Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

The Deacon's Bench

Home
Catholic
Religion News
Homily for May 17, 2012: Ascension Thursday

Homily for May 17, 2012: Ascension Thursday

Last updated on: May 16, 2012 at 6:15 am by Deacon Greg Kandra

Homily for May 17, 2012: Ascension Thursday 2012-05-16T06:15:58-04:00 Deacon Greg Kandra

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

[Click here for readings]

It’s tempting to see the Ascension, the conclusion of Christ’s earthly ministry, as an ending.

But to think of it that way is to see it backwards.

What we celebrate today is really a beginning.

As we heard in Matthew’s gospel, moments before his Ascension, Jesus told his followers very simply: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” He urged them to baptize, to teach, to carry on the work that he has begun. But his first direction was so blunt, so direct, clear: “Go.” The world is waiting. Act on what I have taught you, Jesus said. Put it into practice.

But the account in Acts offers another challenge – to the disciples, and to us. After the disciples watched Jesus disappear into the clouds, two men appeared. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing there looking at the sky?”

In other words: what are you waiting for?

The apostles were not supposed to spend their time staring nostalgically at the stars, awaiting Christ’s return. There was work to do. There was a world waiting to be converted. They left the mountain, went into the city, and launched the greatest missionary undertaking in human history.

It seems to me that Christ’s first word at that moment was a simple command to us all: “Go.”

Go – and transform the world.

Go – and pick up those who have fallen.

Go – and heal those who are hurting.

Go – and love those who have been forgotten.

Or: as the dismissal puts it at the end of Mass: “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord with your life.”

The disciples did that. So did so countless others. Think of some of the saints on our calendar. This week, we celebrated the feast of St. Isidore the farmer, who lived it while plowing the fields in Seville. Last week, there was St. Damien, who lived it among the lepers of Hawaii.

I think of modern heroes: people like Fr. Gregory Boyle, living it among the gangs of Los Angeles, offering them job training and opportunity and hope; and Jean Vanier, dwelling among the mentally disabled in Canada; and Dorothy Day, who saw Christ every day in the poor and downcast who showed up at the door of the Catholic Worker house on Manhattan’s lower East Side.

A lot of us this afternoon will leave this church after Mass and return to work. We have trains to catch and meetings to attend and bosses to deal with and deadlines to meet. But there is other work to be done, too — the great commission that all of us are charged with carrying out.

How will we do that? How will we heed Christ’s order to “go”? How will we make the ordinary job of living transcend – and ascend?

Put simply: How will we raise our lives to God?

2,000 years after Christ returned to his Father, and the disciples stood on a mountaintop staring into the clouds, so much of the world is still waiting to hear the good news – to hear Christ’s message of hope, and redemption, and resurrection, and to understand why all that matters.

So many are still waiting to hear, and really understand, what it means to be a disciple of Christ, and to love one another.

How will we make that known to those we meet today?

Dorothy Day once wrote: “Our faith is stronger than death, our philosophy is firmer than flesh, and the spread of the Kingdom of God upon the earth is more sublime and more compelling.”

So the message of this beautiful feast, I think, is very simple: do not stay too long on the mountain. Do not spend all your time gazing at the stars, living in the past or dreaming about the future.

Look, instead, at what lies before you. Get ready. And go.

What Dorothy Day called “The Kingdom of God upon the earth” needs to be built.

The Ascension was just the beginning. The rest is now up to us.

Image: “The Ascension” by James Tissot

Homilies

Previous Post

May 16, 2012

Ordination update: 16 new deacons for Trenton

Next Post

May 16, 2012 Sparring over Sebelius

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category "Mad Men" 9/11 advent All Things New Amazing video amazing videos amazon america Anglicans Anti-Catholicism art ascension thursday ash wednesday Atheists baltimore Bible Bishops Blogging bonnie engstrom Books bridgeport Brooklyn Chaplains children christian art christmas Church Churches CNEWA Converts criticism Deacons Death Penalty easter eastern christian Eastern Christians Ecumenism education Education Eucharist Europe euthanasia Evangelization Exorcism Family Feasts Gay rights Good Friday Great links Great Moments in Journalism Hanging with the saints heather renshaw Hispanic Catholics Hispanics History homelies Homilies Humor Hymn of the Week Immigration indianapolis Inspiration Interfaith news ireland Jesus Jews Journalism Judaism lent Liturgy logos Marriage Mary Media Medical news Mental health Middle East Monks Movies Music Muslims My world and welcome to it New Evangelization new york News Nuns Parenting Parish life peoria Persecution Politics politics Pope pope francis pope john paul Prayer Preaching Priests Pro-life Quote of the day radio rebecca frech ripp Ripped from the headlines rippred from the headlines Sacraments saints Scripture sex abuse Sex abuse crisis SEX ABUSE CRISIS TAGGED WITH: SEX ABUSE CRISIS The people in the pews the visitation project theatre This & that Thomas Merton Trappists TV Uncategorized uncategorized VATICAN Vatican vocation Vocations Voices & Views Women Worth a thousand words Writing Year of Faith year of mercy young people

Select a Month December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who prophesied against Tyre, predicting it would become a bare rock?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Daniel Amos Ezekiel Joel

Books by This Author Books by Deacon Greg Kandra

See All Titles »