Ascension Solemnity
May 16th, 2010
"Now as He blessed them, He withdrew from them and was carried up to Heaven"
Luke 24 : 50
Ascension of the Lord – Week 7 of Easter
All created things bear the marks of the footprints of God. All proclaim that we are on holy ground. The beauty of the world around us announces God”’’s presence among us. We see Him in the fresh green foliage and the bluebells that carpet the woods just now. The delicate green of the beech leaves and purple and white of lilac and hawthorn are reminders of the beauty of God.
From the bridge, I see the Liffey as it slowly meanders through the plains of Kildare on its way back to the sea. “Into the sea all the rivers go And yet the sea is never filled And still to their goal the rivers go” Ecc. 1 : 7
As the waters come from the ocean and return again to its bosom, so do we creatures of the earth return to the God who made us. To-day”””’’s feast reminds us that Heaven is our goal. With the Apostles, we lift our eyes to the skies remembering St. Paul”’’s words :- “Eye has not seen nor ear heard the wonderful things God has prepared for those who love Him” 2 Cor. : 5
Prayer
Prayer : Heavenly Father, you sent us Jesus as the new Moses to lead us into the promised land. At the moment of my death may He come again to take me with Him into my eternal home. This I ask through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.
The prayer for each day has been prepared by various members of the Holy Family Association. All who visit our website are remembered in prayer. If you would like us to pray for a particular need, simply complete and submit the form on the right hand side of this page. You may wish to leave a comment in the space below.
Just a Thought
How the Holy Family prayer: A Reflection by Pope Benedict XVI
“I would like to invite you to reflect on the place of prayer in the life of the Holy Family of Nazareth. The home of Nazareth, in fact, is a school of prayer where we learn to listen, to ponder and to penetrate the profound meaning of the manifestation of the Son of God, drawing our example from Mary, Joseph and Jesus.
Pope Paul VI during his visit to Nazareth said “we come to understand the need for a spiritual discipline, if we wish to follow the teaching of the Gospel and become disciples of Christ.” And he added: “First, it teaches us silence. Oh! That there would be reborn in us the esteem for silence, that wonderful and indispensable atmosphere of the spirit: while we are deafened by so many noises, sounds and clamorous voices in the frantic and tumultuous times of modern life. Oh! Silence of Nazareth, teach us to be resolute in good thoughts, intent upon the interior life, ready to listen well to the secret inspirations of God and the exhortations of the true masters.”
We can glean several insights on the Holy Family’s prayer and relationship with God from the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ childhood. We may begin with the Presentation of Jesus in the temple. St. Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph, “when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, brought the child up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord”(2:22). Like every observant Jewish family, Jesus’ parents go up to the temple to consecrate the firstborn son to God and to offer sacrifice. Moved by fidelity to the law’s prescriptions, they set off from Bethlehem and go up to Jerusalem with Jesus, who is now forty days old. Instead of a one-year-old lamb, they present the offering of simple families; that is two young pigeons. The Holy Family’s pilgrimage is one of faith, of the offering of gifts, a symbol of prayer, and of encounter with the Lord, whom Mary and Joseph already see in the son Jesus.”
