Liturgical Calendar

3 Reasons Why the Ascension Really Matters

By Catechist's Aide on May 22, 2017 0

Forty days after Easter we celebrate the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord. When we think of Easter our thoughts go immediately to Christ’s suffering and death on Good Friday and of course his glorious resurrection on the third day. By the time we reach Easter, after the long season of Lent, we are all ready to celebrate some good news, or shall I say The Good News. We are thankful for the great redemptive sacrifice of Jesus and reminded that one day we will all share in the resurrection. We tend to view Easter as the full and final culmination of God’s saving plan, reducing the Ascension to nothing more than Jesus going back to the Father for a pat on the head for a job well done. It is no surprise then, that the Ascension is, possibly, the most overlooked feast of the Liturgical year. But, the Easter season does not end with Easter Sunday. And, we sometimes forget that the Paschal Mystery does not conclude with Christ’s Resurrection, but with his Ascension.

“The wonderful works of God among the people of the Old Testament were but a prelude to the work of Christ the Lord in redeeming mankind and giving perfect glory to God. He accomplished this work principally by the Paschal mystery of his blessed Passion, Resurrection from the dead, and glorious Ascension, whereby ‘dying he destroyed our death, rising he restored our life.’ For it was from the side of Christ as he slept the sleep of death upon the cross that there came forth ‘the wondrous sacrament of the whole Church” – Catechism of the Catholic Church 1067

Here then are three reasons why the Ascension really matters:

1. It gives us hope that we too will share eternal life in heaven.

Perhaps the most overlooked message of the Ascension is that when Jesus ascended into heaven, he brought his earthly body, his humanity, into the heavenly realm. Jesus’ human nature was not a costume that he wore on earth and then cast off before he returned home. Jesus did not play the role of a man for 33 years and then go back to his day job after the Ascension.

The Jesus that the apostles witnessed after the resurrection was not a ghost, nor was he a resuscitated corpse. He was the same, yet different. He walked and talked with his friends, and ate and drank with them, but he could also enter a room through a locked door. The apostle Thomas even examined the crucifixion wounds of the risen Christ. It’s important to remember that the Hypostatic Union continues in heaven. Jesus returned to heaven as God AND man. This gives us hope that one day we too will enjoy eternal life in our own resurrected bodies. Jesus told the apostles that he was going to prepare a place for them. Without the Ascension how could we enter heaven?

“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be. Where [I] am going you know the way. Thomas said to him, “Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” – John 14: 2-6

2. From his place at the right hand of the Father, Jesus intercedes for us.

After his Ascension, Jesus took his place at the right hand of the Father. It is from this position that Jesus intercedes on our behalf, and we can have confidence that the Father hears us and will have mercy on us. Jesus, who through the Incarnation became man, understands us. Who better to intercede for us?

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.” – Hebrews 4: 14-16

3. After his Ascension, he sent us the Holy Spirit.

He sent us the Holy Spirit to be our guide. Before his Ascension, Jesus told the apostles that it would be better for them if he went back to the one who sent him. But, he also promised that he would not leave them orphans. He would send someone to guide them.

“But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. … But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own. But he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming.” John 16: 7, 13

The Holy Spirit is the living presence of God in the world today. He gives grace to those who are receptive to him. He guides the Church (and each of us) to the truth – not “my truth” or “your truth” but THE truth. Through the power of the Holy Spirit the Apostles were able to continue Christ’s ministry and grow his Church on earth. That same power is available to us today. We sometimes ask ourselves how would we respond if Jesus were in our midst, as he was with the Apostles. Well, the Holy Spirit is in our midst right now, and he is speaking to us. He offers us the same guidance and strength that he gave to the Apostles two thousand years ago. As we celebrate the Ascension of our Lord, it’s a good time to ask ourselves how receptive are we to his gifts?

Epiphany Sunday & the Sacraments

By Catechist's Aide on January 9, 2017 0

We’re back in class on Monday, after the Christmas break, and we will begin our study of the Sacraments. While preparing the lesson, I wanted to do a quick recap of the very special feasts and holy days that we just experienced during the Christmas season.

I wanted to focus on Epiphany Sunday because I felt the students were least familiar with this day when the Son of God is made manifest to the world.

The Traditional date of the Feast of the Epiphany is January 6th which marks the end of the twelve days of Christmas. The feast was moved to always fall on the Sunday that falls between Jan. 2 and Jan 8. Despite the confusion with the timing, the significance of the feast is compelling to all Christians. The revelation of the Christ child to the three wise men symbolizes his revelation to the Gentile world. It tells us that God’s call goes out to all nations.

We don’t know if, when the wise men set out, they knew what they could expect to find at the end of their journey, but we do know that something compelled them to follow the star. They were called, and they heeded the call, reminding us of the desire within each of us to seek God.

Upon arriving at the stable, they bow down in worship before the child and offer him precious gifts. This seems completely illogical for these highly educated and worldly men – to fall down at the crib of a powerless infant, yet this is what they do.

Perhaps the most important takeaway, however, is the final line in Matthew’s gospel where the visit is recorded. He says, “And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.” (Matthew 2:12) As the story goes, Herod, was king of Judea, and he secretly asked the magi to return to him after finding the child Jesus. Understanding that Herod meant to harm the child, they instead chose not to share that information with him and returned home another way. Looking a little deeper at this scripture verse, it reveals that these men were changed by their encounter with the Son of God.

What a perfect lead-in to our study of the sacraments! At their core, the sacraments are places where we encounter Christ, just like the magi in Matthew’s gospel. And, like the magi, we too are changed by that encounter and leave following a different path.

The Solemnity of Mary

By Catechist's Aide on January 1, 2017 0

Today we celebrate not only the beginning of the new year, but the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and the World Day of Peace.

It’s tempting to focus on the same, tired, old resolutions we seem to make every year. But, celebrating Mary’s Motherhood of Jesus, which all began with her faithful “Yes” to God’s plan, helps us to put things in the proper focus. A new year presents us with an opportunity to ponder what God is asking of us, and to pray for the strength to say “Yes” to it reflexively as Mary did at the Annunciation.

Mary, as the Mother of God, underscores her importance not only as the conduit through which Christ physically entered into the world and humanity itself, but it reinforces her continued importance to all Christians today as a direct conduit to her son, our divine Lord and Savior. Recalling Jesus’ words from the cross, “Woman, behold, your son!’ Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother!’” (Jn 19:26-27) further emphasizes that Mary’s role in salvation history did not end when she gave birth.

Some twenty years ago, Pope John Paul II wrote about that moment on the cross:

Jesus’ words acquire their most authentic meaning in the context of his saving mission. Spoken at the moment of the redemptive sacrifice, they draw their loftiest value precisely from this sublime circumstance. In fact, after Jesus’ statements to his Mother, the Evangelist adds a significant clause: “Jesus, knowing that all was now finished….” (Jn 19:28), as if he wished to stress that he had brought his sacrifice to completion by entrusting his Mother to John, and in him to all men, whose Mother she becomes in the work of salvation.

The reality brought about by Jesus’ words, that is, Mary’s new motherhood in relation to the disciple, is a further sign of the great love that led Jesus to offer his life for all people. On Calvary this love is shown in the gift of a mother, his mother, who thus becomes our mother too.

for more on this subject, read: https://www.ewtn.com/library/papaldoc/jp2bvm49.htm

There is something else I’m thinking about this new year. As 2016 drew to a close, Pope Francis spoke about a debt that we owe our young people, to help them find purpose in their lives. It got me to thinking about the even younger people and our collective responsibility to teach them about the faith into which they have been baptized. As a mother and a catechist, I know it’s not always an easy task to get kids excited about their faith, but we do owe it to them, and to future generations. These children are the future of the Church. So this year, I am praying, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, to help these young people find purpose and value as children of God and a deep desire to grow ever closer to Him.