June
Wildlife fills our life with joy and refreshment. Songbirds and birds of prey, squirrels and rabbits, butterflies and lightning bugs all carry a message worth discovering in early summer. Do we see and hear them, or do we overlook them, even despise them? Are they simply an annoyance, or do we come to know, love, and even serve these fellow creatures by providing protection and habitat?
Nehemiah, Chapter 4, Verse 8
I made an inspection, then
addressed these words to the nobles, the magistrates, and the rest of the
people: “Do not fear them! Keep in
mind the LORD, who is great and to be feared, and fight for your kindred, your
sons and daughters, your wives and your homes.”
The final battle for the
kingdom; like here in Nehemiah and the secular resistance to the rebuilding of
a people dedicated to God will be through the family. Families must not live in
fear. Do not let fear take hold of your families and communities. The enemies’
threats and attacks are imminent. Do not let your spirit be broken. Take
concrete measures to protect your family. You must challenge your fears and
only fear God. Depend on God and fight for yourselves. HE will free you from
the grip of hopelessness.
Our hearts need to be fixed within the Liturgical Year. We can find rest and consolation and direction with and from the liturgy of the Church.
Ascension--We
Are Filled with Joy
Every year I find myself with mixed emotions contemplating the Ascension. I always think the Apostles would have felt some sadness and they would have missed Jesus. They thought they had lost Him completely in His death on the cross, only to have the impossible and unthinkable of Him rising from the dead. Jesus was alive! For forty days Jesus appeared to them at various times. His presence wasn't the same as before, as He didn't eat and sleep and live with them anymore, but His resurrection and presence was even more of a gift. And then He gives them His final commission and ascends to the Father, not to return in an appearance with His glorified body.
Did the Apostles sometimes hope He would appear, or did they know that this was the last time they would see Him? It feels like it should be a sad day, with the Apostles missing the human presence of Jesus.
But the Gospel for the Ascension clearly says:
They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple praising God (Luke 24:53).The whole Ascension liturgy is filled with reference to joy and rejoicing. The Collect opens with Gladden us with holy joys, almighty God, and make us rejoice with devout thanksgiving....The Responsorial Psalm from Psalm 47 is full of rejoicing:
God mounts his throne to shouts of joy:
a blare of trumpets for the Lord.
What is this joy we are to have, when it seems bittersweet for Jesus to leave us? The answer lies in the words of the Solemn Blessing:
And may you, who believe he is seated
with the Father in his majesty,
know with joy the fulfillment of his promise
to stay with you until the end of time.
He is gone physically, but remains with us until the end of time. And that is the secret of our joy.
Preparing for
the Departure
Starting in the thirteenth chapter of the Gospel
of John, Jesus is with His Apostles at His Last Supper. There He is giving His
final instructions, His most important teachings before His death. Instead of
the liturgy unfolding these during Lent, we begin to hear them in the
middle of the Fourth Week of Easter. The final weeks of the Easter season the
liturgy has been preparing us for this final departure and coming of the
Paraclete: "I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have
loved you, so you also should love one another." "I am the True
Vine, you are the branches, remain in Me." We hear the words of
Jesus, His final instructions, but this time we hear them knowing in the
fullness of the Faith; we hear them in the comfort of knowing the truth of
the Paschal Mystery and Pentecost. And the week or nine days between
Ascension and Pentecost we hear the promise of the Advocate or the Holy Spirit.
We await the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. All through Easter we hear
in the Preface how we are "overcome with paschal joy." That is how we
can look at these final instructions and anticipation for Pentecost, with the
joy of knowing that He will remain with us always and we have the Advocate sent
to us on Pentecost. Come, Holy Spirit, Come!
We are preparing our hearts and homes (and atrium) for this great feast. I've written a few posts the provide more specifics in celebrating this feast:
·
Pentecost with Mary and the Apostles -- celebrating May
with Mary
·
Pentecost and Confirmation -- The overflowing gifts of
the Holy Spirit and celebrating that emphasis at home.
·
The Solemnity of Pentecost: An Element-ary Feast --
The elements of earth, wind, fire and water all in Pentecost.
Daily Devotions/Prayers
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