Today we celebrate the mysterious event in the life of the early church when the Risen Jesus ended his physical presence with his disciples and ascended into heaven. As he departed, he charged them to work to build up the Kingdom of God. And so, this Solemnity of the Ascension is a moment when we are asked to reflect on our faith, on our possible doubts, and on our ability to accept the mandate of Jesus to spread our faith to others who do not yet share it. Like the early Christians, who no longer had the benefit of the physical presence of Jesus, we are asked to look beyond any lack of self-confidence we might have as we attempt to witness, and to work, in order to spread the message of the Gospel. The disciples were undoubtedly confused when Jesus disappeared from their presence. They may have wanted just to stand there and look up into the clouds. But they could not do so for very long; they had to “get to work,” and so do we.
In today’s second reading, Saint Paul prays the following for the Ephesians: “May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, grant you a spirit of wisdom and insight to know him clearly” (see Ephesians 1:17). These words are relevant for us in our own day, long after the Ascension event. We might recognize that we are like those disciples who stood there looking up into the clouds as they wondered what the next step would be, and we like them hope that Jesus will really come again, and that someday the Kingdom of God will be established in its fullness! The disciples had expected this within their own lifetimes and while Jesus still was present to them, but before such was realized Jesus had dramatically ascended into the heavens. On that day, Jesus instead promised them they had a lot of work to do in order to build that Kingdom, and the same is true for us. Like those disciples before us, we might experience a great disconnect between the Kingdom for which we hope and the reality of life as we often find it. We know the Kingdom of God has not been realized in its fullness, and yet we are called to work for that goal in every effort of our Christian lives. Let’s be grateful that the “spirit of wisdom and insight” mentioned by Saint Paul can certainly guide us to that end!
As we contemplate the Ascension of Our Lord, let us not be tempted to be like any of the disciples who might have kept their eyes lifted upward gazing at the clouds and waiting for the Lord Jesus to come back down from where he went. Let us instead “get to work” like the faithful disciples who responded to Jesus' challenge “to go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations” (see Matthew 28:19).
We know this will involve great effort, but together we can enthusiastically continue to respond to the challenge of building up the Kingdom of God. As we do this, let us pray that we will be able to recognize the realities in which we find ourselves, work to change what must be changed, and always strive for the ideal! May God’s Kingdom Come!
Christ is Risen, Truly, He is Risen, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Praise God! Friar Timothy
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