The Ascension of the Lord (May 20^th 2012)        

Gospel: Mark 16:15-20

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Questions raised by this passage from the Gospel

1 Does the Ascension mean that Jesus is now detached from the earth?

2. What does it mean to sit at "God's right hand"?

3. The reading says that whoever rejects the Gospel will be condemned. But isn't God supposed to be all-merciful? In what sense will I be condemned if I reject the good news?

4. Those who believe in the good news will be able to cast out devils. In what sense can I cast out evil from my life?

5. The Gospel passage tells us that those who receive the good news will have the gift of new tongues. In what sense can I as a believer speak a new language?

6. The text also speaks of the ability of believers to take serpents in their hands. In what way should I be able to take serpents in my hands, and why is this ability such an important mark of a mature Christian?

The Ascension is not detachment from the earth but the taking up of a position of power over the things on earth

This text at the end of Mark's Gospel describes the Ascension of the Lord and the first work of evangelisation of the apostles. We are told that Jesus takes his place at God's right hand while the disciples go all over the world, preaching the good news.  We might get the impression that Jesus has now become static or immobile, and it is the task of his disciples to preach the Gospel. But what is the real significance of this expression, "to sit at the right hand of God"? Often a journey is defined by its destination. At the end of Jesus' earthly journey, during which he overcame the power of sin and death, he ascends into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. But this should not be understood as some kind of detachment from earthly affairs. The "right hand" of the Father refers to the power of God. To be seated at God's right hand means to be the one who exercises the power of God. The throne on which Jesus sits is not a place of rest but the place from which he accomplishes the saving work of God. Jesus ascends therefore, not to rest, but to become Lord, invested in power, working through history and guiding history. With this authority, and through the Church, Jesus confirms with signs the word that is preached by the apostles. That which we celebrate in the Ascension of the Lord is fundamentally the power of Jesus Christ. We celebrate the official presentation of him as true saviour of our lives. In the name of the Lord Jesus, from now on, the Church will be able to perform marvellous acts.

The Ascension proclaims the kingship of Jesus over our lives

In the name of Jesus the good news is to be announced. Every creature is to be told of this beautiful revelation. The good news that is to be preached is inextricably linked to the person of Jesus. It is not just a generic message of hope, or a vague doctrine of physical or spiritual wellbeing. The good news is the revelation of the kingship of Jesus over our lives. This kingship rids us of the tyrannical things that dominate us, and frees us from our slavery to false masters.

Will we really be condemned if we reject the good news?

The Gospel tells us that anyone who does not welcome the good news will be condemned. This refers to someone who has explicitly heard the good news, has had the opportunity to accept it, but who willingly rejects it. It is a fact worth contemplating that the more we are exposed to the good news, the more we open ourselves to the possibility of being judged. And this makes good sense. The more we hear the good news, the more urgent is our responsibility to act upon it. That is why the text speaks of the condemnation that goes along with rejecting the good news once it has been properly heard. Life is not a joke or some kind of animated film. It is a serious business that can be used to wonderful purpose or be destroyed. Does it matter how we live our lives? Is it possible to make a mess of our existence, or does it make little difference how we use it? Yes, it does make a difference! Life can be lived badly! The good news is something that must be taken seriously and must not be discarded with indifference.

How well have I received the good news? Do I confuse freedom with licence?

We know that there is great goodness and benevolence in God. He understands that people sometimes reject him because they have not understood him properly, or because they are exasperated or frustrated by life. God is goodness and mercy and comprehends the motives in our hearts. But we must take this text seriously. The rejection of the kingship of Jesus has serious consequences. God sends us his envoys who announce freedom, goodness, and pardon. They do not come to place burdens on people or to announce punishment. But we have a tendency to mix up the freedom that God gives us with licence. God does not give us licence to sin, but pardons our sins, which is a different thing altogether. The performance of acts of evil carries consequences, and we must face up to that fact. In this Gospel passage, the one line that tends to offend us is the statement that whoever rejects the good news will be condemned. But this condemnation makes perfect sense. When Pope John Paul II went to Sicily he condemned the mafia leaders who continued to reject the way of the Gospel. And when I look in my own heart - as a priest of the church who has received enormous exposure to the Gospel - I too must consider honestly the reception I have given to the good news.

Marvellous signs will accompany those who believe in the good news

The Lord sends his disciples and exercises his power so that humanity might be liberated. The Gospel tells us that certain signs accompany those who believe. It is interesting that the signs are associated with the believers, not the proclaimers. The ones who have received the good news will be able to cast out demons in Jesus' name. This is not some kind of mythology, but a concrete reference to the fact that believers will have the power to combat evil. The Gospels affirm very clearly that evil exists. In every "Our Father" that we pray, we ask to be delivered from evil. There is deception and evil in our hearts that seeks to compromise the good news, and it must be cast out. Genuine reception of the good news is incompatible with attachment to vice, impurity, and the perpetuation of hatred that we regularly engage in. These things are not of Christ. In baptism, after all, we definitively rejected Satan and his deceptions. It is not right to declare ourselves to be Christian and to continue to harbour acts and impulses of this sort in our hearts.

           

Those who believe in the good news will be able to speak a new language

The Gospel passage tells us that those who receive the good news will have the gift of new tongues, as happened at Pentecost. This beautiful reference can be understood to refer to the ability to speak the language of love. Love is the language that everyone can understand. When someone shows love, everyone comprehends the significance of his action. There is no ambiguity in the expression of true love.

The text also speaks of the ability of believers to take serpents in their hands. In what way should I be able to take serpents in my hands, and why is this ability such an important mark of a mature Christian?

The text also speaks of the ability of believers to take serpents in their hands. This statement, surely, might be relevant to performers in a circus, but what has it to do with those who believe in the good news? Clearly the text is referring to the ability to resist temptation, the capacity to struggle against the Tempter. Believers must be able to take their weaknesses in hand, instead of fleeing from them continually. This is one of the signs of the indwelling of God's love in our hearts. Salvation does not depend on externals, but on one's inner health. It might be the case that I am in an environment that is full of dangerous temptation, but if I am the carrier of something life-giving, then this poisonous environment will not do me any harm. If my "salvation" can really be damaged by the poisons that are carried by others, then my salvation is not sufficiently rooted in Christ.

In summary, let us believe in the kingdom of heaven so that we can combat evil, so that we can say no to temptation, so that we can be autonomous in this poisonous world that seeks to infect us. Let us believe in the good news so that we can learn the new language of love and speak it to others. If one accepts the good news then one will always have something beautiful to say.