For the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord…
…to wait for “the promise of the Father…”
Acts 1:4
The Catholics in our nation celebrate the Ascension this week. Depending on where your diocese is, that feast day was either this past Thursday or it is this Sunday. But that disparity is not our focus here. For in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and especially in the liturgy, we are united. And it’s that reality, that I wish to emphasize here.
In the Acts of the Apostles, as he did in his Gospel account (Luke 24:49), St. Luke records Jesus’ reference to the Holy Spirit as “the promise of the Father.” It is a beautiful phrase to recall for our meditation. We see the inherent unity of the Blessed Trinity, too.
Jesus was already the Promised One, the long-awaited Messiah. Yet the Scriptures from the Old Testament not only prophetically pointed to Jesus Christ, but they also predicted the outpouring of God’s Spirit upon people. (See Isaiah 44:3, Ezekiel 36:26-27, and Joel 3:1-2.)
The promise of the Father—the Spirit—is alive for us today. As we contemplate the Ascension of Jesus this week, let us remember that we, too, are invited into the mission of Jesus by receiving the Holy Spirit who empowers us to spread the Good News. This promise was all part of God’s good plan for us.
Father, Son, and Spirit, thank you for your fidelity to your promise. Lead me to love you and serve you, in this life and into the next. Amen.
