The class that Frank Langer was originally scheduled to teach on March 3 has been cancelled due to the funeral of Hazel Saveland at 11 a.m. on March 3, 2012. 

The class will be rescheduled some time in April at a date yet to be determined.

Thanks everyone for your patience! 

We will begin another rotation starting the beginning of March so this would be a great time to have your child jump in to Sunday school and learn about Eucharist. This month our teachers are Buff, Lynn & Allan, Monica Davis, Ann Denton and Susie & Eric Danielson. The same rotation goes for 3 weeks and we will take off the week that the Stillwater Schools are closed.  All children begin at 9:00 am up in Children's Chapel, hear a story and then move to their class.

Learning about Eucharist

This rotation is designed to teach children about Eucharist.  Every Sunday when we gather at the altar, we remember how Jesus gathered his friends together for a special supper.  We remember how Jesus dies and then rose from the dead and we celebrate all the ways that God loves and provides for us.  This is a class about learning why we do the same thing every Sunday, names of all of the items, make some bread, wash some feet and listen to our prayers.  If your child does not receive Eucharist, this would be a great time to come and explore with Buff and Mindy.  All are welcome at our table.

On Tuesday. March 6, from 6-8 pm. at the Stillwater Public Library (224 N. Third St.), St. Cloud motivational speaker Denny Smith will present a seminar discussing the Marriage Equality amendment from all sides thru understanding, compassion, and education. Please join us in a lively discussion on Tuesday. March 6th.

The seminar entitled "Making Stillwater Welcoming to All People: Opening Our Doors to the LGBT Community" is designed to foster calm and meaningful discussion on a very volatile and controversial issue. People on all sides of the debate are encouraged to attend.This seminar is sponsored by the St. Croix Valley Coalition of Human Rights. 

Denny Smith, author of  God Did TOO Make Adam & Steve and father of a gay son, will conduct the session, designed to promote equality, respect and dignity for LGBT people, their families and their relationships. Smith, a former teacher and coach, is a motivational speaker and president of Dennis Smith Training and Development in St. Cloud.    

UNITED FOR ALL FAMILIES

Several members of Ascension, including me, were privileged to work a shift making some of the sweetest phone calls to perfect strangers that I have ever made.  Our goal was to get people thinking on the subject of the proposed state constitutional amendment we will vote on in November which would restrict the definition of marriage to between a man and a woman.  

What really surprised me was the fantastic approach that Minnesotans United for All Families urged us to take in our work that evening.  We asked leading questions, simply inviting people to examine their feelings on the subject.  The amazing part was that when people did stop to think why exactly they felt the way they did, the prejudices and the fronts sometimes came down with little or no effort.  I heard multiple "I guess I never really thought about it before" statements.  People weren't hostile or scary.  They weren't even mad that I was calling them in the evening and at home.

People thanked me for calling.   

submitted by Amy Schwantes

On our recent trip to China we had many cultural experiences.  Observing the breadth of the exercise movement was enlightening.  It seemed in every park, or open public space, groups of people were moving to music.  Some groups were dancing.  Others did aerobics, worked on simple machines, or moved through obstacle courses.  Of course, we saw people of all ages participating in the gentle movements of Tai Chi. We were especially impressed with the number of older Chinese (retirees perhaps) gracefully moving in unison through the slow poses.  It looked almost effortless.   

When we were given the opportunity to work with a Tai Chi master in the courtyard of our hotel in Xi'an, we were eager to do so.   

We met in the open courtyard of the hotel with waterfalls, swimming swans, and prancing peacocks adding to the beauty and serenity.  The master was a quiet, gentle man with a beautiful smile and no English.  In spite of the language barrier he was able to demonstrate the moves we were to imitate, and he watched us in the windows of the hotel.  Then he came around to us individually and corrected our positions.  He would smile his approval as we kept trying to match his moves.  At the end of half an hour we knew we had done some active stretching though we at no time felt out of breath or taxed beyond our abilities.  It felt so good.  The next morning two of us met again with the master as he went through his routine, and again he smilingly led us through some basic exercises. This experience was a cultural highlight.

Tai Chi seems such a gentle and graceful way to keep the body moving and flexible at any age.  We would encourage Ascension members to give it a try.

Aggie and Rick Sewall

   Vacation Bible School and Mission Trip Dates

Holy Week Schedule:  Nursery Opened for all services

• Tues. 4/3, Healing Service, 7:00-8:00pm
• Wed. 4/4, Tenebrae,  7:00-8:00pm
• Thurs. 4/5, Maundy Thursday, 7:00-8:00pm
• Fri. 4/6, Stations of the Cross & Good Friday service,       Stations,5:00 to 6:00, Service, 7:00-8:00pm
• Sat. 4/7, Easter Vigil, 8:00-9:00pm

Easter Sunday, Services at 9:00 and 11:00am.   

There is No Sunday school on Easter Sunday.