'They looked up to heaven because they looked to Jesus Christ, the Crucified and Risen One.' Sunday Reflections, The Ascension, Year C

 

The Ascension of Christ

Rembrandt [Web Gallery of Art]

Ascension, Year C

The Ascension is celebrated on Ascension Thursday, 26 May, in England & Wales, Scotland. In the USA it is celebrated on Ascension Thursday in the Ecclesiastical Provinces of Boston, Hartford, New York, Newark, Omaha, Philadelphia, elsewhere on Sunday 29 May. In all of these areas Ascension Thursday is a Holyday of Obligation.

The Ascension is observed on Sunday, 29 May, in Aotearoa-New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Philippines.

 

Readings, (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)

Readings, (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel, Luke 24:46-53 (English Standard Version Anglicised: India)  

Jesus said to his disciples:

 “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.

Léachtaí i nGaeilge

St John Paul II Memorial, Błonia Park, Krakow

[Wikipedia; photo]

Here is part of the homily Pope Benedict XVI gave in Błonia Park, Kraków, Poland, on Sunday 28 May 2006, the Solemnity of the Ascension. The emphases are added. 

'Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up to heaven?' (Acts 1:11).

Brothers and Sisters, today in Błonie Park in Kraków we hear once again this question from the Acts of the Apostles. This time it is directed to all of us: 'Why do you stand looking up to heaven?' The answer to this question involves the fundamental truth about the life and destiny of every man and woman.

The question has to do with our attitude to two basic realities which shape every human life: earth and heaven. First, the earth: 'Why do you stand?' - Why are you here on earth? Our answer is that we are here on earth because our Maker has put us here as the crowning work of his creation. Almighty God, in his ineffable plan of love, created the universe, bringing it forth from nothing. Then, at the completion of this work, he bestowed life on men and women, creating them in his own image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26-27). He gave them the dignity of being children of God and the gift of immortality. We know that man went astray, misused the gift of freedom and said 'No' to God, thus condemning himself to a life marked by evil, sin, suffering and death. But we also know that God was not resigned to this situation, but entered directly into humanity’s history, which then became a history of salvation. 'We stand' on the earth, we are rooted in the earth and we grow from it. Here we do good in the many areas of everyday life, in the material and spiritual realms, in our relationships with other people, in our efforts to build up the human community and in culture. Here too we experience the weariness of those who make their way towards a goal by long and winding paths, amid hesitations, tensions, uncertainties, in the conviction that the journey will one day come to an end. That is when the question arises: Is this all there is? Is this earth on which 'we stand' our final destiny?

And so we need to turn to the second part of the biblical question: 'Why do you stand looking up to heaven?' We have read that, just as the Apostles were asking the Risen Lord about the restoration of Israel’s earthly kingdom, 'He was lifted up and a cloud took him out of their sight.”'And 'they looked up to heaven as he went' (cf. Acts 1:9-10). They looked up to heaven because they looked to Jesus Christ, the Crucified and Risen One, raised up on high. We do not know whether at that precise moment they realized that a magnificent, infinite horizon was opening up before their eyes: the ultimate goal of our earthly pilgrimage. Perhaps they only realized this at Pentecost, in the light of the Holy Spirit. But for us, at a distance of two thousand years, the meaning of that event is quite clear. Here on earth, we are called to look up to heaven, to turn our minds and hearts to the inexpressible mystery of God. We are called to look towards this divine reality, to which we have been directed from our creation. For there we find life’s ultimate meaning.

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Christ the Saviour

El Greco [Web Gallery of Art]

Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. 

These are from the closing words of St Luke's Gospel, read today. The First Reading is the opening words of the Acts of the Apostles, written by St Luke and the continuation of his gospel. It also describes the Ascension and gives us these words of Jesus: You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. 

Jesus sends us to the ends of the earth to proclaim his name, to proclaim forgiveness of sins for those who repent when they hear the Good News of the death and resurrection of Jesus. Our mission is not to be 'nice' to everyone, not to be 'good' but to be witnesses to Jesus the Risen Lord by the lives we lead.

I am preparing this early, on 20 May, the feast of St Bernardine of Siena (1380 - 1444) a Franciscan friar who promoted devotion to the name of Jesus. There is an extract from one of his homilies in the Office of Readings in the Breviary on his feast day. The saint said, Hence this name must not be hidden. But when it is preached if must not be proclaimed by an impure heart or an unclean mouth, but it must be kept safe and handed on in a chosen vessel.

Further on St Bernardine speaks about St Paul in these words: For he carried the name of Jesus around by his words, his letters, his miracles and his example. He praised Jesus' name without ceasing, and gave glory to it with thanksgiving.

May those words be said of each of us.

Antiphona ad introitum  Entrance Antiphon Acts 1:11

Viri Galilaei, quid admiramini aspicientes in caelum? [alleluia].

Men of Galilee, why gaze in wonder at the heavens? [Alleluia].

Quemadmodum vidistis eum ascendentem in caelum, ita veniet, alleluia [alleluia, alleluia].

This Jesus whom you saw ascending inot heaven will return as you saw him go, alleluia [alleluia, alleluia].

Traditional Latin Mass

The Ascension of the Lord

The Complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 05-26-2022 if necessary).

Lesson: Acts 1:1-11. Gospel: Mark 16: 14-20.

Ascension of Christ

Lattanzio Gambara [Web Gallery of Art]