Published: April 1, 2022

Holy Week and Easter weekend are quickly approaching and we are preparing to welcome returning members and first time visitors to our wonderful community. 

We are looking for Greeters and Asbury Ambassadors to help provide warm hospitality to all who arrive on our campus from Maundy Thursday through Easter morning! Can you help? Might you be willing to offer a smile, provide some direction, and extend a warm welcome to all Asbury visitors during Holy Week? This is a very easy way to extend Christ's love in this moment when we all need it the most!

Emily Cady and Johanna Mahan are looking for YOUR help! We love our church and we want everyone who arrives on campus during Holy Week to feel welcome! We need YOUR help to do that!

Click here to sign up to volunteer and let your Easter spirit SHINE!

Published: April 1, 2022

Tuesdays, Beginning April 5, 12:30 pm, Tasteful Connections Event Room (1 Whipple Dr, Irondequoit), $30 per person

Asbury First’s Art Class will be learning to make textile collages with heat tools and unusual textiles. We will be heating up textiles like Tyvek and Wonder Under as well as organzas, craft felt, and other fabrics that melt or shrink when heat is applied. There is no sewing required in this class! However, sewing for art’s sake will be an option. And no experience is necessary.

The class meets Tuesday afternoons from 12:30–3 pm. We meet at Tasteful Connections Event Room, 1 Whipple Dr in Irondequoit. We will have lunch first and then move into our art. Sandra Holloway provides a light lunch for those who would like, and Rev. Linda Clemow facilitates the art. Every week we put out two free-will donation bowls for the chef and the art teacher. There is a $30 per person charge for the materials for the course. This class will begin on April 5th but you may join any time after that.

Published: April 1, 2022

April 18–20, visit gatewaysmusicfestival.org for full schedule

The Gateways Music Festival returns to Rochester April 18-20, bringing 120 Black professional classical musicians for two performances, a film screening, the Paul J. Burgett Lecture and two Young Musicians Institute programs. Renowned Hollywood conductor Anthony Parnther makes his Gateways and Rochester conducting debut and then takes the Gateways Orchestra on its first tour of New York City, including the Orchestra’s Carnegie Hall debut. For more information and tickets, visit gatewaysmusicfestival.org.

• Gateways Pianists — Hatch Recital Hall at Eastman School of Music — Monday, April 18, 7:30 pm
• Young Musicians Institute: Parent Chat — David F. Gantt R-Center — Tuesday, April 19, 4:30 pm
• Film Screening (The Caged Bird: The Life and Music of Florence B. Price) and Paul J. Burgett Lecture (Black Idioms in the Music of Florence B. Price, Cory Hunter, PhD) — Hatch Recital Hall at Eastman School of Music — Tuesday, April 19, 6:30 & 7:30 pm
• Young Musicians Institute: Masterclass with Students from Eastman’s Black Student Union — Eastman School of Music East Wing (EEW) 415 — Wednesday, April 20, 2 pm
• Gateways Orchestra Concert — Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre — Wednesday, April 20, 7:30 pm

Published: March 24, 2022

Next time you enter the Sanctuary, you will notice that some of the ropes blocking the pews have been removed. In order to accommodate additional seating as attendance increases, ropes on the Lectern side of the nave have been removed, allowing for seating in every row. Ropes will remain on the Pulpit side, preserving space for those wishing to maintain social distancing while seated during the service. Our masking policy continues to be “masks recommended” for the time being. For more information on our current COVID safety measures, please visit https://asburyfirst.org/news/2022/3/covid-masking-update/.

Published: March 24, 2022

Saturday, April 2, 7:30 pm, Livestream and In-Person, $20 GA

Join the choir for a fun romp through songs celebrating the contraptions that get us from here to there—and back again! Explore the deep human desire to travel for the sake of exploration, enrichment, curiosity, for seeing what’s out there—for just moving. Now in their 46th concert season, Madrigalia delights audiences with the beauty of sound and artistic excellence. Under the direction of Artistic Director Cary Ratcliff, the ensemble of highly skilled vocalists presents unique and challenging programs of choral music built around intriguing themes To learn more about Madrigalia and to purchase tickets, visit madrigalia.org.

Published: March 18, 2022

Two Options:
In-Person: Sunday, April 3, 12:30–2 pm at 1050 East Avenue
Virtual: Tuesdays, March 29 and April 5, 5–6 pm, Zoom, Click here to join Zoom

Are you interested in joining Asbury First? After more than a year hiatus, we are pleased to be offering two New Members Classes for any and all interested in joining Asbury First. For those who are comfortable being together in person, we will hold a class in person on Sunday, April 3 following the service from 12:30–2 pm. For those near and far interested in meeting (and potentially joining) virtually, we will hold two zoom classes on Tuesdays, March 29 and April 5 from 5–6 pm. Our hope is to have everyone join on Palm Sunday, April 10. You need not register to attend, but if you know that you will be there, we’d love to know! Simply email Deb Bullock-Smith at dbullocksmith@asburyfirst.org.

Published: March 18, 2022

Saturday, April 2, 9 am

We're seeking volunteers to help pick up twigs and rake leaves. If you have a favorite rake, please bring it! Each year we assemble to clean up all the debris of winter and bring our campus back to its usual beauty. All are welcome—you don't need to have a green thumb to help out. Questions? Contact David Strong at dstrong@asburyfirst.org.

Published: March 18, 2022

Wednesday, March 30, 5–6 pm, Zoom (zoom.us/j/85385379148)

Join us for an opening discussion of this year’s church-wide read, Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 on Wednesday, March 30 from 5–6 pm. We will be meeting over zoom to make sure as many people as would like have access to the conversation. You don’t have to have read the entire book to come. Our plan is to begin a discussion about the Introduction and Part One. All are welcome!

Published: March 16, 2022

This Lent we are focusing on "Seeds in the Wilderness" and what it means to be fruitful while lost in difficult times. Working with The Upper Room, a part of the Discipleship Ministry of the United Methodist Church, we have a curated selection of devotionals that support the themes of planting, growth, and wilderness. You can sign up for a free login to The Upper Room by clicking here and read wonderful devotions, find guided prayers, and much more.

Published: March 11, 2022

Look no further.

The church library, off the gathering space, has copies of the books being read at the church classes and they are free for your use.

Books currently being studied by our church groups can be found in the church library (The Making of Biblical Womanhood for Mike’s Wednesday class, Bicycling with Butterflies for Women on Wednesday group, and the church-wide read book 400 Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019).

And, if you are looking for books on atonement for use in the new Sunday School class, take a look at the wide variety of Bibles in the church library. While you are there, you could also find the book by Maggie Smith—Keep Moving—the subject of a Sunday School class being taught by Emily Cady.

The church library is open when the church is open. Checking out a book is easy; you simply sign the library card in the front of the book and deposit the card in the box on the library desk. The book is yours for the reading. Come check us out!

Published: March 11, 2022

Tuesdays, 2:30-3:30, beginning March 22, Zoom, Click here to join Zoom

A new Disciple II group will be starting on March 22. If you have previously participated in Disciple I, you know the rigor and reward of committing to study the Bible over the course of a year. Disciple II continues this study, but with significantly shorter reading assignments. This allows participants the time to digest and delve into each week's text. This class will spend the spring focusing on Genesis and Exodus, take a summer recess, and then return in the fall with a focus on Luke and Acts. If you would like more information—or if you are ready to sign-up—please contact Mike Mullin, mmullin@asburyfirst.org.

Published: March 11, 2022

Weekdays, 10 am–4 pm, Drop off donations at SEAC's Tool Shed, 1255 University Ave. C010 (Lower Level)

In partnership with the South East Area Coalition (SEAC), we are asking for support for the Tool Shed. SEAC's Tool Shed relies on donations to provide local communities with the tools they need to create the change they want to make. The Tool Shed accepts all tools that are in good working order and are safe to use. Please note that they do not accept building or construction materials or any tool that is rusted, broken, or deemed unsafe. For more information, visit seacrochester.org.

Published: March 11, 2022

Saturday, March 26, 7:30 pm, In-Person and Livestream

Asbury First is delighted to host Voices in a performance of J.S. Bach's monumental "Mass in B Minor," featuring chamber choir, soloists, and orchestra. The concert will take place on Saturday, March 26 at 7:30 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Founded and directed by William Weinert, Voices is a professional chamber chorus consisting of Western New York’s finest ensemble singers. They have appeared in concerts and broadcasts, performing music from the Renaissance through the twenty-first century. City Newspaper described the ensemble’s sound as “a sonic cloudburst,” and noted that “Voices marks a new era of choral vitality in Rochester.”

A free-will offering will be taken to benefit Ukraine relief, with all donations going to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). If you've been looking for inspiration to contribute, here's a great opportunity, AND you'll be able to enjoy a stunning performance.

Published: March 8, 2022

After nearly two years of COVID-19 in our community, we are heartened to see that infection rates have decreased dramatically, with Monroe County now in the “low risk” category according to the CDC. As a result, we are now ready to adjust our masking policy from “masks required” to “masks recommended.” This policy is reflective of the updated CDC guidance and in line with what is happening in other public venues in our area.

We recognize that while many people are ready to get rid of masks altogether, many others would prefer to keep wearing them. We will be respectful of both decisions as we move forward. Further, to help promote the safety of the community during worship, we will continue to keep every other pew roped off in our sanctuary to allow for better social distancing. Because of the tight quarters, we will also maintain a masking requirement in the chancel for now.

If the last two years of the pandemic have taught us anything, it is that flexibility is essential. As the situation changes, we will continue to make decisions with the health and safety of the community in mind. Over the next few weeks, we anticipate slowly making other adjustments to our policies, including adding refreshments back into our Sunday morning routine.

One way that you can help us is by staying home if you are unwell or have recently had a known exposure. While physical presence is an important part of our life together as a worshiping community, we also know that we remain connected as the Body of Christ even over great distances.

Thank you for your patience and your grace as we continue to find our way through this strange moment.

In Christian Love,
The COVID-19 Task Force

Published: March 7, 2022

Sunday, March 20, 9:45 am EST, Room 201

Did you know that a monk created the first pretzel in A.D. 610 as a reward to children for learning their prayers during Lent? The three holes in a pretzel are said to represent the Trinity: one God in three persons. We hope your children can join us for Pretzel Sunday on March 20 during the Sunday School hour from 9:45 am - 10:45 am in Room 201. We will learn all about the history of the pretzel and make and bake some pretzels of our own.

If you are inclined to make some dough for our event click the link below for recipe and instructions.

Click here for recipe