READINGS FOR THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD, YEAR B, (WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY), SUNDAY, 12TH MAY, 2024.
First Reading: Acts 1:1-11
Psalm: 46
Second Reading: Ephesians 1:17-23
Gospel: Mark 16:15-20
REFLECTION BY FR CORNELIUS NWAOGWUGWU, CM.
THE MESSAGE OF THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD: A DISCOVERY OF THE CULTURE OF HOPE.
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
A sincere welcome to the feast of the Ascension of the Lord, Year B. Today also, we celebrate World Communications Day. The aim of my reflection today is to discover the culture of hope. This discovery of hope will help us to renew our joy in communicating the message of the Ascension of the Lord. This reflection will act as a spring board that will spun us into action towards effective communication in building the culture of hope and restoration of joy. To achieve this aim, I will draw insight from the examples of Jesus Christ and today’s liturgical readings. I will also draw inspiration from the life of St. Vincent de Paul and my experience in ministering to the family of God as a priest.
As we celebrate the feast of the Ascension of the Lord this year, it is essential for me to give a little explanation of the meaning of the term Ascension. It is plausible to acknowledge that different schools of thought have different notions of the term Ascension. In Christian belief, the word Ascension means the ascent of Jesus Christ into heaven on the 40th day after his Resurrection. In other words, Ascension Day is the 40th day of Easter traditionally celebrated on a Thursday to mark the end of Jesus’ earthly existence as a prelude to the gift of the Holy Spirit. From the scriptural perspective, the Ascension of the Lord is rooted in the New Testament accounts of Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:19-20, Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:6-11.
For the purpose of clarity, it is pertinent to note that, on Thursday, 9th May, 2024, many countries celebrated the Ascension of the Lord. For those countries, today marks the celebration of the Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year B. Like other countries that do not observe the feast of Ascension of the Lord as a public holiday or a Holy Day of Obligation will through their bishops obtained permission from the Vatican to move observance of the Feast of the Ascension from the traditional Thursday to the following Sunday, the Sunday before Pentecost. In Ireland this year, the feast of Ascension was moved to Sunday, 12th May, 2024 to encourage more Christians to observe and participate in this very important feast.
The feast of Ascension communicates the truth of Jesus’ glory after his suffering and death, the glory in which we also hope to share His joy. The feast of the Ascension tells us that the Church must be a community and family on mission to communicate the truth of the Good News guided by the Holy Spirit. This gives us confidence in believing God’s protection even in the face of suffering and death.
The Ascension of the Lord exemplifies the realities of both an ending and a beginning. It shows that the physical appearances of Jesus are at an end. In other words, the revelation of the “Good News” is complete. It also reveals that the promise and mission of the Messiah is fulfilled. This ending brings about a new beginning epitomised in the work of the disciples to teach, communicate and share what they have learned and witnessed from the risen Lord, Jesus Christ.
The First Reading today, describes how Jesus interacted with his disciples for forty days after his Resurrection. He instructed the Apostles to remain in Jerusalem to receive the Holy Spirit, the source of power. Once they received the Spirit, they would bear witness to Jesus to the ends of the earth by their preaching and their lives. The Lord says, “You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” You will become “My witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and to the ends of the earth.” Then Jesus was lifted up in the sky and was covered by a cloud. The disciples received the angelic message that the ascended Jesus would come back again in glory “in the same way as you have seen Him going into Heaven.” Thus, Jesus has accomplished our salvation by suffering and death, burial and Resurrection, Ascension, and the sending of the Spirit. (Acts 1:1-11).
Today’s Responsorial Psalm celebrates God’s universal kingship. It says, “God is king of all the earth.” It was originally sung in connection with a cultic procession honouring the Ark of the Covenant. This most sacred religious object served as a pedestal upon which God was invisibly enthroned. During an annual, feast it would be taken from repose in the Temple’s Holy of Holies and returned in solemn procession. It says, “God mounts his throne!” This cultic cry, our Psalm refrain today, refers to the solemn installation of the Ark within the Temple, a liturgical re-enactment of the universal lordship that is God’s from eternity. Now, by Jesus’ Ascension, the risen Lord likewise “mounts his throne” in glory. (Psalm 46).
In the Second Reading, St. Paul puts special emphasis on the truth that Jesus, our triumphant Lord, now rules in glory over all creation. He prays: “May God enlighten the eyes of your hearts so that you may know the great hope to which you have been called.” (Ephesians 1:17-23).
In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives his mission to all the believers: “Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations.” This mission is not given to a select few but to all believers. To be a Christian is to be a proclaimer and an evangelizer. There is a difference between preaching and proclaiming. “We preach with words, but we proclaim with our lives.” In the descriptions of Christ after his Resurrection, we are given a hint of what life will be like in Heaven. But, it is in the Ascension that we see Jesus entering fully into the life and glory of God. The prospect of sharing that glory should be the driving force of our lives. (Matthew 28:16-20).
It is acceptable to affirm that the Lord Jesus Christ promised the Holy Spirit as the teacher of the truth and source of Heavenly power for the apostles. Jesus commands the apostles to be His witnesses throughout the whole world, by their lives and their preaching. The risen Christ, promised, “I am with you always, even to the end of time.” The ascended Jesus is with us at all times and in all places, releasing hope, joy and a new energy upon the earth. This is the energy of the Holy Spirit who came down upon the Apostles. The Holy Spirit is given to each of us, so that, we may preach the Good News of salvation to all the world, while bearing witness to Jesus by living out His word.
In respect of this affirmation, I am convinced to say that we are being commissioned to go forth and proclaim the Gospel of truth, life, love, hope and peace, by the witness of our lives. On this day of hope, encouragement and commissioning, let us renew our commitment to be true disciples everywhere we go, beginning with our families and our communities, “living in a manner worthy of the call we have received.” The challenge of sharing the Good News with all mankind should, therefore, begin with our admission that we have often been overbearing. We must learn to be humble and let the Holy Spirit lead the way for our mission of communicating the gospel message to bear fruit that will last. St. Paul exhorts us to live in a manner worthy of our calling and mission. The greatest witness we can bear to the presence of Jesus in our midst is our unity with God, seen in our living with one another in peace and harmony. (Ephesians 4:4-13).
Pope Paul VI in 1967 established the celebration of World Communications Day to encourage us to reflect on the opportunities and challenges of using modern means of communication to spread the message of the Good News. In the same manner, Pope Francis in his message for the celebration of the 2024 World Communications Day, focuses on the theme: “Artificial Intelligence and the Wisdom of the Heart: Towards a Fully Human Communication.” Pope Francis urges us “to adopt a spiritual way of viewing reality, by recovering a wisdom of the heart to enable us confront and interpret the newness of our time and to rediscover the path to a fully human communication.” Pope Francis in his 2024 Papal bull, titled “Hope Does Not Disappoint” encourages us “to discover hope in the signs of the times that the Lord gives.” In the same manner, St. Vincent De Paul encourages us to be attentive to the signs of the time.” Like St. Paul, I pray for each of us to be transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit into instruments of peace, truth, love, hope and joy.
May God through the gifts of the Holy Spirit help us to discover Christ’s presence at every turn of our life’s journey, now and for ever. Amen.
Fr. Cornelius Nwaogwugwu, CM.