Reading I: Acts 1:1-11 In the first book, Theophilus,
I dealt with all that Jesus did and taught until the day he was taken up,
after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit
to the apostles whom he had chosen.
He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered,
appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem,
but to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak;
for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with
the Holy Spirit.”
When they had gathered together they asked him,
“Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
He answered them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons
that the Father has established by his own authority.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth.”
When he had said this, as they were looking on,
he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.
While they were looking intently at the sky as he was going,
suddenly two men dressed in white garments stood beside them.
They said, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the
sky?
This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven
will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.”
Ps 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9 R (6) God mounts his throne to shouts of joy:
a blare of trumpets for the Lord.
All you peoples, clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome, is the great king over all the earth.
R God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.
God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy; the LORD, amid trumpet blasts.
Sing praise to God, sing praise; sing praise to our king, sing praise.
R God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.
For king of all the earth is God; sing hymns of praise.
God reigns over the nations, God sits upon his holy throne.
R God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.
Heb 9:24-28; 10:19-23
Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands,
a copy of the true one, but heaven itself, that he might now appear before God on our
behalf.
Not that he might offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters each year into the
sanctuary with blood that is not his own;
if that were so, he would have had to suffer repeatedly
from the foundation of the world.
But now once for all he has appeared at the end of the ages
to take away sin by his sacrifice.
Just as it is appointed that men and women die once,
and after this the judgment, so also Christ, offered once to take away the sins of many,
will appear a second time, not to take away sin
but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await him.
Therefore, brothers and sisters, since through the blood of Jesus
we have confidence of entrance into the sanctuary by the new and living way he opened for us
through the veil, that is, his flesh,
and since we have "a great priest over the house of God,"
let us approach with a sincere heart and in absolute trust,
with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience
and our bodies washed in pure water.
Let us hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope,
for he who made the promise is trustworthy.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Go and teach all nations, says the Lord; I am with you always, until the end of the
world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Lk 24:46-53 Jesus said to his disciples:
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of
sins, would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
And behold I am sending the promise of my Father upon you;
but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
Then he led them out as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them.
As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven.
They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great
joy, and they were continually in the temple praising
God.
This week, we celebrate the solemnity of the Ascension.
The word “ascension” means the act of rising up.
The Ascension was when Jesus went up, body and soul, into Heaven to rule the world.
This doesn’t mean that he just leaves us, or that he is not part of our lives, or that
he doesn’t care what happens to us.
Actually, Jesus says, “I am with you always, until the end of the world.”
(Matthew 28:20b, from the Alleluia)
The Ascension gives us hope that through God’s grace, our bodies will be changed and made
whole like Jesus’, so that we can live in heaven forever.
The Ascension also gives us hope that he will come again.
In the first reading we hear: “This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven
will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.”
The Ascension also tells us about God’s kingdom on Earth.
Before Jesus went up into Heaven, the apostles asked him: "Lord, are you at this time going
to restore the kingdom to Israel?"
The apostles were wondering when Jesus would act like a king, the king of Israel and the
world.
Jesus told them that they weren’t supposed to know when it’s going to happen.
Still, he tells us about how it will happen: “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
(...) and to the ends of the earth.”
Jesus gives us the mission of building the kingdom of God, using the power of the Holy
Spirit.
He goes to Heaven to direct us.
The story of Christianity didn’t just end when Jesus ascended into Heaven.
It continues with you and me.
This mission to be witnesses of God isn’t just for “special people.”
We have all been given tools by the Holy Spirit.
We should ask ourselves: How can I serve others today?
Little by little, we can help bring people together into God’s kingdom of love and
build God’s kingdom in our hearts.
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