All my life, I have taken Heaven for granted. Being raised in a Catholic family, and community, I was informed early on about the existence, possibility, and hope of Heaven, the meaning, purpose, and goal of my life. The meaning of life is, for us Catholic Christians, to experience the love and joy of God now, and eternally. The purpose of life is to “get to” Heaven.
Today, as we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus Christ, we celebrate his eternal entrance into Heaven. Jesus, who came to earth from Heaven, in the Incarnation, returned there, after dying, and rising to new life, the life of the Resurrection. From our point of view, he made a kind of “re-entry” into Heaven, revealing a mystery of the God of Jesus Christ that will always perplex humanity. But for his disciples who first observed this, as described in both the Gospel of Luke, and in the Acts of the Apostles, his ascending upward signalled a new possibility, for them and for humanity, both extremely joyful, and somewhat frightening. It showed them that life has a meaning that goes beyond the limits of created being. It showed them that the purpose of their lives, amid all of the limitations, disappointments, sufferings and tribulations which they often experienced, was actually the eternal joy of Heaven.
The Ascension of Jesus, vertically upward to Heaven, also presents us with a mystery that is revealed on a more horizontal plane, in the time and space of human life which we experience. For in our coming to know God in our lives, through the uncountable ways we encounter God, Jesus Christ, we discover the mysterious, yet certain and deeply affirming call of God, the call of Jesus Christ, to go out to others and bring them the Good News. In a way, responding to the call of Jesus, our being sent by him, is how we “get to” Heaven. To deepen that mystery, our response to the call of Christ is his way of calling to others, his way of showing others that the meaning of their lives is to experience the love and joy of God. Jesus sends us to show others the way to Heaven, now, and for eternity.
The Holy Spirit of God, of Jesus Christ, calls us and sends us forward. Today we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord. Next Sunday we celebrate and rejoice that he gives us his Spirit, to be with us always.
– Fr. Gerry McDougall, SJ
