Weekly HOMILY for May 20, 2007: Up or Down?

The Ascension of the Lord, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
May 20, 2007

Up or Down?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato


A Painting: Up and Down

In the Vatican Museum in Rome, there is painting entitled The Ascension.

This painting dates back to the fifteenth century and it depicts the apostles gathered on top of a mountain. Half of them are looking up at the sky.

There is an opening in the clouds and they are just staring. Jesus has apparently returned to the Father and is no longer visible.

The other half of the apostles are looking down to the ground. They see footprints, apparently the imprints of Jesus’ feet, but again, he is not visible.


The Scriptures: Up and Down

That Renaissance painting expresses one of the core messages in today’s readings.

In both the first reading and the gospel, Jesus reaffirms what he calls “the promise of the Father.” He is speaking here of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is reassuring the apostles that he will be present to them through the Holy Spirit. And he is reassuring them that they will feel both comforted and empowered by this.

After Jesus says this and is taken up into heaven, the apostles kneel down in prayer and reverence. St. Luke says that “they are gazing up into the heavens.”

On the other hand, in our first reading we hear that two angels appear to these apostles. They ask, “Why do you stand here looking up at the skies?”

In effect, they remind the apostles that they must now get to work. Jesus has made them his witnesses or ministers on this earth.

So, when I think about the Renaissance painting and these Scripture passages, I see a balance between the heavens and the earth, between our looking up and our looking down. I also think that we see this balance I1) In our sacraments and (2) In the way Jesus calls us to live.


The Sacraments: Up and Down

First, our sacraments are a mix, a balance of the heavens and the earth.

For example, in Baptism, we repeat the words of Jesus, the Son of God: “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
At the same time, we use ordinary water, the material of this earth.

In the Eucharist, we again repeat the words of Jesus: “This is my body; this is my blood.” And again, Jesus has us use something of the earth: simple, ordinary bread and wine.

So, in our sacraments, there is this mix, this balance of the heavens and the earth. It is as if we are at one and the same time looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth, much like the apostles in that painting.


Our Lives: Up and Down

I believe we are also called to live this balance in our personal lives.

First, we are to “look up to the heavens.” This means that we need to be grounded and rooted in God who is beyond this earth.

We do this by personal, private prayer, by reading the Scripture in a reflective way, and by coming to Mass and receiving the Eucharist each week. These are ways of “looking up to the heavens” – ways of strengthening our relationship with the Lord.

At the same time, we need to be looking down to the earth. This means that we care for our families, volunteer in our children’s schools, things like that.

And beyond family, it might mean that we assist the local Birthright Center or that we think about our Catholic teaching on just war and how that should guide us as a country. These are ways of looking down to the earth and being Jesus’ witnesses in the world.


Conclusion

So, today’s celebration of Jesus’ being taken up into heaven calls us to a balance.

It is a balance between looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth. And this balance leads us to a spiritually healthy and holy life.