May 12, 2013 The Ascension of the Lord

Bulletin: May 12, 2013 The Ascension of the Lord

Acts 1:1-11; Ephesians 1:17-23; Luke 24:46-53
I take this time on the feast of the Ascension and look at the two readings from Luke: from Acts of the Apostles and his gospel. They are wonderful readings but they point the finger directly at me and say to me, ‘Ok, it’s up to you…what are you going to do now? And when this question comes about me and being God, I want to hide or retreat to the background or just to avoid the question. The readings do not give me this option, I am to act.
I’m not that much of a traveler; when I go places I just want to stay in one place and not do too much wandering (with the exception of the Holy Land pilgrimages). But when I do travel, I really want to be with someone or meet someone where I am going. I’m thinking of the scenario in going with a friend to anywhere; let’s say downtown D.C. or New York City. Then in the midst of the crowd, I lose my friend. Well, I’m anxious and search, hopefully we can connect. If not, I become frantic. Where could he be? Well I think the scene in Acts is similar: “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? They didn’t know what to do. They had just asked Jesus, “Lord, are You at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
It is frantic time for them! Obviously, they still don’t get it. They had listened to Jesus…been intimately aware of Him in His appearances after the Resurrection. They knew that He would be returning to the Father in Heaven. And Rome was still in Israel. When was Jesus going to ‘kick them out’ and restore the Davidic Kingdom. They were paralyzed, just as I would be in being ‘lost’ from my friend? When this happens I don’t know what to do. I’m really waiting for someone to take my hand and lead me to safety, but that doesn’t happen. So I try to be logical in my panic and go to a place of safety.
Jesus responds to the apostles: “It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has established by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” What do they have to worry about; the Holy Spirit will be with them…they can depend on that; I can depend on that. This tells them that they have been chosen; they have been called to be witnesses to Jesus’ death and Resurrection and are to preach repentance as He did and forgiveness of sins. They are to bring this faith to the world; they are to share their own faith. This is important: being living witnesses is the best testimony to the truth of Jesus’ teaching and God’s love. I personalize this: if people can’t see Jesus in me, how can they see God’s love? Up to this point, the apostles had just been followers, now they are no longer just followers but now they were to be His hands and feet, His voice and His love, His caring and compassion, His connection to the Father. And they already had been commissioned to take His love, peace and power to the ends of the world. Every person, by their baptism, is included in this. I can’t hide no one can; so what do I do now? What does each Christian do?

I have quoted Fr. Anthony Kadavil’s Teaching and Preaching resources before; he gives another fine explanation for this feast: “My friends, one of the best ways to experience the presence of God, one of the best ways to know that He is alive within us, one of the best ways to feel His love and mercy, is to be about His work, to be about the very things that were important to Him --- feeding the hungry, reaching out to the lonely, embracing sinners, giving from our want and not simply our excess --- in a word --- loving. That’s how we will know that he hasn’t just ascended from us, but has risen within us and among us.

What do we do now? May each of us strive to answer that question honestly and faithfully as we continue the work of the Lord in this time and place, in each of our families and in each of our communities. There’s plenty to do in God’s kingdom. Let’s stop staring at the sky and get to work. God will be there to lend a hand, providing all we need.”
When I look at these two readings of Luke I can so easily see that Jesus didn’t say, ‘Ok, I’m all done, there’s nothing else to do.’ Jesus is point blank telling the disciples and me that the next stage of His work, God’s plan for the world, has now begun and is continuing in me and in the world He has placed me. The work is totally in control of the Holy Spirit. Can I do this on my own; absolutely not. As the Angel said to Mary, ‘With God, all things are possible.’ So this is a great deal of work that remains to be done under the power of the Holy Spirit. So I can’t look around, wondering, or even in panic, or ‘looking up at the sky’. I must get moving.
So I reflect on:

• Someone asked me recently, ‘Are angels whispering to you to do some special work as a witness of Jesus?’ Well not exactly; but am I listening and being aware of the needs around me?
  
• The Apostles “returned to Jerusalem with great joy”; when I find myself responding to the Lord’s movement within me, I can identify with this joy. What hinders me from responding?
  
• People who live with hope and those who are hopeless are two totally different kinds of people. Those who are hope filled are usually filled with energy, focus and meaning. Those without hope feel powerless and discouraged. Hope is a gift of the Spirit. A Christian is really hope-filled? Am I? What keeps me away from this?
  

I conclude with the beautiful words from Sacred Space 2013, “Even as He leaves the disciples and sends them as witnesses, Jesus reminds them that He had to suffer, die, and rise. As I face the world into which Jesus sends me, I acknowledge that the marks of His suffering will identify me as His disciples.

Jesus promises that His disciples will be clothed with power from on high. I think of those gifts of the Spirit that are necessary for me in my life. I pray for them and prepare to receive them.”