1. --
Lanie LeBlanc OP
2. --
Carol & Dennis Keller
3. --
Brian Gleeson CP
4. --
5. --(Your
reflection can be here!)
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1.
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The Ascension 2022
One of the key points in this day's readings is "the
promise of the Father." The Father is all-knowing,
all-loving, and all-powerful. We can count on, bet on, rely
on, and yes, build our lives on the promises (plural) of the
Father.
In the Gospel today, Jesus tells the apostles about the
greatest promise, the Gift of the Holy Spirit. It is the
Holy Spirit, soon to come again in this liturgical year upon
us, with the booster shot of hope we all need right about
now. It is indeed the Holy Spirit who fulfills all those
promises!
My family has education-based connections to our parish,
its school, a nearby university, and their related
school-year cycles. "How many days until school is out???"
reverberates in our every thought it seems! We are worn out,
but it is not yet time for the "down time" we all need.
In the reading from Ephesians, we hear/read: "May the
eyes of your hearts be enlightened, that you may know what
is the hope that belongs to his call..." We, and it seems,
many people in the world, need the light of hope to pour
forth into and from our hearts! Jesus's Ascension to the
Father unleashed that hope anew in the Holy Spirit. That
hope does indeed make adhering to the call we have as
Christians and as people of good faith, possible, even if
our call is not easy.
The apostles juggled their feelings of Jesus's leaving
them with this amazing promise of the Holy Spirit. We do a
similar juggling act with our lives and our blessed
assurance. After Jesus ascended to heaven, the apostles
returned to Jerusalem "with great joy". Will we be able to
muster "great joy" in today's world? Sometimes I wonder that
about myself, so I recently have begun to wear a necklace
that says "Defiant Joy". Been some tough weeks. Come, Holy
Spirit!
Blessings,
Dr. Lanie
LeBlanc OP
Southern
Dominican Laity
lanie@leblanc.one
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2.
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ASCENSION &
7th SUNDAY OF EASTER
The Ascension
of the Lord May 26 2022
(may be
celebrated on May 29 in place of 7th Sunday of Easter)
Acts 1:1-11; Responsorial Psalm 47; Ephesians
1:17-23; Gospel Acclamation 28:19/20; Luke 24:46-53
This going away – albeit to heaven – is a loss for these
disciples. They had come to depend on Jesus to keep them
headed in a good direction. When one loses a loved one,
there ensues a panic – what do I do now? How can I get along
without? There is a disquieting desperation resulting from a
sudden absence, a sudden aloneness. In the years of walking
around with Jesus, thinking they had him figured out they
came to the thought of his leaving with that panic. Should
they just consider this experience the highlight of their
lives and go home and once again go fishing? The experience
of Jesus had lifted them up, made them more than they
believed themselves to be. No longer fishermen tied to the
sea. He had changed their horizons to all of Galilee,
Samaria, and Judea. Well even beyond that – it seems Jesus
wanted them to be known in the entire world. Going back
would be a huge let-down.
These disciples had witnessed the unthinkable. It had
been even more than miracles during the wandering through
Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. His preaching stirred people’s
hearts. Some of them even seemed to change how they lived.
They had been there when he was arrested and dragged from
trial to trial – all of them with witnesses who fabricated
multiple stories contradicting each other. They knew such
was the way of those who worshipped power and wealth. Lies
paved such persons’ road to glory. They must have been
scared out of their wits during the trials, the beatings and
mockery, the way to Golgotha, and his death and burial.
Would they be next? What utter terror they must have
experienced when he suddenly appeared. That surprise must
have chilled them to the bone – were they seeing a ghost.
What terrors would this ghost visit on them? Then that
strange greeting: "Be not afraid. Peace be with you!" What
on earth? After all Jesus had been put through, he spoke of
peace? Where was the indignation, the anger, the getting
even with violence of equal worth or more?
And now, forty days of visiting with them, telling them
how to understand, revealing to them how his message, his
presence, and his and the Father’s immense love for them
would never leave them. That there was more yet to come.
That unrevealed more would tickle their imaginations, open
their secular, consumer, power hungry hearts to all that he
had done and taught. These disciples would need a seismic
change of heart and mind. It is difficult to get through the
defenses of hard hearts and stiff necks, pride, arrogance,
and hubris!
And so, there comes that recurring question: "Is now when
you are going to establish the Kingdom?" Talk about being
dense! What is wrong with these people? They just do not get
it. If we think about their question, we discover something
that truly applies to each of us in our practice of faith.
They were expecting Jesus to do the heavy lifting that would
bring about the Kingdom. He was going to get it done for
them and they would take their places in the kingdom as
those who had first followed him. Jesus, however, just
pushes aside their anticipation of an easy way. It is not
for them to know when it will come to fruition. Theirs would
be work. Theirs was the difficult process of lifting hearts
and minds and wills of all nations to understand their own
worth, their own calling, their necessary practice at
becoming what they could be. They had to study, to reflect,
to analyze to understand again the message that was first of
all his words but more revealing, his works including the
dying AND the rising. Even then they would need help from
God by God and leading to God. That help is the Spirit that
we, in our time, celebrate by remember coming just ten days
after Jesus leaves for home.
From Bethlehem to Bethany was a long road. Most of it was
quiet, not earth shaking. Just a carpenter making chairs and
tables, and farming tools and yokes for oxen. You know,
yokes were custom made to fit each person – oops, each ox.
It was quiet, that childhood, that adolescence, that young
adulthood. The human nature of this Jesus had to get up to
speed to begin the work he was sent to accomplish.
Does any of this apply to us, individually or
collectively? Absolutely. Can we not imagine ourselves there
on the hill in Bethany or, in other accounts, in Galilee
looking at Jesus disappearing into a bank of snow-white
clouds? Do we stand there looking up as did the disciples
with our mouths gaping, wondering at how Jesus pulled off
this ascension? Then come the two messengers, those two
angels. Why do you stand here looking up? Get with it. Start
living what Jesus taught and demonstrated for you. There are
many forces that would capture and enslave the spirits of
mankind. It is for you to uncover the evil that capture so
many. You are to free them from those forces – you are to
cleanse the temples that are their spirits. For their
spirits are the very image and likeness of their Creator.
Commonly those spirits are known as souls.
As we celebrate this 40th day of Jesus Resurrection, we
receive our marching papers. This is not, as we often hear,
a war. It is gentler than that, it is more kind than any
war. Actually, it is the antithesis of violent war. God
gives the gift of faith to all whose hearts can bear it. It
is for each of us to practice that faith so it grows and
flowers and can be harvested when our life completes its
course. In that practice, repentance, reconciliation, and
peace and justice are possible. We preach by how we live. We
exhort by how we love – love even our enemies, even those
who choose to harm us for their own purposes.
To the worldly wise, this is foolishness. To those whose
addiction is power, this seems like begging to be victims.
To the wealthy this is a gilded invitation to steal from
those who love and care about others. But to the Christian,
this is a way of life that takes a lot of practice.
Actually, it takes every-day practice. None of us get it
right from the beginning of our journey laced with faith.
Each learns by remembering the Scriptures’ description of
God’s interventions and applying those memories to the
moments of our living. Gradually, every so painfully, slowly
we change. And our Spirits grow and becoming the shining
lights that illumine the way for others.
So, when will the Kingdom be established? It is already
present. We need to get on the train that moves us forward,
the train that runs on Love of God and Love of neighbor.
That energy transfers into our engines, our hearts, and
transforms the moments of our living and lifts up every
relationship. That power reflects and emulates the love of
God for us. Pretty simple, riding on that train! Just
awfully difficult when we begin the effort to love as God
loves. Getting on the train takes a change of heart – often
called repentance. It is not the way of the world; it is not
how humanity expects to get along. But there it is success
of a different color and nature. Just need to stop looking
at the sky, hoping for an easy with no sweat, no strain, no
searching. We are to get going and not stand with our mouths
agape. Time to get moving, get started; jump on that
fast-moving train. What a ride that is! What a fullness and
wonderful life it turns out to be. As we draw our last
breath, the rear-view mirror discloses a wonderful life!
Seventh Sunday of Easter May 29 2022
Acts 7:55-60; Responsorial Psalm 97; Revelation
22:12-14, 16-17 & 20; Gospel Acclamation John 14:18; John
17:20-26
In our country and in many parts of the world, these
readings are suppressed in favor of the celebration of the
Ascension. The feast of the Ascension is of more importance.
It is difficult in our high-speed world for People to make
time to come to the community for celebration on a Thursday.
So, we suppress the readings for the seventh Sunday of
Easter in favor of those of the Ascension. Still, those
readings are worthy of a long look and reflection.
These readings collectively are sort of a goodbye by
Jesus to the disciples. The first reading from the Acts of
the Apostles is a word of warning to Christians. Those who
believe, act in concert with that belief, and who tell
others about it in word or deed or both, are likely to be
persecuted. Stephen was stoned to death and in his dying, he
prayed Jesus to forgive the stone throwers. That seems so
silly – to bless those who are killing you! Yet it is
responding with love to those who treat us badly, hurt us,
or steal from us what we need for self and family. That is
Jesus’ message to his followers by his words and by his
words. How does anyone have the strength of character to
behave in that way? Typically, we devise retorts, physical
violence, or character assassinations of offenders. It takes
a lot of practice of faith to reach such strength of
character.
The second reading puts the persecution in a different
light. The death of Stephen is a persecution that is
repeated throughout all centuries since Jesus ascended into
heaven. Even in our day, around the world there are hundreds
of martyrs who give their lives for the truth of the
gospels. Especially in countries struggling to lift
themselves up, there are hundreds of people of faith and of
ministry who stand up for the lives of the poor. Archbishop
Oscar Romero was executed by the government while saying
mass because of his support for the poor. Sister Dorothy
Stang (born in Dayton, Ohio) was shot six times by thugs in
the employ of ranchers in Brazil. They saw Sister Dorothy as
an obstacle to their disenfranchisement of the poor, the
plundering of their land, and the abolishment of the
cultures of the natives of the Amazon valley. There are many
more such martyrs, in the Balkans, in Africa, in the Middle
East, in Ukraine, and even in our own country. Persecution
continues. But as the second reading from Revelation tells
us, those who practice the faith in their relationships and
in their time and place will be rewarded. The prayer of
those who practice the faith, whether in safe situations or
in situations of threats, are those who pray that prayer of
the early Church "Come, Lord Jesus, come."
The gospel seems out of place. It is the prayer of Jesus
at his last meal with the apostles in John’s gospel. At its
root, it is a prayer for unity, for becoming one. That is
one of the characteristics of a vibrant and healthy Church.
Actually, that is the effect of the Eucharist. We bring to
the table what we do and what we are. The Spirit transforms
that into the Body and the Blood of the Lord. All those
little and large gifts of every person in the assembly
contributes to the "bread and wine" that is transformed.
Then we are gifted with those transformed gifts. All that we
do in secular living and in faith is enriched and becomes
the Lord. We then receive the Lord and are made one. That is
the reason some of us continue standing as we return to our
pews after receiving. It is a sign to all that we are one.
We wait till all have received to demonstrate that oneness.
The Church is above all a community of people who practice
faith in the Lord and the Lord’s message and deeds. It is
relevant that we should remember that every miracle of
Jesus’ public ministry was about returning those rejected by
society to full participation in the community that was the
faith community of those who are called together. All were
fed to make them one, as in why we celebrate the Eucharist.
"That they may be one, as the Father and I are one. The love
with which the Father loved Me, that it may be in them and I
in them." The community that is our parish, our diocese, our
Church is more than an institution. It is about a community
of persons who love one another as the Father loves the Son.
That is a very, very, very tall order. That is ultimately
what is the Kingdom of God/Heaven. That is where there is no
more weeping, no mourning, and death is no more. That is
where we love each other enough to die for them, to educate,
to bring to health, to encourage, to respect and lift up
their dignity and worth as truly indicative of God’s
creative wonders.
May it be so.
Dennis
Keller
dkeller002@nc.rr.com
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3.
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MAKING SENSE OF THE ASCENSION OF JESUS
Acts 1:1-11; Hebrews 9:24-28; 10:19-23; Luke
24:46-53
In our Creed today we will be saying of Jesus: 'He
ascended into heaven.’ What picture comes to mind when we
think of Jesus ascending into heaven? Do we picture him
going far away to outer space like a spaceship at Cape
Canaveral? If we do, we show that we don't realize that the
words of scripture about this are not to be taken literally.
They are a poetic way of saying that Jesus is no longer on
earth in a fleshly, physical and material way. The words of
scripture mean that he has gone to God in his risen body and
lives with God in light and glory. What they mean is that
God who raised him from the dead has therefore affirmed,
honoured and exalted him.
Does his being with God mean he is no longer with us? No!
He is with us more strongly, more powerfully than when he
walked the lanes, streets, and roads, of Palestine. He is
present to us in spirit, i.e., in his gift to us of the Holy
Spirit, his other-self. He acts on us in all the ways the
Spirit influences us.
So we don't go looking for him on the clouds or in the
sky but in all the down-to-earth ways in which he told us we
would find him? We find him in our reading, hearing and
heeding of the scriptures, which speak of him. We find him
in our celebration of the sacraments. Each of the seven
sacraments is a sign of his presence and action. This is
especially true of the Eucharist, which is specifically the
sign and presence to us of his now glorified and
spiritualized body. We find him in our concern and care for
our neighbours, and especially for our fellow human beings
who are poor, neglected, sad, sorrowing, confused, afraid,
or despairing.
But if Jesus is no longer visible in the old familiar
ways, how will people come to know of his presence? The
answer is that he wants to make himself present through his
disciples. So, on this Feast of the Ascension, we also
remember the mission he gave his followers, you and me
included before he went home to God. This is to go and tell
everyone everywhere the good news that Jesus is alive, and
that he is our Saviour, the one who changes people for the
better through his gift of the Holy Spirit. So, before he
disappears he says to his followers of every century,
including our 21st:" You are my witnesses," and that to
witness to him, we will be "clothed with the power from on
high," the power that is the Holy Spirit.
On the subject of witnessing, it’s worth remembering that
Pope Paul VI said that "the world needs witnesses more than
it needs teachers." In fact, the world is full of both true
and false teachers but has far fewer witnesses, i.e., people
who speak with their lives. Between the two roles, there is
the same difference that exists between saying and doing. A
well-known proverb underlines this difference: "Actions
speak louder than words," more recently put by the rappers
as, "Walk the walk, not just talk the talk."
Being witnesses to Jesus is a very important role for
parents of children, especially when they are asked to help
with the teaching of their children getting ready for First
Reconciliation, First Holy Communion, and Confirmation. The
words which parents say about meeting Jesus and belonging to
the Church in each of these steps will mean nothing if the
parents don’t practice what they preach. What will the
children think if their parents don’t go to Mass on Sunday,
don’t ever make the sign of the cross with them, and don’t
ever pray with them? The souls of children are like sheets
of photographic film. Everything they see and hear in their
childhood years leaves a trace, an imprint. One day the
"film" will be "developed" and it will have its effects,
good or bad.
So, in summary, in ascending to heaven, Jesus has not
left us. He has merely disappeared from our sight. This is
similar to what happens in the Eucharist. So long as the
host is outside us, we see it, we adore it. After receiving
the host that is Jesus, we no longer see it. It has
disappeared, but it has disappeared so that Jesus can be
within us, and so that he can be present to us in a new and
even more powerful way than when he walked our earth in the
flesh. So, like the first disciples, we are not sad that
Jesus has disappeared but glad, because he is still with us
and still loving us in so many ways.
At our Eucharist today, then, let’s make a point of
thanking God with joy, that Jesus is not only risen and
exalted into glory with God but that he is also still with
us, in many powerful and loving ways, through his gift of
his Spirit, his alter ego, his second self!
"Brian
Gleeson CP" <bgleesoncp@gmail.com>
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5.
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Volume 2 is for you. Your thoughts, reflections,
and insights on the next Sundays readings can influence the
preaching you hear. Send them to
preacherexchange@att.net. Deadline is
Wednesday Noon. Include your Name, and Email Address.
-- Fr. John Boll, OP
