Daily Scripture

The Ascension of the Lord

Scripture:

Acts 1:1-11
Ephesians 1:17-23 or 4:1-13
Mark 16:15-20

Reflection:

Today, the feast of the Solemnity of the Ascension is celebrated in most dioceses in the United States.  The Ascension was traditionally celebrated on the 40^th day after the feast of the Resurrection, always a Thursday, followed 10 days later by the celebration of the feast of Pentecost, always on a Sunday.  Following the Second Vatican Council, the church allowed the Solemnity of the Ascension to be moved to the following Sunday, if approved by the local Bishop, to give the feast a more prominent position in the liturgical calendar between the feast of the Resurrection and the feast of Pentecost. 

Consider for a moment, the momentous occurrences of the 52 days between the occasion of the Last Supper (the institution of the Eucharist) on the feast of Passover, followed by Christ’s passion, death, resurrection and Ascension and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles.  We, the faithful have reflected on Christ’s life, from the infancy narrative in St. Luke’s gospel, through his baptism, his first miracle at Cana, the Proclamation of the Kingdom, countless more miracles and teachings, the Transfiguration, and the final journey to Jerusalem.  Laid out in beautiful scriptural passages before us are 33 years of one man’s life, that we have followed and studied and prayed over.   

Suddenly, these long and arduous years are capped off by a series of rapid miraculous and mysterious events in just 52 days that can only be compared to the eruption of a super-volcano, the results of which would impact humanity forever.       

We, as Catholics, have been taught to meditatively observe the 25(+/-) days of Advent leading up to Christmas and the 40 days of lent leading up to the Triduum.  But how much time do we spend focusing on the mysterious and miraculous events of the 52 days from the Last Supper through Pentecost, including today’s Solemnity of the Ascension?  These days seem to move so swiftly that it is difficult to immerse ourselves in the significance of each one of them individually.  However, don’t these events make up the heart of our salvation narrative?

“He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.  While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem…”   “But in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”    

Jesus said to his disciples; “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.  So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God.” 

Welcome home my Son.  Thank you Father……it is finished.

Bill Berger has had a lifelong relationship with the Passionist Family. He and his wife, Linda, are currently leaders of the Community of Passionist Partners (CPPs) in Houston.

Scripture:

Acts 18:23-28
John 16:23b-28

Reflection:

“Whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you.”  

That verse sounds as if God has given us a blank check to ask anything of him.  We know, however, that prayer is not a matter of snapping our fingers, dictating our will to God, and presto, getting whatever we want.

The verse that clarifies and breaks open the Good News in today’s gospel is this: “Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may complete (16:24).”  The word “joy” is chara in Greek, stemming from charis, which means grace.  In other words, joy is produced by God’s grace, God’s gift.  Joy is as strong as steel and as tender as the heart.  God’s joy is durable in good times and in bad.

I recall, during my student days as a Passionist seminarian, the words of a wonderful priest, Father Randal Joyce, C.P., at Mass on a Sunday morning: “Joy is the unmistakable, infallible sign of the presence of God.”  I have never forgotten those words from this holy man of prayer.

Real prayer then is prayer that completes our joy.  It is prayer that leads unmistakably to communion with God.  Prayer is a humble and heartfelt attitude of dependency on God who loves us and wants only the good for us.  True prayer begins in conforming our will to the will of God.  And in that moment, Jesus promises us, our joy will be complete, full, and perfect.

Deacon Manuel Valencia is on the staff at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California.

Scripture:

Acts 18:9-18
John 16:20-23

Reflection:

I remember what labor was like for me – long and intense. Despite what it says in the Gospel, once my son was born, I didn’t immediately forget the pain; it was too real. Over time, I thought of it less and less though, and I knew my child was worth the price.

Then when my young husband died, I was plunged into the incredible pain of another type of labor. It took a very long time and much work for the pain and grief to lessen, my heart to heal, and new life to emerge. Yet when people ask whether I would’ve married John if I knew he’d die that soon, I always reply, “Absolutely! I struggled through a depth of pain I didn’t know was possible, but John was worth the price, and I am a better person because of his life, his love, and even his death.”

In John’s Gospel, Jesus acknowledges the anguish his disciples will experience when he was crucified, and then the repeat of their anguish when his physical presence disappeared from the earth. Yet, just as the hard labor of his death culminated in resurrection, their pain would eventually turn to joy that no one can take away. Just as with his crucifixion, the price would be worth it.

Jesus taught that nothing of this world is permanent. Loss and deep pain are absolutely inevitable and are so often a necessary labor for our growth into deeper life. Yet we blindly run from pain. We avoid learning about, facing, or accepting illness, death, broken heart, disability, and more. Instead, we convince ourselves that we “own” the things and people we love or can command their continued existence. Sooner or later, though, we lose what we held so dear and are thrown into the labor pains of grief.

Perhaps one key is to recognize impermanence rather than denying it, and to truly appreciate the wealth of gifts – people and things – we’ve been given in our lives right now, knowing they can disappear in an instant. Then let’s also commit to a prayer practice that places us and all we have into the hands of God, who is the only permanence and the only true source of healing and joy. Because of Jesus, we know that no matter what we go through, God will companion us in our labor and bring us to resurrection and new life.

What “labor pains” are you enduring now, or are you likely to experience? What circumstances in your life would break your heart and shake your foundations to the core? When it does, can you work through the pain of your personal crucifixion hand-in-hand with Jesus, until new life can emerge? It’s not an easy task! But it’s worth the price.  

Amy Florian is a teacher and consultant working in Chicago.  For many years she has partnered with the Passionists.  Visit Amy’s website: http://www.corgenius.com/.

Scripture:

Acts 18:1-8
John 16:16-20

Reflection:

The Church of Jesus with Signs Following!

The daily readings for this week speak of Church building: the home of Lydia, a prosperous dealer in woven and dyed cloth becomes the house church of Philippi. We can see her at the loom weaving a new Church into creation. Paul speaks eloquently in Athens, but with no tangible results. He goes then to Corinth where working with Aquila and Priscilla over time, a solid community is established before he moves on.

In the diocese where I live we celebrate the Ascension today, most will celebrate Sunday. The celebration today fits well today with the theme of Church building, the work and response to the Spirit’s invitation, and being witnesses to the ends of the earth.

A mother due to give birth later this summer reflects about the natural world as an orderly liturgical procession for a feast day, a day like the Ascension. ‘Crocus acolytes lead the forsythia choir, followed by the shrubbery deacons, azalea to lilac, attending the fay and jolly magnolia, cloaked in the finest vestments, spun with white and gold thread’.

She goes beyond seeing the colorful display of life in nature adding that she was born into a sacramental world of initiation, healing, and vocation. In the quiet times of life there is always something to celebrate, the ordinary is packed with feast days. Nature is partnered with the cycle of the sacraments, and together help us to see ourselves with such hope, with dignity and beauty. This expectant mother ends by saying that next spring she will see the spring differently, along side her child, another witness to the Resurrection.

Augustine as poet speaks of the gifts that are ours in Jesus, ‘The one who made us has become one of us; the Ruler of the stars nursed at a mother’s breast. Yes, he became one of us – Bread hungered, Drink thirsty…’ At the heart of the Church is the Eucharist, Jesus present with us; the Way, the Truth and the Life, Healer. Each of these gifts are given through suffering, something not foreign to nature, even beautiful nature. When Adam slept Eve was given life. Bone of my Bone, he said. On the Cross the New Adam gave birth from his wounded side to the New Eve, the Church, His Body.

The Ascension shows us the Risen Lord enthroned in glory, now watching over us. We are to be witnesses to the ends of the earth and the Holy Spirit is with us, our companion and guide. We are laden with the surprises and gifts that Jesus gives us to bring life into the world. We do this often with suffering, which ought not surprise us, that is what Jesus endured, what a mother giving birth endures. It is our price that we pay so stand with others as witnesses of the Resurrection.

Pushed from the nest by the loving, nurturing Spirit to soar like the eagle, may the indescribable wonder/thunder of the Ascension shake us to a witness that comes from our oneness with Jesus, our desire for the Father.

Fr. William Murphy, CP is a member of Immaculate Conception Community in Jamaica, New York.

Scripture:

Acts 17:15, 22-18:1
John 16:12-15

Reflection:

Today’s reading from Acts is so vividly recounted that it is easy to picture ourselves there, listening to the apostle Paul as he proclaims the core of the Christian message in first-century Athens. Paul focuses on three truths, and as he speaks, we are invited to imagine what would change if we took these truths to heart and allowed them to transform our lives.

“For the God who made the world and ‘all that is in it’…” Paul reminds us that everything that exists is a gift of God’s love, an expression of God’s goodness and wonderful creativity. Nothing exists, no person, no species, and nothing of the natural world, that did not come from God. All things receive their being and life from God not just once but continually, which is why apart from God nothing can live.

“They were to seek God…though he is not really far from any one of us.” The God who absolutely transcends us is also astonishingly close at hand, continuously in reach, in those with whom we live, in strangers passing by, in the face of a delighted child or the person grieving a loss, in moments of joyful celebration as well as moments of silence. Every moment of every day God is near, surrounding us, upholding us, accepting and accompanying us. Even if we tried, we couldn’t get away from God because wherever we would go, God would already be there waiting for us.

“’In him we live and move and have our being’….” All things are in God and God is in all things. What a difference it would make if we acquired the moral and spiritual vision by which we saw God in every human being, in every creature, and the whole created world. We would love our neighbors eagerly and joyfully. We would treat every creature with respect and would never stop giving thanks for the gift of God’s creation. Peace, justice, and love would abound.

It almost sounds like heaven.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology and Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the Passionist Family of Holy Cross Province.

Scripture:

Acts 16:22-34
John 16:5-11

Reflection:

But Paul shouted out in a loud voice,
“Do no harm to yourself; we are all here.”
He asked for a light and rushed in and,
trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas.
Then he brought them out and said,
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”   -Acts 16:28-30

“Forgive Everybody, Everything” (2022) is the title of Fr. Greg Boyle’s latest book. Fr. Greg is a Jesuit, founder of Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles and on May 3 of this year received the Presidential Medal of Freedom Award. I wonder if that means I must forgive the window company that made and installed the windows in my condo? My bedroom window has needed more attention than I have ever given to any window, and it is still broken. Most windows, get my attention twice a year and that is about it. This one, I had to replace the upper window a couple of years ago—it’s a double hung window. Then, last Fall while trying to wash it, I broke the outer pane of the double-glazed pane. I figured it was too late to have it replaced, so I jerry-rigged it with insulation stuffed wherever possible and we survived the winter. Now, it’s time to deal with it, get it off my mind, and to normalize my relationship with that no-good, window company that made it.

Having read Boyle’s book as well as meeting him last summer at a talk he gave in nearby Oak Park, Illinois, I decided to forgive the company and the window. I called the company, sought their guidance on how best to handle this rogue window. They sent a man out who in no time repaired the movement of the window, took the measurements, and promised to deliver a replacement in a week. He also, took the measurements of another window whose seal had broken and will give a quote to replace that. All this goes to say, I have forgiven myself for my own stubbornness, the window company and now with a little bit of luck, with these actions, the window and the company will no longer live rent free in my mind.

God, thank you for Paul’s sharing of his experiences with life and the sometimes very vexing, as well as not so vexing situations, life presents. Help me follow Fr. Boyle’s and Silas’ and Paul’s great example of forgiving and getting on with the day’s activities.

Dan O’Donnell is a Passionist Partner and a longtime friend of the Passionists.  He lives in Chicago.

Scripture:

Acts 16: 11-15
John 15:26b-16:4a

Reflection:

Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan said, “every truth starts as a blasphemy.”

Certainly, when Pope Francis speaks truth about militarism, poverty, capitalism, racism, sexual orientation, and protecting our environment, some have turned away, criticized him as out of line. Some say he is blasphemous and not in accord with Catholic teaching.

In our world of infinite conflicting messages about right and wrong, our inner moral compasses can be set spinning, leaving us confused, frustrated, withdrawn, or worse, blindly accepting reactionary absolutes in our quest for comfort and security.

Many accepted “truths” society lives by may not be truths at all, but rather illusions to maintain an unjust, destructive status quo. Think of the history of European and American colonialism and “the white man’s burden” that created exploitive societies for centuries. This cruelty was, at the time of its inception, approved by the papacy.

Millions considered Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a tool of the Devil as he challenged Jim Crow laws and the Vietnam War.

Dorothy Day was considered a radical unworthy of the name Catholic when she condemned unbridled capitalism and all wars, including the Spanish Civil War, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam wars.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus says we, his disciples, will testify to the truth of Jesus Christ. The powerful Advocate will fill us with everything we need to challenge every falsehood that is counter to God’s will. When we criticize illusions, delusions, and feel-good myths that are labeled as accepted truths, we shouldn’t expect to be well received. “They will expel you from the synagogues; in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think he is offering worship to God.”

When we, like Lydia in today’s reading from Acts, accept the invitation to follow Christ, we must be prepared to be rejected by our community and perhaps family and friends.

By converting our lives from trusting our money, our armies, our economic system, our status, and our personal powers, to a life lived in partnership with Christ, we must be prepared to take tough public stands, to expose evil masked as good, and to expect to be shut out and scoffed.

But this is the only route to true joy and deep inner peace. Today’s psalm is a hymn of rejoicing: “Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy upon their couches. Let the high praises of God be in their throats. This is the glory of all his faithful.”

Take time to let the Advocate penetrate your heart today. Let the Advocate open your eyes to see what in our world needs to be defined as good and what needs to be defined as evil. Condemn falsehoods. Anticipate rejection. Fully trust the power of the Advocate to give all you need to lead a powerful life of respect and tenderness for everyone you meet and a determination to live blasphemous lives in the eyes of the world.

This is life resting in God, a life of satisfaction of the heart.

Jim Wayne is a board member of the Passionist Solidarity Network (PSN), and author of The Unfinished Man. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
1 John 4:7-10
John 15:9-17

Reflection:

In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.    -Acts 10:34,35

This I command you: love one another.    -John 15:17

Sometimes I get so confused. Every morning, when I turn on the radio, depending on what occurred in the previous news cycle, I’m told this nation is now our friend, that nation is now our enemy. Or even if we are not directly involved in a conflict, these people are now the bad guys, those people are now the good guys. Most days it’s too much for me to follow. So, like most humans, I start to make shortcuts. If they look like this, they are good; if they look like that, they are bad. Or if they think like this, or believe like that, or eat this food, or live on this continent, I can dismiss them. I make my judgments, not as God does, but as a human does, out of my own experiences, my own preconceived ideas, and prejudices.

Earlier in Acts, Peter is told in a vision, “What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.” Saint Paul in 1 Thessalonians says, “Test everything; retain what is good.” Often, I feel I’m quick to dismiss someone because they don’t fit my picture of what a good Christian looks like. I’m so afraid of some taint of uncleanliness that I don’t let them get close enough for me to gain an understanding and see what is good. But Scripture tells us that Jesus came so that all may be saved.

The Holy Spirit has been given to us as Comforter and Protector. We have been assured that with Her, we are safe. If I truly believe this, why should I fear coming close to anyone? Perhaps I may share something that draws them closer to God. Perhaps they have something to share that will deepen my own faith. We are called to share the Good News, but I can’t do this if I’m not first open to dialogue and conversation with others.

Today, my prayer is that I am open to dialogue with everyone God sends my way, letting the Holy Spirit guide my judgments instead of relying on my own narrow thoughts.

Talib Huff is a retired teacher and a member of the retreat team at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center in Citrus Heights, California. You can contact him at [email protected].