“ The messiah had to suffer. ”

This idea is rooted in Old Testament prophecies,

a suffering servant who will eventually be glorified.

Jesus Christ, fulfilled the prophecies of suffering and death,

The resurrection is seen as a confirmation of Christ's victory over sin

and death, and his ultimate glory. 

 

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊   

Acts 1:1-11

In the first part of my work,

Theophilus, I wrote of all that Jesus did and taught, from the beginning until the day when he ascended to heaven.

But first he had instructed, through the Holy Spirit, the apostles he had chosen.

After his passion, he presented himself to them, giving many signs that he was alive;

over a period of forty days he appeared to them and taught them concerning the kingdom of God.

 

Once, when he had been eating with them, he told them, "Do not leave Jerusalem but wait for the fulfillment

of the Father's promise about which I have spoken to you: John baptized with water,

but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit within a few days."

 

When they had come together, they asked him, "Is it now that you will restore the kingdom of Israel?"

And he answered, "It is not for you to know the time and the steps that the Father has fixed by his own authority.

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,

throughout Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the earth."

 

After Jesus said this, he was taken up before their eyes and a cloud hid him from their sight.

While they were still looking up to heaven, where he went, suddenly, two men dressed in white stood beside them and said,

"Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven,

will return in the same way as you have seen him go there."

 

Ps 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9 God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

 

  ＊＊＊ 2nd Reading ＊＊＊

Hebrews 9:24-28; 10:19-23 (or Ephesians 1:17-23)

Christ did not enter some sanctuary made by hands, a copy of the true one, but heaven itself.

He is now in the presence of God, on our behalf. He had not to offer himself many times, as the high priest does:

he who may return every year because the blood is not his own. Otherwise, he would have suffered many times,

from the creation of the world. But no; he manifested himself only now, at the end of the ages, to take away sin by sacrifice,

and, as humans die only once, and afterward are judged, in the same way, Christ sacrificed himself, once to take away the sins of the multitude.

There will be no further question of sin, when he comes again, to save those waiting for him.

 

So, my friends, we are assured of entering the Sanctuary by the blood of Jesus who opened for us this new and living way,

passing through the curtain, that is, his body. Because we have a high priest in charge of the house of God,

let us approach with a sincere heart, with full faith, interiorly cleansed from a bad conscience, and our bodies washed, with pure water.

Let us hold fast to our hope, without wavering, because he, who promised, is faithful.

 

＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊      

Luke 24:46-53

So it was written: The Messiah had to suffer, and on the third day rise from the dead.

Then repentance and forgiveness in his name would be proclaimed to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem,

and you are witnesses of these things. And that is why I will send you what my Father promised.

So remain in the city until you are clothed with power from on high."

 

Jesus led them almost as far as Bethany; then he lifted up his hands and blessed them.

And as he blessed them, he withdrew, and was taken to heaven. They worshiped him,

and then returned to Jerusalem full of joy; and they were continually in the temple, praising God.

 

 

Lectio Divina

Gospel Reflection ：

 

"Christ doesn't leave us behind."

 Read: Luke in Acts and the Gospel describes the Ascension of the Lord as part of God's plan,

so that the Holy Spirit might come to strengthen the disciples in their witness to Christ.

The Letter to the Hebrews talks of the sacrifice which Christ has made in his own blood,

which is our salvation. We are to remain steadfast in our hope of heaven.

 

Reflect: "O strong Ram, which hast batter'd heaven for me! / Mild lamb, which with Thy Blood hast mark'd the path! / Bright Torch,

which shinest, that I the way may see!" Thus the mystical poet Jonne Donne wrote of Christ's Ascension.

Christ, victorious over sin and death, returns to the glory that was his for all eternity, sitting at God's right hand.

But his ascension is not some kind of rupture with humanity. Rather, it's a continuation that paves the way for our journey to heaven.

And so, Christ doesn't leave us behind. Instead, he takes human nature into heaven,

and there he awaits us. He does not leave us behind, but he dwells within us, closer to us than ever before.

 

Pray: Meditate upon Christ in glory and Christ as a "Bright Torch" to guide us to heaven.

 

Act: Join a prayer group or spend more time in prayer in preparation for Pentecost.