The faithful all over the world will rejoice and celebrate the feast of the Ascension of the Risen Lord. The resurrection of Jesus Christ (Easter) marks the beginning of the Paschal season, during which time two important and historical events are celebrated, namely, the Ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven, and the Pentecost. While Ascension is celebrated on the fortieth day after Easter, the Pentecost is celebrated on a Sunday following the Sunday of the Ascension of Our Lord. Etymologically, Pentecost means the fiftieth day when the Holy Spirit, the promised one, descended on the apostles. In common parlance, the Pentecost is the feast of the Holy Spirit.
It is an old tradition whereby the parish of Panjim has been celebrating the feast of the Ascension with great religious fervour. It is preceded by a preparatory novena of nine days during which people gather in the Church and participate in the Holy Eucharist and reflect on the Word of God in order to deepen their faith and follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. This feast becomes an important means that brings people from the parish together, enabling them to grow in fellowship, brotherly affection and solidarity, and thus, create a family within the parish.
Mark and Luke, in their Gospels, document the fact of the ascension of Jesus. For instance, Mark (16:19) writes: “Then, after speaking to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven and took his seat at God’s right hand”. In the gospel of Luke, towards the end of the last chapter (24:51), he puts on record the following: “As he (the Risen Jesus) blessed, he left them, and was taken up to heaven”. Also in the Acts of the Apostles, Luke connects with his gospel where he had written down“all that Jesus did and taught until the day he was taken up to heaven” (1: 1-2), and further on, he mentions the appearances of the Risen Lord “over the course of forty days” (1:3), thereby, implying that Jesus’ ascension took place after forty days. Luke also reiterates that “No sooner had he (the Risen Lord) said this than he was lifted up before their eyes in a cloud which took him from their sight” (1:9)
The ascension means the exaltation of Jesus who was glorified by God the Father on account of his triumph and victory over sin and death. Prior to his ascension, Jesus imparted blessing to his disciples, and commissioned them with a mission to go to the whole world and to proclaim the good news. He also disclosed that he was leaving them in order to prepare a place for them and, then, he would return to take them so that “where I am you may be also” (Jn14 : 3).
On the mount of Olives, in Jerusalem, from where Jesus was lifted up, there stands a small Church of the Ascension, round in architecture, wherein one can still see a stone with the footprints of Jesus. This Church attracts a large crowd of pilgrims and tourists.
May the feast of Ascension nurture in us an ardent desire to experience and accomplish the blessing of being with him so that where he, the head, has gone, we too, the body, may hopefully reach one day.
