THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD
17 MAY 2026
In his second book, addressed to Theophilus
(a friend of God), Saint Luke says that the risen Lord Jesus presented himself
alive to the Apostles by many proofs after he had suffered, appearing to them
during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. The number forty is a symbolic way of saying
that the Apostles had sufficient time to encounter the risen Lord and be
convinced that his bodily Resurrection is true.
Jesus returns to the Father, promising that the Holy Spirit will be
given to them so that they will be witnesses in Jerusalem, through Judea and
Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. The
Apostles stand there looking up to the cloud that had enveloped Jesus. Two men in white garments are like the two
men in white garments who announced the resurrection at the empty tomb in
Luke’s first book. They ask why they
stand there looking at the sky. They
tell them to put their noses to the grindstone and start doing what Jesus
commanded.
That is what the risen Lord tells the
eleven in today’s Gospel of Saint Matthew.
They go to the mountain in Galilee where they had received the
Beatitudes. They see him and worship
him, acknowledging the truth of the resurrection. Even though they have their doubts, Jesus
gives them the great commission before returning to the right hand of the
Father. He tells them to make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that he has commanded
them. Just as Matthew had assured us that Jesus is Immanuel (God with
us) at the beginning of his Gospel, so he assures us that he will be with us
always, until the end of the age.
When we celebrate the birth Jesus at
Christmas, we are given dramatic details about angels and shepherds and magi. When we celebrate his resurrection at Easter,
we hear about earthquakes and encounters with the risen Christ on the road. When we celebrate the Ascension, no dramatic
details are given. But this Mystery is
critical for our faith in the Paschal Mystery.
The body of the risen Lord is no longer present to us. He is seated at the right hand of the Father,
interceding for us, sending the Holy Spirit to be our Advocate. We become the Body of Christ, sent to
accomplish the same great commission given to the original Apostles.
In a sense, we experience the Mystery
of the Ascension at every Mass. We
gather here as the Body of Christ, trusting that the Apostles told the truth
about encountering the risen body of Christ.
We acknowledge our sins and our doubts and listen to the Lord speaking
to us in the Word proclaimed. We bring
our prayers and petitions to the Father.
Then we recognize the real presence of the risen Lord in the Eucharist,
just as the two disciples recognized him in the breaking of bread at
Emmaus. Having been fed by his Body and
Blood, we are told to go in peace as the Body of Christ to continue obeying the
Lord’s great commission today.
Sometimes, obeying the great
commission can be dramatic, when we are given a chance to witness to the Lord’s
presence in unusual ways. But most of
the time, we are sent to obey the great commission in the ordinary events of
our lives. We are sent to be more
understanding of the behavior of a fellow worker who is truly annoying; or to
be more patient with a stubborn child who continues to disobey. We might be sent to visit an elderly relative
in a nursing home, or to give some of our time to the soup kitchen or to the
Saint Vincent de Paul Society. Young
people can accomplish the great commission by resisting the temptation to bully
or take advantage of someone weaker. At
the end of Mass, each of us will be sent out to obey the great commission today. Don’t hesitate. We are the Body of Christ. The Lord is with us, and he will not ignore
our seemingly insignificant efforts to make a difference in our world.
No comments:
Post a Comment