THE ASCENSION

The New Testament is very clear that the departure of Jesus is not absence but presence. In fact, it is eternal and permanent presence. It is fulfilled in the sending of the Holy Spirit who is the Spirit of the Son and the Father. Jesus said, “We will come to him and make our dwelling place with him” (John 14:23). We are the temples of the Holy Spirit and we are assured of God’s abiding presence in us. We are called to be experts in loving, caring, serving and forgiving. The Ascension of Jesus reveals that our final, definitive and true home is God. Our final destination is not this world. We are meant to live with God forever. The goal of life is union with God. Jesus is the head of all humanity and we are His body and where the head goes, the body follows. This is our hope and it is a confident hope, not empty hope because our God is a faithful God.  In fact, at the death of Jesus on the Cross, the veil of the temple was torn from top to bottom signaling that in Jesus we have full access to God. There is no more separation and division. He destroyed all walls of separation and division. He defeated evil, sin and death forever. The Ascension reveals that Jesus is our High Priest, Mediator and Intercessor. He is seated at the right hand of the Father, enthroned as Judge of all. His mission on earth is complete. His Ascension is His complete glorification and exaltation. At the same time, He commissions His disciples to continue His work. Ascension therefore is the beginning of the work of the Church. We are the physical  presence of Christ in our tormented world. We are called to be another Christ in the world. That is why, He sent the Holy Spirit because our task is not easy. We are called to reveal God to the world by loving one another even those who are unlovable. The Holy Spirit is the promise of the Father, the power from on high. We are in the age of the Spirit empowering us to evangelize, to proclaim repentance for the forgiveness of sins to the ends of the earth in Jesus’ name. He empowers us to witness the miracle of Easter: that God’s love never ends and never dies. We are called to be builders of His kingdom here and now: an eternal and universal kingdom, a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, peace and love.