The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to a better understanding of the mission to which we are called by Christ and the environment in which we, like the first disciples, are working with the Spirit.
The reading from the Acts of the Apostles presents the Promise of the Holy Spirit and describes the Ascension of Jesus.
* [1:3] Appearing to them during forty days: Luke considered especially sacred the interval in which the appearances and instructions of the risen Jesus occurred and expressed it therefore in terms of the sacred number forty (cf. Dt 8:2). In his gospel, however, Luke connects the ascension of Jesus with the resurrection by describing the ascension on Easter Sunday evening (Lk 24:50–53). What should probably be understood as one event (resurrection, glorification, ascension, sending of the Spirit—the paschal mystery) has been historicized by Luke when he writes of a visible ascension of Jesus after forty days and the descent of the Spirit at Pentecost. For Luke, the ascension marks the end of the appearances of Jesus except for the extraordinary appearance to Paul. With regard to Luke’s understanding of salvation history, the ascension also marks the end of the time of Jesus (Lk 24:50–53) and signals the beginning of the time of the church. (Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)
Psalm 47 praises God’s Rule over the Nations.
* [Psalm 47] A hymn calling on the nations to acknowledge the universal rule of Israel’s God (Ps 47:2–5) who is enthroned as king over Israel and the nations (Ps 47:6–9).
* [47:5] Our heritage…the glory: the land of Israel (cf. Is 58:14), which God has given Israel in an act of sovereignty.
* [47:6] God has gone up: Christian liturgical tradition has applied the verse to the Ascension of Christ. (Psalms, PSALM 47, n.d.)
The reading from the Letter to the Ephesians describes the Church as Christ’s Body and the gifit of a spirit of wisdom and revelation.
* [1:15–23] See note on Rom 1:8 for the thanksgiving form in a letter. Much of the content parallels thoughts in Col 1:3–20. The prayer moves from God and Christ (Eph 1:17, 20–21) to the Ephesians (Eph 1:17–19) and the church (Eph 1:22–23). Paul asks that the blessing imparted by God the Father (Eph 1:3) to the Ephesians will be strengthened in them through the message of the gospel (Eph 1:13, 17–19). Those blessings are seen in the context of God’s might in establishing the sovereignty of Christ over all other creatures (Eph 1:19–21) and in appointing him head of the church (Eph 1:22–23). For the allusion to angelic spirits in Eph 1:21, see Rom 8:38 and Col 1:16. Here, as in 1 Cor 15:24–25 and Col 2:15, every such principality and power is made subject to Christ. (Ephesians, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)
The Gospel of Matthew summarizes the Commissioning of the Disciples.
* [28:16–20] This climactic scene has been called a “proleptic parousia,” for it gives a foretaste of the final glorious coming of the Son of Man (Mt 26:64). Then his triumph will be manifest to all; now it is revealed only to the disciples, who are commissioned to announce it to all nations and bring them to belief in Jesus and obedience to his commandments.
* [28:16] The eleven: the number recalls the tragic defection of Judas Iscariot. To the mountain…ordered them: since the message to the disciples was simply that they were to go to Galilee (Mt 28:10), some think that the mountain comes from a tradition of the message known to Matthew and alluded to here. For the significance of the mountain, see note on Mt 17:1.
* [28:17] But they doubted: the Greek can also be translated, “but some doubted.” The verb occurs elsewhere in the New Testament only in Mt 14:31 where it is associated with Peter’s being of “little faith.” For the meaning of that designation, see note on Mt 6:30.
* [28:18] All power…me: the Greek word here translated power is the same as that found in the LXX translation of Dn 7:13–14 where one “like a son of man” is given power and an everlasting kingdom by God. The risen Jesus here claims universal power, i.e., in heaven and on earth.
* [28:19] Therefore: since universal power belongs to the risen Jesus (Mt 28:18), he gives the eleven a mission that is universal. They are to make disciples of all nations. While all nations is understood by some scholars as referring only to all Gentiles, it is probable that it included the Jews as well. Baptizing them: baptism is the means of entrance into the community of the risen one, the Church. In the name of the Father…holy Spirit: this is perhaps the clearest expression in the New Testament of trinitarian belief. It may have been the baptismal formula of Matthew’s church, but primarily it designates the effect of baptism, the union of the one baptized with the Father, Son, and holy Spirit.
* [28:20] All that I have commanded you: the moral teaching found in this gospel, preeminently that of the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5–7). The commandments of Jesus are the standard of Christian conduct, not the Mosaic law as such, even though some of the Mosaic commandments have now been invested with the authority of Jesus. Behold, I am with you always: the promise of Jesus’ real though invisible presence echoes the name Emmanuel given to him in the infancy narrative; see note on Mt 1:23. End of the age: see notes on Mt 13:39 and Mt 24:3. (Matthew, CHAPTER 28, n.d.)
Mirielle Mason asks If the disciples, who lived and walked with Jesus had doubts about Him, how could she NOT?
Aside from doubting, we have other responsibilities as disciples of the Lord. This Gospel focuses on spreading the word of God to all nations. What he doesn’t tell us, is how. That divine instruction sheet is sounding pretty good again… Proselytization is a tricky subject, but it lights a fire in my soul. Few people in this world are going to convert if we hit them over the head with the proverbial hammer of religion. What I wholly believe changes hearts and souls, is the love of Christ. Being that love and showing it to others. That is how we baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as this passage instructs us to do. (Mason, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus ascends to heaven in his body - divine and human nature,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"You heard what came to our ears just now from the Gospel: 'Lifting up his hands, he blessed them. And it happened, while he was blessing them he withdrew from them, and was carried up to heaven.' Who was carried up to heaven? The Lord Christ was. Who is the Lord Christ? He is the Lord Jesus. What is this? Are you going to separate the human from the divine and make one person of God, another of the man, so that there is no longer a trinity of three but a quaternary of four? Just as you, a human being, are soul and body, so the Lord Christ is Word, soul and body. The Word did not depart from the Father. He both came to us and did not forsake the Father. He both took flesh in the womb and continued to govern the universe. What was lifted up into heaven, if not what had been taken from earth? That is to say, the very flesh, the very body, about which he was speaking when he said to the disciples, 'Feel, and see that a spirit does not have bones and flesh, as you can see that I have' (Luke 24:39). Let us believe this, brothers and sisters, and if we have difficulty in meeting the arguments of the philosophers, let us hold on to what was demonstrated in the Lord's case without any difficulty of faith. Let them chatter, but let us believe." (excerpt from Sermon 242,6) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Acts 1:1-11 comments that many other people have followed in the apostles’ footsteps by witnessing to Christ. They may not have seen Jesus firsthand, but they have experienced his presence and the power of his Holy Spirit in their lives. In fact, every person who calls himself a believer is also, by default, a witness to Christ.
Do you think of yourself as a witness? If you follow Jesus, you can’t help being one. You witness by the values that guide you, by the love you show others, and by your life of prayer. You witness when you share how God is working in your life or how he has forgiven you or answered a prayer.
Jesus’ final words at his Ascension weren’t just for his apostles; they are for you, too. So how might you witness to Jesus today? Every day presents a new opportunity—one that might just lead another person to a new or deeper love of the Lord.
“Holy Spirit, open my eyes to the ways I can witness to you today.”
Friar Jude Winkler (second reflection is on the Ascension) comments on the intellectual content of the Prologue to the Acts of the Apostles as Luke introduces the Church guided by the Spirit to move from Jerusalem, the spiritual capital of the world. To Rome, the political capital of the world. The text from Ephesians continues the teaching of Jesus as above all spiritual beings that were thought elevated in Greek culture. Friar Jude reminds us of the brilliant construction of the Gospel of Matthew as the New Torah.
Brian McLaren reflects on Psalm 42 and the sense of spiritual abandonment and grief that the psalmist expresses. McLaren counsels us to create room to bring our desperate feelings before God.
You ask, “When? How long?” because you know—or at least you believe—or at least you hope—that your panting, gasping, famished feelings of unfulfilled longing, abandonment, and confusion won’t go on forever. A sense of peace and fullness will come again, someday….
Hold your when or how long or where before God. Make space for your disappointment, frustration, and unfulfillment to come out of hiding and present themselves in the light. Don’t rush, even though you’ll be tempted to see these times of spiritual dryness and aspiration as a mistake, a sign of failure you want to put behind you. Instead, slow down and hold this moment as an opportunity to express and strengthen spiritual desire. (McLaren, 2019)
We witness with our lives to our relationship with Christ through which we proclaim fullness of life.
References
Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/1?11
Ephesians, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/ephesians/1?17
Mason, M. (n.d.). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/052123-Ascension.html
Matthew, CHAPTER 28. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/28?16
McLaren, B. (2019, May 7). Depression and Spiritual Healing. Daily Meditations Archive: 2023. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/longing-for-consolation-2023-05-21/
Meditation on Acts 1:1-11. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://wau.org/meditations/2023/05/21/686635/
Psalms, PSALM 47. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/47?2
Schwager, D. (n.d.). The Lord Jesus Was Taken up into Heaven. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2023&date=may18
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