Called to be a witness to God's kingdom

May 28, 2006 -- Feast of the Ascension of the Lord

By Bishop Robert Morneau

	Bishop Robert Morneau
	Questions for reflection: 1. What does the Ascension mean to you? 2. How does this feast impact our daily lives? 3. What is your vision of reality?

It is in the preface of the Mass that we are given insight into the meaning of our various feasts. Be it Christmas or Pentecost, the Feast of Christ the King or the Ascension, the liturgy teaches us about the different dimensions of our faith.

For today's feast, the feast of the Ascension, we have two prefaces. Here is the instruction from the first: "Today the Lord Jesus, the king of glory, the conqueror of sin and death, ascended to heaven while the angels sang His praises. Christ, the mediator between God and man, judge of the world and Lord of all, has passed beyond our sight, not to abandon us but to be our hope. Christ is the beginning, the head of the Church; where He has gone, we hope to follow."

Who is this Jesus who continues, in the Acts of the Apostles, to do the mission of the Father? First of all, He is the one present and active in history now through the working of the Holy Spirit. The mission is to bring about the kingdom, the reign of God, in the hearts and minds of individuals and of nations. This Jesus is even more: conqueror of sin and death; mediator between God and man; judge of the world and Lord of all.

Our call is to witness to the love and mercy that Jesus made incarnate. Mother Teresa of Calcutta did that in India and now her community does it around the world. Dorothy Day was a witness to God's kingdom by establishing houses of hospitality for the homeless and destitute. Albert Schweitzer was a witness in his hospital in central Africa for over fifty years. The Holy Spirit is active wherever goodness, truth, and beauty are lived.

The second preface for the feast of the Ascension contains these lines: "In His risen body He plainly showed Himself to His disciples and was taken up to heaven in their sight to claim for us a share in His divine life."

This feast of the Ascension offers to our secular world a vision that transcends time and space. It's a vision that St. Paul shared with the Ephesians when Paul describes the hope and glory of eternal life in Jesus. There is a realm "far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion" in this world. Here is a wisdom and a revelation that no book in philosophy can conceive of. Here is an alternative world view that can transform our self-understanding and the very meaning of our life.

C. S. Lewis, the author of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, had this vision. He moved from being an agnostic to a believer. The eyes of his heart were enlightened and he went on to share a vision of "mere Christianity" with thousands of people. Part of that vision was Jesus' return to the Father in glory. His was a Christian vision.

If the prefaces for Ascension are packed with meaning, so too is the opening prayer for this feast: "Father in heaven, our minds were prepared for the coming of your kingdom when you took Christ beyond our sight so that we might seek Him in His glory. May we follow where He had led and find our hope in His glory for He is Lord forever."

As Jesus returns to the Father, the disciples, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, venture forth to proclaim the gospel and continue the mission of Christ. Now they are to teach and heal, feed and console, reconcile and unify. From the right hand of the Father, Jesus is with us still.

(Bp. Morneau is the auxiliary bishop of the Green Bay Diocese and pastor of Resurrection Parish in Allouez.)