Acts 1:1-11; Ephesians 1:17-23, & Mark 16:15-20
Dear Friends, Recently, I enjoyed the opportunity to get back at some teenagers. I love the creativity of their use of two words, “so” and “whatever” Their use of both words captures the content of a full paragraph. While the words are often somewhat disrespectful, they also are playful.Recently, some teens, with varying degrees of anxiety, came to me with this latest “end of the world” prediction. I loved confusing them with the simple reply, “So!” before I gave a more informed response.
Of course, I had no concern about the end of the world. The liturgy of the feast of the Ascension has a very consoling and challenging message on this topic.
In the first reading from Acts, Jesus responds to the Apostles’ question about the end of the world in these words: “It is not for you to know the time or the seasons that the Father has established. …You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem…and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:7-8) The angel asks, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking at the sky?” (Acts 1:11) In other words, get on with the task of living and proclaiming the gospel. We share that task. The message of today’s feast of the Ascension is not the end of Jesus’ mission, but the beginning of our mission as disciples of Christ.
The next chapter in God’s story of salvation is our chapter. We are now called to declare the message of the Good News with our lives, our proclamation and our witness. This is the time of the Church. It is time of reaching out and lifting up, a time of service and celebration, a time of hope in spite of the continuing ravages of sin and injustice in our midst.
As Church, we have a clear mission from Christ. We must be open and involved in the world, the historical process so rooted in injustice and sin, yet called to redemption. As gospel people, we are not meant to be by-standers to the pain and suffering so pervasive in our time. The temptation is to just wait and see. This is not Jesus’ mandate. He tells us to go out to the whole world and preach the Good News. It is the very power of this divine word that will be the source of transformation of our broken world. Our calling in the midst of war and injustice is to seek peace and to live for justice. Violence, greed, oppression and neglect of the neediest must be met with the power of the gospel to transform this broken world into the seeds of God’s kingdom. Our task, in this time of the church, is to complete the mission of Jesus.
If we truly understand this call of Christ, we can reply to the constant predictions of the end of the world with the creativity of the youthful, “So!”.
The meaning of this beautiful feast of the Ascension is further captured in the words of the Preface of the Mass:
Christ, the mediator between God and men
Judge of the world and Lord of all
Has passed beyond our sight
Not to abandon us but to be our hope.
Christ is the beginning, the head of the Church;
Where he is gone, we hope to follow.
The Christian response to the end of the world is not fear and anxiety. It is hope rooted in the reality that Jesus is with us till end of time. We have no need for hopelessness and confusion. The true Christian response is a simple commitment to live with faith and trust in a God who has a better plan. Our part in that divine plan is to proclaim, serve and celebrate as we share the gospel. We must attempt to live the truth of Christ in our humble brokenness. We pray in the opening prayer of the Mass of the Ascension, “May we follow him into the new creation, for his Ascension is our glory and our hope.”
Many times, we have heard the stories of saints responding to the question, what would you do if you had only a day to live? They all say the same. They would continue living life to the full and seeking to do God’s will. The message of the Ascension tells us to do the same. Remember, God has a better plan!
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