GOSPEL: Mt 28:16-20
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THE Eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them. When they saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted. Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
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Christ’s “lifting up to heaven” is an integral part of his paschal mystery: Passion, death, resurrection, and ascension. But Jesus will come again at the end of time.
Even as the disciples direct their gaze to heaven, the Lord commands them to look back to their mission on earth. Jesus’ ascension to the Father does not separate him from the world. Rather, through the Spirit he sends, Jesus becomes even more present to his disciples: “The Lord Jesus…was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs” (Mk 16:19-20).
In his message on Ascension Sunday (May 13, 2018), Pope Francis explains, “This feast contains two elements: ‘On one hand, it directs our look to Heaven, where Jesus, glorified, is seated at the right hand of God (cf Mk 16:19). On the other, it recalls the beginning of the Church’s mission: Why? Because Jesus risen and ascended into Heaven sends his disciples to spread the Gospel throughout the world; therefore, the Ascension exhorts us to raise our gaze to Heaven, to then turn it back immediately to earth, carrying out the tasks that the Risen Lord has entrusted to us.’”
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SOURCE: “365 Days with the Lord 2020,” ST. PAULS Philippines, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 895-9701; Fax 895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.
