Day 65: Returning Home

Hi, I'm Fr. Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, and this is the Rosary in

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This is Day 65.

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The second glorious mystery is the Ascension.

Luke chapter 24 verses 50 to 53.

Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven.
And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple blessing God. If I'm honest, in my own time as somebody who has prayed again and again and again with the ascension of our Lord, and also someone who has preached about the ascension, walked with other people.
If I'm honest, it's one of my harder mysteries to really get, to really understand its meaning. And it's a big deal.
The church holds the ascension of the Lord at the highest of levels of feasts, right? And the first image that comes to mind is from like this video I saw a number of months ago. And there was somewhere in Europe, it might've been Ireland.
There was a young man who's probably 16 or 17, who is in the Olympics and he's returning back to school for the first time. What they did is they had all of the students lined up to welcome him

in. And so as he's coming to school, they're all cheering, they're all clapping.
There's this big celebration of all of the students celebrating one of their own who had just gone and competed and won a medal at the Olympics. And now he was coming home.
And there's something about this joyful celebration of one of their own who's returning home that I think really makes sense of what is happening with the ascension. Like the Lord Jesus Christ is going back home, if you will.
He's returning to heaven, returning to the Father. It's like all of the angels, all of the archangels, they're all gathered there, and there's this huge procession and welcome home party, and they're all singing and celebrating the return of their victorious King.
And I think that is part of the movement that we are invited to as we meditate upon the ascension of our Lord, joining with all of the angels and celebrating with songs and joy, the return of the King, the return of the victorious King back home. But if we're honest, there could be a question here.
Because right with the high school kid, it's like our friend has arrived. To the disciples and the apostles, you know, it could feel like, well, actually the opposite.
Like their Savior, their beloved one who they've come to believe in, it appears that he's actually leaving. So is Jesus returning to heaven, him leaving us? And Pope Benedict asks this question, and he really beautifully fleshes out, beginning with the gospel passage we just read.
The disciples, as they see Jesus descending to heaven, they worshiped him, and then they returned with great joy. So something was happening where they understood that they weren't losing Jesus.
Something happens that they realized that his ascension to the Father wasn't their loss. And Pope Benedict, he quotes John 14, 28, part of the farewell discourse of Jesus, where it says, I go away and I will come to you.
And he says that, yeah, Jesus has gone away, but now and forever by God's own power, he's present with us and for us. And he interprets or he alludes to, you know, this, I'm going away and I will come to you as foreshadowed in Mark chapter six.
What happens is after the multiplication of the loaves, Jesus has the disciples get into the boat and to begin their journey to Bethsaida ahead of him. And what Jesus does is he goes up the mountain to pray.
And it's here in this context that the disciples, they encounter this great storm, and they are afraid, and this is where Jesus, right, although physically appearing distant, Pope Benedict says, because he is with the Father, he sees them, so this is where Jesus comes to them walking on the water, and he saves them, and he gives them peace. So Jesus ascended to the mountain, which can feel like actually becoming distant to us.
But in fact, because he is going to the father and in the father, he's even closer to us. And what Pope Benedict is saying is this, is that this is a type of what the church can expect and will experience as Jesus has gone up the mountain, as he's ascended and returned to heaven to the Father.
And his words are this, is that because he is with the Father in this new way, we can always call on him and be certain that he sees us. And in John chapter 16, verse 7, Jesus, he assures us it's better that he goes away.
That when the Holy Spirit comes, this is good news because now we have like this ongoing and privileged access to Jesus. We have a privileged closeness to him that we share with the disciples.
This is what Jesus says, if you remember. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth.
It is to your advantage that I go away. For if I do not go away, the counselor will not come to you.
But if I go, I will send him to you. And so my brothers and sisters, it is in fact good news.
It is the best of news that Jesus has ascended to the Father. And so through the power of the Holy Spirit, we could say we have an even more privileged access to Jesus as he sits

at the right hand of the Father than even the apostles and the disciples did, as he's no longer restricted to time or space. He's always and most beautifully and perfectly with us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
And so my brothers and sisters, as we pray today with this mystery, maybe we would begin with joining the angels in this praise, in this joyful celebration of just praising Jesus, the glorious King, as he returns to his throne. And also we ask for the grace of this radical confidence,

this joy,

that as our King has returned to his throne

in glory to the Father,

we can be absolutely certain

that he sees us and he hears us.

Let us pray in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen. full of grace the Lord is with thee blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus holy Mary mother of God pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death amen glory be to the Father into the Son to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end Amen.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,

is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son,

and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
All right, friends, I thank you for joining me and praying with me

again today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow.
Poco a poco.

All right, God bless y'all.