The texts of our liturgical celebrations are numerous.
Each occasion gives us plenty of material to focus on and reflect on the message offered.
This generous offering may lead us to miss one line, or the concluding verse of a reading, which could have provided some rich insight.
The last verse of today’s gospel reading could be one such text.
On this Feast of the Ascension, we meet the apostles who see the Lord taken from their sight and disappearing in the clouds.
At the last moment, he has told them:
“Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation” (Mark 16:16).
It is said that:
“Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere,
and the Lord worked with them…” (Mark 16:20).
The expression is interesting and a little surprising…
We would expect to read that the apostles… worked with the Lord!
But we are told that the Lord himself worked with them and he “confirmed” what they did
“by the signs that accompanied” their work.
Would the Lord not do the same with us, and for us, now?
Would he not accompany us as we try to share his message to people around us?
Would he not sustain our efforts and make them fruitful?
Unseen, invisible, the Lord is not indifferent, or detached – this is not our God.
He made himself – and forever – “God-with-us” (Isaiah 7:14).
The Ascension of the Lord is the occasion of learning anew how to see…
To see beyond the immediate…
To see deeper than the obvious…
To perceive the reality of his unfailing presence in all that makes up our human existence…
Note: Another reflection is available on a different theme, in French, at: https://image-i-nations.com/fete-de-lascension-du-seigneur-annee-b-2024/