The Appearance to the Disciples

Today's Reflections

The Appearance to the Disciples 

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Lk 24:46-53

⁴⁶[Jesus] said to [his disciples], “Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day ⁴⁷and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. ⁴⁸You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹And [behold] I am sending the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

⁵⁰Then he led them [out] as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. ⁵¹As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven. ⁵²They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³and they were continually in the temple praising God.

Reflection:

He parted from them and was taken up to heaven. Body and soul, Jesus already returned to his Father when he rose from the dead. The Lord’s ascension we celebrate today is the visible departure of Christ to his Father, marking the end of his appearances to the disciples as a group.

Jesus will come again, as proclaimed in the First Reading. The time between his visible ascension and his return at the end of time is the era of the Church, the time for the Church to preach the Gospel of repentance and reconciliation to all nations. Thus, Jesus commissions his disciples (and us) for this mission, but he tells them not to go until they have received the Holy Spirit and are clothed with power from on high.

You and I have a mission from Christ. Every Christian receives this mission when he/she is baptized and confirmed. Our Lord has equipped us for this mission. Each one has received a gift or charism. He has given us the Holy Spirit so that we are empowered to do what the Lord wants.

Do you promote,

by the way you live, act, and speak,

the gospel of repentance and reconciliation?