Vigil of the Ascension of the Lord (if the feast is celebrated on Thursday)
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| “Jesus with his Disciples” Gustave Doré (1832-1883) |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Acts 17:15, 22—18:1
Commentary on Acts 17:15, 22—18:1
This selection places St. Paul in Athens speaking to the pagans in one of their principal venues. In his rhetoric, he uses their own beliefs to bring them to understanding by first telling them, using their “Unknown God” as a starting point, that God is not bound in gold, silver, or stone (as their idols are), but that he exists all around them, creator of all that is and will be.
When he gets to a point at which he begins talking about Jesus and the Lord’s resurrection, he loses most of them but some remain and the beginning of Christianity in that city has begun. From Athens he and his companions move to Corinth.
CCC: Acts 17:24-29 287; Acts 17:26-28 28; Acts 17:26-27 57; Acts 17:26 360; Acts 17:27-28 32; Acts 17:27 2566; Acts 17:28 300; Acts 17:31 679; Acts 17:32 996
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Commentary on Ps 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14
Psalm 148 is a hymn of praise. In this selection we find it singing of the omnipotence of God, His power and majesty, and His promise of salvation. This poem is related to the Benedicite, or “Song of the Three Children”, in Daniel 3:52-90. In both we find catalogs of natural phenomena praising God.[4]
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Gospel: John 16:12-15
Commentary on Jn 16:12-15
Jesus’ farewell speech continues. His reference to the coming of the Holy Spirit is explained further, and the unity of the Holy Trinity comes into focus. The Lord tells his friends that this Advocate will give them what is also his (the Lord’s). He tells the disciples that the Holy Spirit will not bring new revelations, but will allow them to understand the things that have already happened. And in that revelatory understanding, Christ will be glorified because He and the Father are one.
CCC: Jn 16:13-15 2615; Jn 16:13 91, 243, 687, 692, 1117, 2466, 2671; Jn 16:14-15 485; Jn 16:14 244, 690
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Reflection:
Any skill or craft may look simple or easy on the surface. Take the making of a table, what is there to it? It will have legs and a top. How simple is that? Yet a great carpenter will know what kind of wood to use. They know what tools will be needed and how to use them, and those tools will change depending on the size of the piece to be built and the complexity of its design. A true artist of the craft will take a lifetime to perfect their skill.
Apply that same idea to Jesus’ farewell to his disciples being described in St. John’s Gospel. He tells them straight out: “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.” Although he is a young man by our standards, in is early 30’s, he is going to meet his passion and death. With this statement it appears that his disciples have figured out what Jesus is saying and are understandably distraught.
While we do not know exactly how old his friends are, we do know they have a huge task in front of them. They are to take the Good News to the world. As they do so, principally because of the gift of the Holy Spirit to be received on Pentecost, they will understand more of what they cannot understand at the moment of this telling.
It is like this with us as well. Who among us did not grow up with our parents telling us about Jesus, and how we needed to love him and be loved by him? That very simplistic understanding was what we could grasp at the early phase of our relationship to him. As we grew older we began to understand better what it meant to love the Lord and be loved by him. And now, as we recall the words of St. John once more, we see how far we have come and know that, like the disciples, we have a long way yet to go.
Today we give thanks for our relationship to the risen Lord, and we ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit to take us further as we truly come to understand all that God will let us understand before we meet him face to face.
Pax
[2] The picture used today is “Jesus with his Disciples” Gustave Doré (1832-1883)
[4] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 35:164, pp. 601
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