May 13, 2018: Ascension of the Lord B & Mother's Day
May 13, 2018: Ascension of the Lord B & Mother's Day
Click to hear Audio Homily
How would you prepare yourself and your family if you had to leave your loved ones behind? When 55 year-old Peggy Summers discovered that she had terminal cancer, she knew before she died, she had to pass on to her children her motherly wisdom. So before her death, Peggy wrote a letter to each of her children, including one to Hannah who was a teenager about to enter college. After reading the letter over and over again, Hannah felt that she needed to share this letter with others.
A portion of the letter read, “Hannah, If you are reading this, then the surgery did not go well. I’m sorry, I tried my best to beat this terrible disease but I guess God had other things for me to do. Please don’t be mad, bad things happen in life and we have to learn to deal with it no matter how much it hurts. I want you to be happy and use the gifts God has given you...Use your common sense about things like not going anywhere by yourself and having an emergency kit in your car in the winter. If you can carpool to school do it, stay away from parties because they are usually bad, not all boys are bad but most will tell you anything to try to get you to do things, try to hang out with people who have the same beliefs as you because they will make you stronger.” So what would you do to prepare your family and friends if you knew you would soon depart this earthly life?
During the time Jesus was with his disciples, he prepared them for his eventual departure by foretelling them about his death, resurrection, and ascension to his Father. At the Last Supper as they celebrated the Passover, Jesus said, "A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me...you will weep and mourn...But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you." (Jn 16:16-22) The disciples didn’t understand what Jesus told them until after they witnessed his passion, death, and resurrection. After he appeared to them several times, they began to understand their role and their mission--to go out to the world and boldly proclaim the Gospel and witness for Jesus. He promised to send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit to help, guide and protect them.
Jesus’ ascension into Heaven was not a farewell. It was the completion of Jesus’ physical and visible presence in our midst and the beginning of His presence in the invisible and sacramental dimension. As Jesus ascended into Heaven to take his place at the right hand of God, he instructed his disciples to preach and witness him to others. He said, “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem …and to the ends of the earth.”
Many of you witness to your spouse and children by your untold sacrifices, pain, labor, and love. Peggy, the mother who left the letter to her children, witnessed to her children and to the world by her faith and her sacrificial love. She wrote to her daughter, “Remember that I am still with you and still just as proud of you as I always have been. Keep God in your life and never be ashamed to let others know you love God. If you have kids someday, make sure they know how much I love them and wanted to be there to see them. You are going to do great in life and I will be smiling with you through all the important moments in your life.”
What are we doing in our lives to witness for Our Lord? How are we proclaiming his love to the world around us? Witnessing for Jesus is not done only with words but also with our daily lives which go beyond these walls of the church--at our homes, offices, schools, in places of entertainment, in sports stadiums, and in marketplaces. We witness by how we pray, how we sacrifice, how we treat our neighbors, what we say and do in front of our family, friends, coworkers, and strangers. We witness by doing what is right even when no one is watching.
During this month of May, the month in which we honor Blessed Mother, we ask our Mother Mary to help us to be better witnesses for her Son. May we imitate how she lived, sacrificed, prayed, and loved. May all mothers look to Blessed Mother to strengthen them and guide them through the joys and sorrows of motherhood.
Click to hear Audio Homily
How would you prepare yourself and your family if you had to leave your loved ones behind? When 55 year-old Peggy Summers discovered that she had terminal cancer, she knew before she died, she had to pass on to her children her motherly wisdom. So before her death, Peggy wrote a letter to each of her children, including one to Hannah who was a teenager about to enter college. After reading the letter over and over again, Hannah felt that she needed to share this letter with others.
A portion of the letter read, “Hannah, If you are reading this, then the surgery did not go well. I’m sorry, I tried my best to beat this terrible disease but I guess God had other things for me to do. Please don’t be mad, bad things happen in life and we have to learn to deal with it no matter how much it hurts. I want you to be happy and use the gifts God has given you...Use your common sense about things like not going anywhere by yourself and having an emergency kit in your car in the winter. If you can carpool to school do it, stay away from parties because they are usually bad, not all boys are bad but most will tell you anything to try to get you to do things, try to hang out with people who have the same beliefs as you because they will make you stronger.” So what would you do to prepare your family and friends if you knew you would soon depart this earthly life?
During the time Jesus was with his disciples, he prepared them for his eventual departure by foretelling them about his death, resurrection, and ascension to his Father. At the Last Supper as they celebrated the Passover, Jesus said, "A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me...you will weep and mourn...But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you." (Jn 16:16-22) The disciples didn’t understand what Jesus told them until after they witnessed his passion, death, and resurrection. After he appeared to them several times, they began to understand their role and their mission--to go out to the world and boldly proclaim the Gospel and witness for Jesus. He promised to send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit to help, guide and protect them.
Jesus’ ascension into Heaven was not a farewell. It was the completion of Jesus’ physical and visible presence in our midst and the beginning of His presence in the invisible and sacramental dimension. As Jesus ascended into Heaven to take his place at the right hand of God, he instructed his disciples to preach and witness him to others. He said, “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem …and to the ends of the earth.”
Many of you witness to your spouse and children by your untold sacrifices, pain, labor, and love. Peggy, the mother who left the letter to her children, witnessed to her children and to the world by her faith and her sacrificial love. She wrote to her daughter, “Remember that I am still with you and still just as proud of you as I always have been. Keep God in your life and never be ashamed to let others know you love God. If you have kids someday, make sure they know how much I love them and wanted to be there to see them. You are going to do great in life and I will be smiling with you through all the important moments in your life.”What are we doing in our lives to witness for Our Lord? How are we proclaiming his love to the world around us? Witnessing for Jesus is not done only with words but also with our daily lives which go beyond these walls of the church--at our homes, offices, schools, in places of entertainment, in sports stadiums, and in marketplaces. We witness by how we pray, how we sacrifice, how we treat our neighbors, what we say and do in front of our family, friends, coworkers, and strangers. We witness by doing what is right even when no one is watching.
During this month of May, the month in which we honor Blessed Mother, we ask our Mother Mary to help us to be better witnesses for her Son. May we imitate how she lived, sacrificed, prayed, and loved. May all mothers look to Blessed Mother to strengthen them and guide them through the joys and sorrows of motherhood.
