Homily given for the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord at St Mary, Cadogan Street:
The solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, which we keep today, presents us with three core truths. First, Christ’s ascension ‘marks the definitive entrance of Jesus’ humanity into God’s heavenly domain’. Secondly, the Lord, as ‘the head of the Church, precedes us into the Father’s glorious kingdom so that we, the members of his Body, may live in the hope of one day being with him for ever’. Thirdly, the Lord, ‘having entered the sanctuary of heaven once and for all, intercedes constantly for us as the mediator who assures us of the permanent outpouring of the Holy Spirit’ (cf. CCC §665-667).
In the simplest possible terms these truths give us three causes for hope, three reasons to be joyful that we are incorporated into the body of Christ by virtue of the baptism we share with him. In the Lord’s ascension, we are assured of a place set aside for us in heaven, of his abiding presence with us here and now, and of his intercession for us at the right hand of the Father.
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