Feast of the Ascension
By Fr. Chinnappan Pelavendran
Today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Jesus, after his resurrection, spent forty days with his disciples instructing them and encouraging them as they prepared for the mission. The Ascension of Jesus into Heaven completed his earthly work of our redemption. Jesus proved two things. First, he proved that he was the promised Messiah. Secondly, he proved that through him who overcame death, persons who persevere in their living faith in Jesus, also overcome death and inherit the Kingdom of God.
In today’s First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles Luke explains how for forty days, Jesus had appeared to his disciples after his resurrection, presenting himself to them and convincing them that he was alive. During this time, he explained to them the Scriptures and spoke about the Kingdom of God. He ate and drank with them and spent his time with them strengthening them in their ministry. He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem until they had been baptized with the Holy Spirit promised by the Father. Through his actions, Jesus was opening the eyes of his disciples about his mission. Some of them, even at this time, did not fully understand him and asked for the day of the political restoration of Israel. With immense patience, he told them that this restoration is in the eternal plan of the Father. Jesus then told the disciples that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them and they would be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
In the second reading of today, Paul reminds the Ephesians of the marvelous generosity and goodness of God who had made them Christians and sharers-to-be in the glory of Christ, who was the eternal glory of God. St. Paul prayed that God would enlighten their minds to try to understand and appreciate the marvelous things God had done for them through the incarnation, death, resurrection, and finally the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The feast of the Ascension is not to commemorate a departure but the celebration of the living and lasting presence of Jesus in the church. Jesus tells the disciples of the present situation as he gives the command to “make disciples” of people everywhere. He now introduces them to his mission as he passes on his authority to his disciples. Pentecost will be the confirmation of this. They now have the power to reconcile sinful persons with God and with the community and to decide who is not yet ready for reconciliation and full participation in the community’s life. Hence there are four aspects to this mission which Jesus gives in today’s Gospel: to evangelize, that is, to communicate the life and vision of Jesus, to continue the healing mission of Jesus both physical and spiritual, to experience the power of the Holy Spirit, and experience the presence of Jesus.
Jesus’ Ascension marks the end of his physical presence on earth, but it also marks the beginning of his spiritual presence in our lives. Just as Jesus was taken up into heaven, so too we will be taken up to be with him one day. The Ascension reminds us that our ultimate citizenship is in heaven, and we are called to live as pilgrims on earth, longing for our true home. The Ascension also reminds us of the importance of prayer and the need to continually seek God’s presence in our lives.
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