Dear Friends in Jesus,

Good morning to you all. My stay in India is going on good. Hope, you are all doing well. I am remembering you all in my prayers. Today, we celebrate the Ascension of the Lord Jesus his Heavenly glory after promising to send the Holy Spirit to the Apostles and commanding them to bear witness to Him through their lives and preaching throughout the world.

The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, presents the scene of Jesus’ Ascension, the promise of the Holy Spirit, his instructions to the apostles to wait in Jerusalem for the Power from above, and the missionary command to the apostles to bear witness to him. In the second reading, Paul teaches us that God revealed His might in the Resurrection and Ascension of Christ and in exalting Him over all angelic forces. Jesus remains accessible to us now in the life-giving Holy Spirit, assuring us that one day we, too, will be ascending to Heavenly glory, provided that, with His grace, we live out our Faith in Him through the mission of loving service He entrusts to us.

Today’s Gospel tells us that, with his return to the Father, Jesus completes his mission on earth. But just before his Ascension, Jesus entrusted to the disciples the mission of preaching the Good News and evangelizing the whole world by bearing witness to him through their lives. It is in his Ascension that we see Jesus entering fully into the life and glory of God. In the descriptions of Christ after his Resurrection, we are given a hint of what life will be like in Heaven. The prospect of sharing that glory should be the driving force of our lives.

To be a Christian is to be a proclaimer and an evangelizer. There is a difference between preaching and proclaiming. We preach with words, but we proclaim with our lives. Let us ask the guidance of the Spirit of God to bear witness to Jesus by our transparent Christian lives.

Have a Joyful Sunday!

Yours in Jesus,
Fr. Doss

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