R.E News - AP Mission
COVID-19 Prayer
For all who have contracted coronavirus,
We pray for care and healing.
For those who are particularly vulnerable,
We pray for safety and protection.
For all who experience fear or anxiety,
We pray for peace of mind and spirit.
For affected families who are facing difficult decisions between food on the table or public safety,
We pray for policies that recognise their plight.
For our brothers and sisters around the world,
We pray for shared solidarity.
For public officials and decision makers,
We pray for wisdom and guidance.
Father, during this time may your Church be a sign of hope, comfort and love to all.
Grant peace.
Grant comfort.
Grant healing.
Be with us, Lord.
Amen.
The Ascension of Jesus
So when the Apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere-in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!” (Acts 1:6-11)
The Feast of the Ascension is held 40 days after the Resurrection. Year 8 students at O'Connor currently studying the Early Church would know that it is 10 days before Pentecost. It is good to look at the meaning of the Ascension and why is it significant for Christians. It is possible to misinterpret this event. Some may see it as the temporary absence of Christ from the world and a vacuum of God until the presence of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. This misinterpretation underestimates the meaning of both events. In the Ascension of Jesus, the humanity we share with Jesus has a home with God. Humanity has found an everlasting place with God.
To quote Pope Benedict;
"Heaven is not a place beyond the stars, but something much greater, something that requires far more audacity to assert: Heaven means that man now has a place in God. The basis for this assertion is the interpenetration of humanity and divinity in the crucified and exalted man Jesus. Christ, the man who is in God and eternally one with God, is at the same time God's abiding openness to all human beings.
Thus Jesus himself is what we call "heaven"; heaven is not a place but a person, the person of him in whom God and man are forever and inseparably one. And we go to heaven and enter into heaven to the extent that we go to Jesus Christ and enter into him. In this sense, "ascension into heaven" can be something that takes place in our everyday lives…" Pope Benedict XVI. "The Meaning of the Ascension." from Dogma and Preaching (San Francisco, CA: Ignatius Press, 2011).
This year Ascension Sunday is celebrated on May 24. Hopefully, restrictions will have been lifted and we can attend Mass. If not it 10.00am Mass is streamed online through FaceBook. It is a Diocesan Mass usually celebrated with Bishop Kennedy.
Eucharist
While the restrictions are in place, one of the things most missed by Catholics is participation in the Eucharist. When we go to Mass online we receive some spiritual nourishment but obviously we cannot physically partake of Holy Communion. Although this is not an ideal situation. The following Prayer may help.
Mr Daman Roff
Saints Mary and Joseph Cathedral
Keep up to date with online Mass times on the Cathedral's Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/SMJCathedral/