The Sunday Gospel
The celebration of the Ascension of Jesus to heaven marks the definitive closure of his mission on earth. According to St Luke, over a period of 40 days the Risen Lord appeared to certain disciples in varied ways to prepare them for his final departure. The apostles were told that they would continue the work of Jesus. They were instructed to return to Jerusalem and to pray for the coming of the Holy Spirit to empower them.
We can celebrate the Ascension in three ways.
A new mission
On the Mount of the Ascension, the apostles were told not to be looking up to the skies but to look out to the world as a field of mission. “Go, therefore, make disciple of all the nations. And know that I am with you always; yes, to the end of time”. That mission and promise extends to our time. God is not just up there, but God is with us and in us. As Pope Francis put it, each one of us not only has a mission but each one is a mission to bring God’s love and compassion to others. “I have no hands now but yours.”
A new power
Jesus promised that the new mission would be empowered by the Holy Spirit. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.” Next Sunday we will celebrate Pentecost. See how the power of the Spirit changed the apostles…from confusion to belief, from fear to courage, from despondency to joy.
A new hope
The Ascension opens up the doors of heaven for us. This is beautifully expressed in the Preface for the Feast. “He ascended, not to distance himself from our lowly state but that we, his members, might be confident of following him where he, our Head and Founder, has gone.”
The famous scientist, Stephen Hawkins, described human life as “chemical scum on an average-sized planet, orbiting around a very average-sized star, in the outer suburb of one of a million galaxies.” Chemical scum! No, thank you! Give me our beautiful, meaningful and hope-filled Christian religion any day. Planets and galaxies suggest a big story. But religion offers a story even bigger.
Peter
I invite you to use your imagination to share in the experience of the apostles. For instance, how did Peter remember those days? Let us listen to him.
Ever since that morning of the 153 fish I hardly knew myself. Such peace and quiet strength I had never known. Some were watching me, probably wondering when I might suddenly explode in temper. But I was at peace. And waiting.
The great dreams were back. One hundred and fifty-three fish. I was waiting on his advice where to cast his net again. Feed his lambs, feed his sheep! Me, a shepherd! He had a sense of humour. I no longer resented his departure. Gone were the nightmares about charcoal fires and denial. I had been liberated from guilt and shame. The lightness of peace was new to me. I tried to explain it to the others. And tried to explain that he had to die and go away. John of course understood it all before I did. Thomas too, in his own way. But some of them were slow to fit the pieces together. It was odd that I was the one offering patient explanations. Witnesses to the ends of the earth!
In my impulsive days as Simon, I would have jumped immediately into the nearest boat going anywhere but would have ended up nowhere. Now in my new life as Peter I waited. And prayed. We had once asked him to teach us how to pray. Now it was happening. If anyone wanted proof of the rising of Jesus, here it was…Peter was waiting patiently…and praying! New life was a fact.
Two great memories helped to keep us together. Somebody had mentioned Elijah. Together we returned to the story that he had been taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire but his prophetic spirit came to rest on his disciple, Elisha. That story helped us to make sense of things. It gave us hope. And hope gave us patience.
And then, too, there was the presence of Mary. She joined our group with John, but I think she would have come in any case for now we felt that she was a mother to us all. Nobody had to mention Cana, but the miracle at the wedding feast was forefront in our minds whenever she was around. She was part of the first great sign given by Jesus, changing water into wine. Her presence reminded us that such a transformation could happen again…to us. And her favourite saying was, “Nothing is impossible to God.”
And so, we waited…and prayed. Not for nine months, but for nine days of deep peace I felt the tranquillity of a child in the womb of a loving mother. Then the Holy Spirit came down in tongues of fire and the Church was born.
Prayer
With St Paul we pray: “May God enlighten the eyes of our mind so that we can see what hope his call holds for us, what rich graces he has promised the saints will inherit, and how infinitely great is the power that he has exercised for us believers.”
Fr Silvester O’Flynn’s book, Gospel Reflections and Prayers is available at Columba Books.