Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
I would like to reflect on the feast of the Ascension in two parts. The first part is the reality of the ascension of Jesus. As sure as the death and resurrection of Jesus, scripture recounts the ascension of Jesus with total confidence and certainty. (Acts 1:1-11). Today, like the disciples who were left behind in wonderment and awe, perhaps we too are left in amazement. Yet, do we have questions? I am sure we do! Nevertheless, the ascension of Jesus remains an essential article of our faith.
The second part is the ‘great commission.’ In the Markan version of the great commission Jesus says to his disciples, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). Today’s the scripture readings not only introduce us to this mission, but also the suggests the spirit in which the gospel must be proclaimed to the whole world and to every creature.
Let me draw three implications of the reality of the Ascension of Jesus and the task of the accompanying mission he entrusted to his disciples.
The Ascension
The Ascension of Jesus brings to conclusion Jesus’ incarnated ministry on earth to completion. He came from God and now he returns to God. He lived a brief life on earth and much of his life did not go according to plan. But what a life! What a life! He changed the course of human history like no other human person ever did. We might say, but he was the Son of God. And we are right. But it was not by the divine exercise of power, glory, or majesty that he transformed history. Ultimately, even the greatest miracle he worked did not sway the ‘powers that be’ in his favor. Rather, it was Jesus’ fidelity to God, his fidelity to the work entrusted to him, his un-exhausting capacity for love, his compassion, mercy, the forgiveness of even of his enemies, and most of all living out his own teachings that made him the most admirable person ever lived. The means by which he transformed human history are the very means at our disposal.
Jesus’ ascension was the culmination of a life dedicated to God and human redemption. Jesus’ ascension, then, becomes the hope for every person who models his or her life on the life of Jesus. We may not ascend to heaven in the same way Jesus did, but our destiny is the same. And what a life it would be, if we could go back to God having lived a Christ-like life.
The Mission
How do we ensure that when we go back to God that we can confidently stand before God? Before Jesus ascended to heaven, he entrusted his mission to his disciples, saying: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). Paul describes this mission when he says to the Ephesians, “And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith” (Eph 4:11-13). Jesus’ mission is the great equalizer. Jesus personally entrusts every one of us with his mission and ministry. No one can say that ministry is not entrusted to me or that ministry is not mine. Ministry is not only for apostles, evangelists, and pastors. To use Paul’s language, he gave some as fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, young and old, teachers, engineers, doctors and nurses, law-enforcement, office clerks, and grocery workers, farmers, social workers and technicians the work of ministry, for the building up the body of Christ until we all attain the unity of faith.
Today, on the feast of the ascension of Jesus, let us make an intentional choice to sharpen our focus and put new energy into the ministry Jesus has entrusted to us – to build up the body of Christ. During this Mass, as you extend your hands to receive the Body of Christ, also accept the mission Christ is entrusting to you.
Missionary Discipleship
Jesus not only entrusted his mission to his disciples, but the New Testament community also had an understanding of how this ministry was to be carried out. Today’s second reading from the letter to the Ephesians gives us some direction. Fulfilling Christ’s mandate, Paul found himself in prison. Imprisoned, he writes a poignant letter to his fellow Christians, “I urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace” (Eph 4:1-3). Humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve unity and peace – this is how ministry must be accomplished. I do not want to engage in a historical critique of the ancient Holy Roman Empire or medieval colonial Christianity which, having the right intention, carried out Christ’s mission in a missionary style alien to the gospel or the spirit of the early church in the New Testament.
Pope Francis’ concept of ‘missionary discipleship’ is more aligned with Paul’s exhortation in Ephesians. During a homily during the traditional Angelus on July 15, 2018 Pope Francis laid out what it means to be ‘missionary disciples.’ First, he says "The missionary disciple has a center, a point of reference, which is the person of Jesus." Pope Francis’ real concern is how quickly and easily missionary efforts can become centered around ideologies, individual personalities, or even large groups. Ministry can very quickly become alienated from the person of Jesus Christ.
Second, Pope Francis says that missionary discipleship is characterized by “a face and a heart” of which poverty is a means. By this Pope Francis means precisely what is meant by Paul’s exhortation – that we live in “humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.”
In other words, “missionary discipleship” means that we are rich in Christ and poor in self-promotion, arrogance, and triumphalism. Christ cannot be attached to cultural expansion, ideological wars, nationalistic propaganda, racial supremacy, or a sense of religious superiority complex. To be a missionary is to be poor in self and rich in Christ and Christ alone.
As the disciples gathered at mount of the ascension, today in this Eucharist and at this altar we are gathered around the presence of the Jesus. May wonder, amazement, ministry, and the enduring presence seize us. Filled with the richness of Christ’s presence, then, let us “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15).
- Fr. Satish Joseph