Ascension 2017

Alleluia!  Alleluia! Happy Easter!

We are almost at the end of the Great 50 Days of Easter. From Easter Sunday (April 16, 2017) to Pentecost (June 4, 2017) we celebrate the joy and exultation of the Easter Season as one feast day. The liturgical color is white, which represents light, innocence, joy, triumph and glory. On the 40th day after Easter (Thursday, May 25) we celebrate the Ascension of Our Lord, however in the Arlington Diocese, where I live, it has been moved to Sunday, the 7th Sunday of Easter (May 28). The Ascension is the belief that the risen Christ was bodily taken up, enthroned at the right hand of God, and exalted as Lord. What does that mean for us? That we must now be responsible, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to bring the Reign of God to earth. Each one of us can make a difference in the world through our daily actions.

Pope Francis says:  "The future of humanity does not lie solely in the hands of great leaders, the great powers and the elites. It is fundamentally in the hands of peoples and in their ability to organize. It is in their hands, which can guide with humility and conviction this process of change. I am with you. Each of us, let repeat from the heart: no family without lodging, no rural worker without land, no laborer without rights, no people without sovereignty, no individual without dignity, no child without childhood, no young person without a future, no elderly person without a venerable old age. Keep up your struggle and, please, take great care of Mother Earth." (7/9/15, Popular Movements)

Let us Pray: Lord, help us to be the hands and feet of Jesus. Help us to foster hope in our world. Let us show small acts of kindness to all those we encounter today.  Allow us to stop judging others and give them the benefit of the doubt. Help us to remain patient and loving when we encounter hate or indifference. Enable us to go outside our comfort zone by producing less waste. Give us the courage to reach out to our representatives to advocate for the poor and marginalized so that laws can be changed to give all people dignity. Allow us to encounter others in a real way and bless them today by our actions. Amen.

Happy Easter!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!