HOMILY FOR THE SUNDAY OF ASCENSION ON 24TH MAY 2020

HOMILY FOR THE SUNDAY OF ASCENSION ON 24TH MAY 2020 


READINGS
First reading: Acts: 1:1-11
Second: Eph: 1:17-23
Mathew: 28:16-20.
INTRODUCTIVE WORD
My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord into Heaven. The Ascension of Jesus is a reality in our faith and in the creed, we profess that He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Almighty Father. It is from there that He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and thereafter take us to be with Him. For us to be with Him in heaven, we are called to live a good life while on earth such that at the time of judgement we may be judged worthy to inherit the Father’s throne. The goal of Easter and the Resurrection of Jesus is to make us new in Christ and to remain in this newness which we have received from Christ who died for our salvation. We must therefore reject sin and live a life pleasing to God such that we are able to sit at His right hand when the proper time comes. Therefore, Easter mysteries must nourish and prepare us to receive the Holy Spirit which Jesus promised and poured on the apostles at Pentecost. Living a good life means to follow the message of Christ and living according to it.
EXHORTATION
The Ascension of Christ is a Biblical truth which was spoken by Jesus himself and was witnessed by the apostles who saw Him being taken up to heaven physically in their presence. In the first reading today, the apostles account their story of how they saw Jesus being lifted up in the cloud as he went to His father. Jesus before His Ascension talked about the power which the apostles were going to receive after the Holy Spirit coming upon them. This was the power to make them bold in proclaiming His message and the mysteries they had seen. This power will be emphasized clearly on 31st (next Sunday) as we shall be celebrating Pentecost Sunday. We are all waiting for the Holy Spirit, it is a time to pray as we heard St. Paul in the Second reading praying for wisdom and revelation in our hearts that we may be enlightened to know the power which comes from God and was at work in Christ at the Resurrection. In our preparation for Pentecost. We keep asking God to fill our hearts with such power and to make us worthy to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit and to have them renewed in our lives. 
I would like us to reflect on the meaning and the end of our Christian life as we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ. Reflecting on the meaning of our Christian life and its destination will help us to understand better what we are celebrating today (the Ascension). The real meaning of Christian life lies in our baptism since it makes us adopted children of God who are free from the original sin. In this baptism we die with Christ and keep the hope of raising with Him after our earthly life. Thus, we are waiting for Christ to take us to where He reigns with the father and the Holy Spirit in whose name we are baptized. 
To raise with Christ is what we all hope for as Christians and as we heard in the previous Sundays where Jesus was speaking about the fact that there are many places in His Father’s house and He was going to prepare for us a place such that we are able to be where He is when he takes us. What is the end of our Christian life? After His Ascension, Jesus is seated at the right hand of God the Father from where He will come again in glory to judge the living and dead. This judgment will determine the end of our Christian life which we are living right now. A few days ago, I was reflecting on prayer. I looked at it as a journey which we have to undertake in order to be in union with God. Our union with God should come first before the needs we raise in prayer. So, this journey of prayer has to be started and it should never be ceased; this is the reason we have to pray without ceasing. 
Similarly, in accepting to come and live among us, Jesus started a journey which was intended to save us. He came forth from the Father into the world but the time came when He had to leave the world and return to the Father in heaven thus His Ascension. Jesus travelled this earthly journey and met its consequences which included His bitter passion and death. The Resurrection which we are still rejoicing in was part of this journey and after appearing to His disciples, Jesus is destined to complete His journey by going back to the Father who sent Him. As we sing alleluia today, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father where we hope to join Him when he takes us.
Our Christian life has meaning only if we live a life that Christ intends for us. The journey which Jesus started has to continue even after His return to the father. The work of Christ must continue through the works of His disciples whom he is commissioning today as missionaries into the whole world and to different nations. We are called to witness to the life of Jesus; to be His witnesses is part of our calling. Jesus has commissioned us to go to all nations as His followers and make disciples by baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We are all meant to be missionaries of Jesus’ message in all nations without any fear for He is with us always. 
The task of proclaiming the Gospel has always been mistaken to be for only priests and the religious who are missionaries. We are all part of this evangelization and we can participate in it in various ways such as supporting morally, financially, and by giving spiritual support to those in mission lands. We must also witness to Christ by the example of our life which we are living before those who do not yet know Him. So, lets know that the commissioning of the disciples to go and make disciples of all nations applies to all of us as Christians without any exception and it is what gives meaning to our Christian life as we spread Christ’s message.
Jesus has ascended to the Father but has not left us alone for He says that He will be with us till the end of the ages. His Holy Spirit is always in our midst as our comforter and consoler at all times. In the acts of the apostles 18:9-18 when Paul was in Corinth, the Lord told him in vision not to be afraid but to go on spreading the Gospel without fear of any attack for he was with him. Such words of assurance were felt by many Saints when they were facing difficulties and challenges. For example St. Camillus who is a Patron Saint of the sick and those who care for them was rejected by people while working in hospitals of Rome in those days and he went in prayer where the Lord spoke to him and told him to continue with the work he was doing in serving the sick for it was God’s own work. 
In witnessing to Christ, we don’t have to fear nor let our hearts be because Jesus has left us under the guidance of the Holy Spirit who is there to remind us all that he taught. At the transfiguration Peter said to Jesus, that it was good for them to be with him after seeing how he was glittering before them. The ascension of Christ calls us to seek Him in his glory always and to trust in the advocate who he has left us with; the Holy Spirit. The ascension of Jesus is our glory and our hope and we must be joyful in it and direct our minds and hearts towards the same glory. In waiting for Pentecost, may our hearts be renewed to receive his gifts and to live under his guidance and Help. The Lord be with you all and happy Pentecost preparations. 

SHALOOM
BY DEACON PETER WAKUBARIO CAMILLIAN 



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