5/8/16 Your Participation in His Victory
THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ASCENSION
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My dear brothers and sisters,
Today we celebrate the Ascension of the Lord and with it we reflect on the victory of Christ and our participation in it. The Gospel tells us of the significant fact that the Lord ascended into heaven as He was blessing his disciples. Contrary to what one may think, his departure is neither a curse, nor a negative event for us, who would be better off if He had stayed with us in the same kind of presence He had with his first disciples. The Ascension teaches us that his going to the Father is a blessing: the beginning of a new kind of relationship.
This is why the disciples did Him homage and left with great joy. They understood that the Lord was going to be with them always; they realized that his sacrifice on the cross was the source of all blessings, and his risen presence would never be taken away from them. For us, the Ascension is the beginning of our own discipleship, of the way given to us to follow Christ and announce Him. Today is a day of joy for us, as it was for the first disciples, for the Lord’s ascension is a great blessing.
Also, today we rejoice for the 40 parishioners who are receiving the sacrament of Confirmation from Archbishop Aquila. Please, pray that they will experience the closeness of the Lord, and the joy of being anointed by the Holy Spirit. Finally, Happy Mother’s Day to all those who give us God’s love through the gift of motherhood!
Happy Solemnity of the Ascension,
Fr. Daniel
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