"The Lord Goes Up With Shouts Of Joy"

The Ascension Event!

(Homily for the Solemnity of Ascension Year C)

         As I affirmed last Sunday, “As Jesus prepares to leave the scene, He prepares the minds of his disciples for the advent of the Paraclete”, and indeed today He finally bids farewell to his disciples and apostles, although his departure is not a definitive separation from his people, but the beginning of a new presence. The Ascension of Jesus to Heaven that we are celebrating today, concludes his earthly life, and yet opens a way for another type of presence. However, narrating this great event the Evangelists seem to do so with discretion. Luke as we can see in today’s Gospel passage did not talk about it in a detailed manner, he says: “he withdrew from them and was carried up to heaven” (Lk.24:51). Analogously, in the Acts of the Apostles (first reading) he affirmed that: “He was assumed into heaven, he was elevated on high, before their eyes and a cloud covered him before their gaze” (Acts 1:9). In the same vein, Mark noted: “And so the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven; there at the right hand of God he took his place” (Mk. 16:19). In his own account Mathew says: “the eleven went to Galilee on the mountain that Jesus indicated to them”. This entails that the visible presence of Jesus on earth has paved way for his presence in another modality. At the celebration of the Ascension of our Lord Jesus into heaven, it is very easy to allow oneself to be carried away by the imagination and fantasy of thinking that it has to do with some sort of levitation or a physical phenomenon. Instead, here we are before a mystery, a truth of faith that we are called to believe, and not a phenomenon to be explained with the human sciences.

                   In today’s Gospel passage (Lk. 24:46-53), St. Luke limited himself only to few words while talking about the Ascension: “he withdrew from them and was carried up to heaven” (v.51). However, the passage can be divided into two parts. In the first part, we see Luke’s version of the appearances of the risen Lord to the apostles, which looks forward to the Church’s mission and also the empowering of the Church with the Spirit for the mission. The second part, instead, narrated the Ascension event as in the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. Upon a closer look, in the Gospel passage, the Ascension narrative looks backward, rather than forward. Therein, the event is not presented as the inauguration of the era of the Church, which is also the conclusion of Christ’s earthly ministry. It is a farewell scene, as indicated by His blessing on his disciples. From that moment onward, He will be with them in a new way. But interestingly, as he bids them farewell, the disciples were rejoicing, unlike as it happens often when someone bids farewell. This is because he leaves them with his blessings.

          Above all, as emanating from this brief passage we cannot but underline three important elements:

● The understanding of the Scriptures: At the beginning of the passage Jesus reminded his disciples what is written in the Scriptures about Him, “in the law of Moses, in the Prophets and in the Psalms” (v.44). He reminded them that the events of his death and resurrection, even ascension are part of God’s project, already announced in the Sacred Scriptures.

● Proclamation and Witnessing: Jesus reminded his disciples that it was “written” and preannounced in the Scriptures that “in his name” they are to preach “repentance and forgiveness of sins” to all the nations (v.47). The responsibility and duty of the Church, of every Christian community and every single Christian will always be that of preaching to the whole world, about the project of salvation initiated by the Father and realized by the Son, to bring the Good News that in Jesus Christ, the merciful love of the Father is in search of everyone, however, it calls all to a change of life, which implies the rejection of sin. For this Jesus said: “You are witnesses of these things” (v.48).

● Adoration, Joy and Praise: St. Luke concluded his brief narrative of the Ascension in a surprising manner, one would have expected that the moment of separation between Jesus and his disciples could have been a moment of sadness and suffering for the apostles, instead, the evangelist concluded with the following affirmations: “they worshipped him” (v.52), that is, the manifested their faith in the risen and glorified Christ; they “returned to Jerusalem with great joy” (v.52); “they were continually in the temple blessing (praising) God” (v.53). These are the essential elements that ought to characterize every Christian community and every single Christian: the adoration of the Son of God (incarnated, died, risen and glorified); the joy of being loved by God and redeemed by the precious Blood of Jesus, who is always present and alive in the Church; incessant prayer and praise to God for the wonderful things He has done for our salvation.

          Drawing the issue further, on this great event, we may say that St. Luke recounts the story of the Ascension two good times (Lk. 24; Acts 1). As a matter of fact, each narration brings out a different dimension of the same reality. While the Acts version looks forward to the future, that is, to the inauguration of the mission of the Church and the final return of the One who ascends, Luke instead looks backward, as Jesus bids his disciples farewell with benediction. In the first reading, St. Luke recounts thus: “until the day he gave his instructions to the apostles he had chosen through the Holy Spirit, and was taken up to heaven” (v. 2); “he was lifted up while they looked on, and a cloud took him from their sight” (v.9).

          The second reading (Eph. 1:17-23) recuperated the theme of the Ascension as the enthronement of Christ. It elaborated the theme of the exaltation and Kingship of Christ as another mystery emanating from the mystery of Christ’s Ascension into heaven. For this, the apostle opined: “and how extraordinarily great is the power that he has exercised fur us believers; this accords with the strength of his power at work in Christ, the power which he exercised in raising him from the dead and enthroning him at his right hand, in heaven, far above every principality, ruling force, power or sovereignty, or any other name that can be named, not only in this age but also in the age to come” (vv. 19-21). Indeed, the event of the Ascension reveals another mystery about the crucified-risen Lord, for St. Paul unlike the Synoptic does not record simply that “he was carried up…”, or that “he parted from them”, but that he was raised above all things: “The one who went down is none other than the one who went up above all the heavens to fill all things” (Eph. 4:10). St. Peter equally recorded this thus: “he has entered heaven and is at God’s right hand, with angels, ruling forces and powers subject to him” (1Pt. 3:22). In that bid, the feast of the Ascension is an event of Christ’s enthronement, it celebrates the risen Christ as the One constituted by the Father as Sovereign Lord of all the earth. Little wonder Psalm 47, a psalm of enthronement was used for the responsorial psalm, “God has gone up with shouts of joy. The Lord goes up with trumpet blast” (v.6). It is on this note that St. John declared that “The Kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord and his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever” (Rev. 11:15). The Ascension is indeed the feast of Christ’s enthronement. Therefore, henceforth God exercises his sovereignty over the universe through his crucified-risen and exalted Son. 

         Furthermore, reflecting on the event of Christ’s Ascension into heaven, we deem it fit to make three considerations talking about the event in connection to us, thus:

1) It confirms our faith in Jesus Christ. Christ is truly risen. He is alive. He is with us. In his words: “I will not leave you orphans” (Jn. 14:18), “I am with you always; yes, to the end of time” (Mt. 28:20). He departs physically but to perpetuate his presence spiritually.

2) It revives our hope, for one day we shall be where the Risen Lord has preceded us to be at the Father’s right hand, “Anyone who proves victorious I will allow to share my throne, just as I have myself overcome and have taken my seat with my Father on his throne” (Rev. 3:21).

3) It stimulates our Christian sense of duty and responsibility: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation” (Mk. 16:15); “in his name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all nations” (Lk. 24:47); “you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8b), “why are you Galileans standing here looking up to heaven” (Acts 1:11a).

           The Ascension into heaven is a full participation of Jesus to the life of God, as the God-man. Indeed, the Ascension Event does not inaugurate a period of distance or complete absence of Jesus from his people, rather, it inaugurates a new type of presence. For He says: “I will not leave you orphans, I will return to you” (Jn. 14:18). In fact, he has promised “It is for your own good that I am going, because unless I go, the Paraclete will not come to you” (Jn.16:7). And not by chance that Mathew ended his gospel with the great and reassuring promise of Jesus: “Look, I am with you, till the end of time” (Mt. 28:20). The new presence that Jesus begins with the Ascension Event entails an invisible but real presence, which he actualizes through the coming of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Ascension Event stimulates us equally to believe that Christ is really present in his Church, for the Holy Spirit continues to work in the Church and in every single Christian. From this moment begins the “time of the Church”, of her mission in the world, as orchestrated in the first reading: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand and look up to heaven?” (Acts 1:11a). That was the question that “the two men in white” asked the apostles, who were gazing at Jesus as he ascends, as if to call their attention on the need of not wasting time on nostalgic regrets. It is not a time to observe Him like a bystander, rather it is time for and of action, time of realization of the Kingdom of God that Jesus has inaugurated on earth, and as such, time of witnessing!

          Above all else, however, the first reading and the gospel bring clearly to light the main message of today that the ascension does not mean that Jesus has gone from us, even though he is no longer visibly present, but he is still with us. Above all, the experience of the Ascension is a confirmation of the promise of Jesus “I will go and prepare a place for you” (Jn. 14:2-3). It is the assurance of the coming of the Holy Spirit “If I do not go away, the advocate will not come to you” (Jn.16:7). The Newtonian law of Gravity seems to have relevance within the framework of the Ascension event “whatever goes up must surely come down”. Applied to the Ascension we believe that he will come down as he ascended as Luke told us (cf. Acts 1:11b). It was an end and a beginning at the same time for the disciples. May the Event of His Ascension into Heaven reawaken our faith, our hope and our Christian sense of duty! Amen!!!

Happy Ascension to You All!!!

(Fr. Vitus M.C. Unegbu, SC)