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Solemnity of the Acsension of the Lord - Cycle B

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This Sunday the Church in the USA celebrates the Ascension of the Lord, the moment Jesus, after the resurrection, left us to join his Father in Heaven.  Traditionally the Ascension is celebrated on the Thursday before the 7th Sunday of Easter, 40 days after the resurrection, and 10 days before Pentecost.  The US bishops, however, have opted to celebrate this important Solemnity on Sunday because its message and meaning are important aspects of our faith and should not be missed.

The Word for the Ascension of the Lord
Acts 1:1-11
Psalm 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9
Ephesians 1:17-23, or 4:1-13, or 4:1-7, 11-13
Mark 16:15-20

We open with the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles.  This book, the sequel to Luke's Gospel, begins like all great sequels, with a recapping of the story thus far.  Like any good writer, Luke takes this time to give us some additional details that were not included in his gospel.  This is the story we hear today in our first reading, and this is the story that gives the Church its traditional history of these events (like the 40 days between the Resurrection and the Ascension, the 10 days to Pentecost).  The point of the story isn't so much that of Jesus leaving us but of what happens after that moment – when the two men in white garments say to the Apostles, "Why are you standing here looking at the sky?"  In other words, “stop standing there and get to work.”  Our Psalm echoes this call to action by going out and singing praises to the Lord.

Our second reading is from St. Paul's letter to the Ephesians.  We have some options on which reading may be used, but they all reinforce the same message – that through the Holy Spirit we come to believe Jesus' life, death, resurrection, and ascension.  Not only does this foreshadow our readings for next week’s Pentecost Sunday (the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles), but we are taught that Jesus is the head of our Church, and all grace and blessings come through him in this position.

Our Gospel then gives us Mark's story of the Ascension.  Typical of Mark, this is much shorter than the Luke account but not discordant with that account.  Jesus gives his Apostles their final instructions, that is to go out and spread the Gospel.  He then is taken up to Heaven and the Apostles then take action going out to do what Jesus instructed.

Final Thoughts:
Jesus is leaving the Apostles, but is that the end of our story?  Far from it!  For me the focus needs to be on the Apostles being called to action in a way that is both humorous and profound.  

Humorous?  Yes!  I think we Christians put so much reverence into the Scriptures that we often miss the jokes and the humor that our authors put into these stories.  For me, the sight of these two men coming upon the Apostles staring up into the sky is very funny image.  And I’m sure Luke meant for it to be.  But these two messengers are more than they seem.  Anyone coming across a group of people looking up in the sky are likely to ask, “why are you looking at the sky?”  But these two have more to say.

Our messengers also have a prophecy that can be seen as a call to action.  This isn’t the end of the story, it’s just the beginning, which makes this encounter deeply profound.  This is the moment Jesus puts his church into our frail human hands and asks these 11 remaining Apostles to go forth in his name, preaching the Good News and working wonders.  It is a pivotal moment for everyone – for Jesus, for the Apostles, and for us as Church.  We must now take up the service Jesus left in our hands, the service to love one another.  But the Apostles aren’t expected to do this alone.  Jesus has promised to send us an “advocate,” the Holy Spirit, who’s coming we celebrate next week at Pentecost.

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