speaker on June 13th, 2017.
As Catholics, we know we are expected by the teachings of the Lord to love and offer hospitality to those in need. We are also called by our Lord to protect the innocent. Do these commands create an irresolvable tension when it comes to immigration and Islam? Listen to Dr. Troy Hinkel, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Mission for the Holy Family School of Faith offer principles of discernment for Catholics on this sensitive yet crucial issue.
Recorded live Friday, March 31st at Church of the Ascension.
Our Parish Council has recommended this year that Ascension offers a series of presentations on various issues happening in society today. We’ve called it the “Hot Topics Series”.
Below are a list of resources from our first night.
Meg Meeker, M.D., mother and pediatrician said this about how boyhood is at risk today:
As parents, we know that boyhood has been changing-for the worse. We remember when boys use to go trout fishing, sitting under a tree while daydreaming about the future, and now we fear that our boys are cutting themselves off from us with iPods, earbuds, and computer porn. [As parents] we grimace as our boys are inundated with cheap, nasty dialogue and graphic images that reflect cheap, nasty values and an impoverished imagination….Outwardly we go about our work but inwardly we hold our breath. Are our boys in trouble? If so, are they in more danger than past generations? Yes, and most definitely yes. But unlike some psychologists, sociologists, and educators, I believe that the trouble hurting our boys stem from three major sources: lack of close relationships with men (particularly fathers), lack of religious education, and aggressive exposure to a toxic media that teaches boys that the keys to a great life are sex, sex, and a bit more sex – and a whole lot of money and fame…We must be willing to see that our boys need isn’t simply more prescriptions, more money, more activities. What they need is us. You and me. they need parents who are willing to take a good hard look at what their sons think and what they are doing. They need fathers who will embrace their sons and watch them with the eyes of schooled hawks…The world has grown sad for our boys. But the good news is: we can bring them back. We can reinstitute some of the joy of boyhood for them, and we can ease their pressures (even the ones we think are beneficial for them, like earning good grades to get into an Ivy League school) by giving them the freedom to be boys: to simply enjoy pickup games of basketball in their neighborhoods, to find that save acreage of woods where they can hike and imagine, and to have that home library where classic adventure books await. To read more check out Meg Meeker’s book Boys Should Be Boys
You make the greatest and most lasting impact upon your children’s lives. We live in a society that does not value faith like they value education and extra-curricular activities. At your child’s Baptism the priest said:“You have asked to have your child baptized. In doing so you are accepting the responsibility of training him (her) in the practice of the faith. It will be your duty to bring him (her) up to keep God’s commandments as Christ taught us, by loving God and our neighbor. Do you clearly understand what you are undertaking?” You responded: “I do”. Jesus Christ is calling you as parents to help your child be the person that God created them to be and to help them get to heaven. Heaven, is the central goal for your child and everything else follows.
This page hopes to encourage you as parents and provide helpful tips, ideas, articles about parenthood and faith formation:
Receiving Sacraments is a vital expression of who we are as followers of Christ.
God desires more than anything to give us his life – His very life is received through the 7 Sacraments. A Sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace. The Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist are traditionally received during the 2nd grade year (although older children and adults also receive these sacraments each year). The Sacrament of Confirmation is Traditionally received in the 8th grade year. Below is information about Sacramental Preparation at Church of the Ascension.
The Role of Parents:
The faith formation of children and their preparation to celebrate thesacraments is primarily the responsibility of parents. Father Andrew, as pastor, faith formation coordinators, catechists and the parish community share this responsibility and assist parents to bring their child to the fullness of a life of discipleship through prayer, support, formal catechetical programs and preparation processes.
Parents prepare their children for sacraments by first serving as an example through their own regular participation in the Sunday Eucharist, their own modeling of prayer and service, and their active participation in the life of the parish community.
Parents have the privilege, right and responsibility to be intimately involved in preparing their children for sacraments.
Parents are expected to attend parent sessions so that their ability to participate in the preparation of their child to receive the sacrament is enhanced.
First Reconciliation & First Eucharist Preparation
Preparation for a child’s First Holy Communion is 2 years. Children are to be registered in School of Religion one yearprior to their reception. For most child this means being in 1st grade classes prior to their 2nd grade year.
Preparation for Reconciliation and First Eucharist includes:
Weekly attendance at Sunday Mass
Attendance and active participation at weekly class.
Participation in sacramental preparation sessions (Forgiveness Day and Jesus Day)
Completion of parent/child home assignments
Providing a copy of the child’s Baptismal certificate (if not baptized at Ascension)
Participation in parent/child rehearsals
All candidates who have received the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist are encouraged to continue receiving the Eucharist weekly and to receive the Lord’s gift of forgiveness when needed (a few times a year is recommended)
The Sacrament of Confirmationis a gift of the Holy Spirit which confirms our initiation in Christ which began at Baptism and calls us to be witnesses of Christ’s life and love. It also completes the Sacraments of Initiation. It is the beginning of the next step in ones spiritual journey.
2 Year Program
We have a two year preparation Program for all candidates preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Students must have completed Year I (traditionally 7th grade School of Religion) before entering into Year II (S&L).
Year I Confirmation
Students in Year I will show their readiness by doing the following:
1. Attend Weekly Classes from September – May 2. Complete any assignments given in class. 3. Perform 10 Service Projects (Stewardship Activities).
Each of these components are signs of their readiness to move forward in their Confirmation Journey. If one is unable to complete the above mentioned they will need to repeat Year I.
1. Provide a copy of the candidate’s Baptismal certificate (if not Baptized at Ascension). 2. Having attend Year I Confirmation (traditionally 7th grade) prior to entering Year II (traditionally 8th grade) faith formation. 3. Attend Weekly S&L meetings. 4. Attend a Confirmation Retreat 5. Complete 20 service projects (stewardship activities). 6. Candidates must complete all homework assignments.
1. Confirmation Information Sheet 2. Sponsor Form 3. Stewardship Form 4. Saint Paper Guidelines 5. Letter to the Archbishop
Completion of the things mentioned above are what we consider “signs of readiness” for Confirmation. It is important that each of these are completed and each candidate participates in each aspect of our program in order to be ready to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation.
