Feast of the Ascension of Jesus

Today's Mass Readings

I studied in the seminary twelve years before I was ordained in the year 1994. About half way through the studies, I confronted a situation with the seminary’s rector which disillusioned me. It will take me too long to explain the situation but it will suffice to say that I realized that the rector’s stand on the matter was dishonest and unjust. I wanted to be a priest but was also aware that if I opposed the rector I would probably be shown the door for being rebellious. I decided that I would quit my seminary training rather than face such problems. I decided to write to my parents about my dilemma. It was mother who wrote back. She said I was welcome back home and that they would support my education. The very last line of the letter was really what decided my future course of action. She wrote, “No matter what you decision, I am with you.” I read that sentence again and again. I needed the reassurance. I could go back home because my parents were so supportive. But finally this is what I said to myself. “If my mother is with me then I am going to go ahead and continue my studies inspite of the problems.” The words “I am with you…” gave me the courage to face the situation rather than escape it. Those four words… they didn’t’ change the situation, but they changed me... changed me enough to face the situation and here I am. “I am with you… always…” Whether it is a mother who speaks that to her child, or a partner in marriage who says them to his spouse, or a friend who says them to us, these are powerful words. These words can change the lives of individuals. It can give hope, it can help overcome difficult situations, and it can fulfil dreams. In today’s gospel reading, Jesus stands with his disciples at the top of the mountain. His ascension is near. As he looks at his disciples, he could perhaps sense fear, anxiety, uncertainty and hopelessness in them – and rightly so. They had just witnessed how Jesus was put to a violent death. They perhaps feared for their own lives. They did not know what life had in store for them. But Jesus says those magic words, “I will be with you… always… until the end of the age.” We know from history that the disciples’ situation did not change. But those words changed them... changed them enough to deal with the situation. They faced opposition, they overcame the challenges, they encountered the very authorities they were afraid of, and they became the witnesses to Jesus. They were persecuted and all of them were martyred. And here we are.

Let me offer three points for us the think about this week.

1. What would life be without God? I mean, what does it mean not to have God with us just as he promised? For example, what would it be like not to have God with us to forgive us when we sin seriously? What would it be like if everyone walks out on us... even God? What would it be face joblessness, betrayal and illnesses without God? What would it be like to face death without God? The human heart is made for God and Jesus having lived the human life promises God’s constant presence with us - “I am with you always, until the end of age.” In the tabernacle, in this Eucharist, in the confessional, in and through one another, in every sacrament and even through a personal presence through the Holy Spirit in our hearts, God is constantly with us. As the scriptures tell us, God has made his dwelling with us.

2. What does “I am with you” mean for today’s world? The echoes of Jesus words still reverberate in the world today. That echo is you and me. It is not sufficient to bask in the warmth of God’s love and presence. Jesus said to the disciples that we would be his witness to the ends of the earth. The best witness we can give to each other is the say to each other the very words of Jesus, “I am with you.” Not to say “I am with you” is perhaps the most serious sin of omission. When the world refuses to say “I am with you,” it is then that we see genocide to the extent we see in Darfur. To the extent we do not say “I am with you,” we will see hunger and poverty in our days. Those of us here who understand the working of the market system will admit that the present spike in food prices for us and the shortage of food in poorer nations has nothing to do with lower food production. It is because there are people who are saying, “I am with me!” Not to say “I am with you” is to deny forgiveness and healing to others. Not to say “I am with you” is to deny human dignity to the unborn, to the ones on death row, to those who are not like us. We are called to be the presence of God in today’s world.

3. There is a prayer that St. Paul makes in today’s second reading that captures the essence of the feast of the ascension. St. Paul prays, “... that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call” (Ephesians 1:18). Remember that at the end of today’s first reading, all that the disciples could do was stand there looking into the sky. That symbolizes the utter hopelessness of the disciples as I mentioned earlier in the homily. An angel had to appear and tell them go to move on. The feast of the ascension is the feast of hope. It reveals to us our own future. It reveals to us the hope of those who believe in Jesus and live like him. It reveals to us the fruit of being the presence of God to one another. It reveals to us the meaning of this Eucharist. Ascension gives us the reason to live one more day with the hope of our own union with God. And that is our hope.

Here we are like the disciples on the mountain. Jesus is in our midst in this Eucharist. It is now that Jesus says to us, “I am with you always, until the end of the age.” Let his presence in our hearts lead us to mission. Let us become “I am with you,” to the world. Amen.

- Fr. Satish Joseph