Ascension

Today in the church we celebrate the ascension of our Lord into Heaven.

What exactly does this feast do for us?

When we think about the major feast in the church most of them we understand.

Christmas, we can relate with. A baby born in a manger; mom and dad seeking the best possible place. a time of crisis filled with a bundle of blessing. We know what this is like.

Good Friday: we know what Good friday is without a doubt. We all relate to suffering, pain, crucifixion and death.


Easter: what a feast of joy. Who cannot relate to the reality of death being destroyed. THe human heart longs for this and thus we celebrate with great enthusiasm.

But the Ascension leaves us scratching our head. What do we do with this.

The Ascension is primarily a feast of hope and joy united. The Joy of Jesus is our hope.
The feast of the Ascension invites us to look back on Jesus' life and try to understand where he comes from and how he got where he is, ascending into heaven.

Think about his life
*crown of thorns that pierced his head and bloodied his face is transformed into crown of gold.
*the mocking crowd that had harsh and angry words, pushing and shoving this innocent man is now transformed into a myriad of angels in celestial praise
*the betrayal of judas, kiss of deceit is transformed into the fulfillment of love. Love cannot be denied.
*the denial by Peter as the cock crows is transformed into a welcome of heaven, with arms outstretched.
*the agony of the garden, where sweat was like drops of blood is transformed into glory.

In the ascension we experience the mess of living give way to the beauty of life. We see the mess of living become something beautiful for God.

The circumstance of Jesus' life did not deter him. The circumstances did not make his life. His life was determined by a decision of faithfulness with each step he took regardless of the circumstances and thus he opened up to a new horizon of joy.

The ascension shows us the power of perseverance in faith that transforms our reality and invites us to life of high.

We all have a sad story to tell. We all have harsh realities to deal with. We all have circumstances that are not in our favor. But JEsus' has the saddest story of all and yet he remains steadfast and shows us what life can be with proper perseverance and dedication to something greater than one's self.
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The Ascension is an event horizon. It is an invitation into a new dimension. Jesus transcends time and space. HE takes our humanity and incorporates it into the fullness of God, God's way of being and God's way of loving.

God creates space for us in the ascension and thus gives us a reason and a cause to create space for him here and now on earth.

This is why JEsus tells the Apostles at the end of the first reading Acts 1:1-11, when they ask "Lord, will you restore the Kingdom of ISrael" and he replies, "it is not for you to know the time or seasons the Father has established by his own power. But you will receive power...you will be my witnesses..."

When we create space for God in our life then the kingdom is restored through us. Jesus has done his work it is time for us to do ours.

By creating space for God in our life, we live the kingdom, we build the kingdom, we make the kingdom come.

We can finally live out perfectly what we pray, "on earth as it is in heaven."

JEsus opens heaven to earth below when he rises, ascends upward.



When we look at the gospel, Jesus does something to strengthen us and give us courage.

As he ascends, he lifts his hands and blessed the Apostles as he goes upward. THis may seem like a nice gesture but there is more to it.


The gospel writers what us to remember that Jesus is the new moses, the one who leads us to a new exodus. In order to understand what Jesus does, sometimes it is best to see how moses acted.

In exodus 17, Israelites are in a fight with their enemy. As long as Moses as his hands held high, Israelites taste victory. When his hands are down, then they experience defeat. Hands up brings victory, hands down defeat.

When JEsus ascends with hands held high he is reminding the Apostles that on their mission, victory is guaranteed for his hands are forever raised high. We live forever on earth under the blessings hands of Christ raised upward as a sign of victory thus giving us courage to create that space necessary for God so that the kingdom can be restored through us.

The kingdom is alive through us in the power of faith animating throughout our lives. Thus the mess of living can truly be something beautiful for God regardless of circumstances. Through us the kingdom comes alive. Thus hope and joy unite.

The joy of Jesus is our hope and may we have life on high.