Ascension of the Lord (Cycle C, Year I)
Community Word: The Holy Spirit empowers all those who keep the word of God.
Theme: The Holy Spirit empowers us to preach repentance and forgiveness.
Promise: “This Jesus who has been taken up from you to heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.” (Acts 1:11b)
Reflection:
Just as the Resurrection was the turning point of salvation history so is the Ascension the turning point that marks the beginning of the Kingdom of God. The Lord’s ascension is the climax to the gospel of Luke. It is also the prologue to the Acts of the Apostles.
The Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord implies that our hope does not consist merely of dwelling in this world, but rather in Heaven. God truly wants to share His happiness with all men. Christ indeed is our bridge to heaven. This scripture passage tells us of the homecoming of Jesus to heaven, where He dwells in the company of God Most High, beyond the boundaries of death and decay, the same home which we are invited to share because Christ has brought our human nature there with him, where He now waits to welcome us. Hence, we should prepare for our pilgrimage. He says: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places,” and for him as for us, there really is no place like home.
By virtue of our calling as Christians, we are destined to be an optimistic people, full of hope and deep-rooted confidence in our future. For where Christ has gone, we hope to follow, once our earthly journey is over. This is the joyful hope we have as the safe and sure anchor for our lives.
Jesus’ final words to His apostles were brief and to the point. “I am with you always. Go, teach all nations.” No longer confined to a bodily presence, He will be with His disciples in a new way, through the power of the Spirit. With His earthly mission over, He sends His disciples and those who believe in Him, to continue the work He began. Their task is to fan out from Jerusalem, ‘to the ends of the earth’, to proclaim the salvation He has won to all nations. Like the first disciples, we are called to follow Christ and proclaim His message to all. The best place to start is by putting our own lives in good spiritual order that we may truly be “His witnesses to the ends of the earth, and to preach the forgiveness of sins in His name,”(v 47). But before sending them on their way, He ensures that they will have the power to carry on their mission. He will send them “the Holy Spirit who will teach them all things and clothe them with power on high.”(v49)
Christ’s ascension reveals the work we must do in order to be with Christ forever. Our way to glory is none other than to witness to the Lord by taking up our own cross and following in His footsteps. What else does God ask of us? God gives us the mission to preach the gospel using the gifts and talents has given us, the time He gives us, and ultimately, the very life He has given us. He gives us the opportunity to help save others for whom He paid so dearly. So let us clearly see where we are heading and who awaits us at the end of our journey. Let us not waste time, let us have a sense of direction and purpose, eager to encounter the Lord in heaven.
The Ascension has tremendous implication in the life of the faithful. As disciples in Community, we should allow the in-dwelling Holy Spirit to clothe us with His power, so that we can effectively witness to God’s message. When challenged, we should be able to face it with determination and sincerity. When burdened, we should strive to resolve it with truth and be ready to give and to receive fraternal correction. We have the responsibility to alleviate the sufferings around us, and do our bit in helping to free the world of everything that keeps human beings from reaching their highest potential. We should allow ourselves to be witnesses of God’s forgiving love. After all, the Lord remains present to us and in us through the in-dwelling Holy Spirit.
The good news of Christ’s ascension is that it defies death and promises a new life. As today’s reading tells us, we are not to stand there gazing up to heaven awaiting Jesus’ return. Instead, we are to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins, to restore men and women from a life of isolation and indifference to that of rebirth in Christ. That is our work today. We should not be speculating on Jesus’ return, but give witnesses and accomplish the work the ascended Jesus has entrusted to us.
Christian witnessing is an occasion for purification and rebirth. It is a marvelous opportunity to continue to discover the newness of God’s presence in our lives, that we may indeed be transformed into new people with new hearts and spirit. So let us put our trust in the Lord, confident of His presence in the power of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, God is good.
Reflection Questions:
1. How can I, as a disciple of Christ, witness His forgiving love to my brothers and sisters in and out of Community?
2. How do I participate in the Community’s and Church’s continuing mission of Evangelization?
This Week’s Daily Mass Reading Guide:
May 12, 2013 (Sun) Acts 1:1-11/ Ps 47:2-3,6-9/ Heb 9:24-28; 10:19-23/ Lk 24:46-53
May 13, 2013 (Mon) Acts 19:1-8/Ps 68:2-7/Jn 16:29-33
May 14, 2013 (Tues) Acts 1:15-17,20-26?ps 113:18/Jn 15:9-17
May 15, 2013 (Wed) Acts 20:28-38/Ps 68:29,30,33-36/Jn 17:11-19
May 16, 2013 (Thur) Acts 22:30;23:6-11/Ps 16:1,2,5,7-11/Jn 17:20-26
May 17, 2013 (Fri) Acts 25:13-21/Ps 103:1,2,11,12,19,20/Jn 21:15-19
May 18, 2013 (Sat) Acts 28:16-20,30,31?ps 11:4,5,7/Jn 21:20-25
“Ignorance of the Bible is ignorance of Christ. Read your Bible daily!”
