The Ascension of our Lord

First Reading: Acts 1:1-31.

Christ returns to his Father, promising to send the Holy Spirit, and sending out the Apostles.

Second Reading: Ephesians 1: 17-23.

St Paul prays that we may recognize the destiny to which God is calling us.

Gospel: Luke 24: 46-53.

Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit to give us power to witness to him.

Points for Reflection

1. While on earth, the body of Jesus was subject, like ours, to limitations of time and space. At his resurrection, he passed into another order of life to be united with his Father.

2. After repeated appearances to the apostles, he finally withdrew, making it clear that they could expect to see him no more in the flesh until his return in glory. But this means that there is now a man, one of us, raised to a position of equality with God.

3. This has implications for our relationship with each other. If God has so raised Jesus, he has so raised human nature and every man and woman as brothers and sisters of Christ.

4. As Christians, therefore, we ought to have a universal concern. We are involved with the whole world. Jesus expected the apostles to be concerned with the whole of the world. He sent them out “to all nations”. Equally, we have to do anything in our power to help all the people of the world to become one family, the family of God. Jesus will always be with us to inspire and strengthen us as we do our very best to be living witnesses to his merciful, infinite and universal love.