Sunday Reading Reflections:

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Year B
Sunday, May 24, 2009

Acts 1:1-11

Loss is part of the human condition, and death is the most painful manifestation of loss. Today's feast of the Ascension invites us to face that experience of loss in a transformative way.

In Ordinary Time, we celebrate the life and ministry of Jesus. Over the period of Lent and Easter, we have been re-membering his death and resurrection. As we come towards the end of the Easter season, the liturgy draws us into another aspect of the Mystery, that of the presence and absence of the Risen One.

The Lukan Ascension story, as found in today's first reading, presupposes a pre-scientific, three-tiered understanding of the structure of the world. In this ancient view, God is in the heavens above and the prophet Jesus, like the prophet Elijah of old, is caught up into God's realm from whence the Holy Spirit will 'descend' upon God's people. This vertical (up and down) movement is balanced by a horizontal movement: Jesus' family and friends who grieve the loss of their loved one are told not to keep looking up to the heavens. They have work to do: they must return to Jerusalem for the present and be empowered by the Holy Spirit to continue the prophetic ministry of Jesus, to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. They have to face the fact that the physical loss of Jesus means a new and different sort of presence and that they have a role to play in making him present in their world.

Like us, the early Christians needed time to grasp each dimension of the one great Mystery of God's life in their midst.

Mark 16:15-20

Today's gospel passage receives little attention in commentaries and classes because, along with verses 9-14, it is a much later addition to the original text of Mark's gospel.

The author of these verses is familiar with the similar commission to proclaim the good news to all nations and to baptise in the name of the Trinity, found at the end of Matthew's gospel.

In Mark, the command is to bring the gospel to 'the whole creation', a more inclusive vision than Matthew's.

This is our mission in the 'in between times'. There are also echoes here of John's gospel in the assurance that those who believe will be saved. Jesus continues to be present in the church despite his seeming absence. His return to 'the right hand of God' ensures a different kind of presence, one that enables the believer to continue the healing and re-creative ministry of Jesus through the ages.

by Sr. Veronica Lawson RSM (East Ballarat)