The Feast of the Ascension of the Lord into Heaven: An Eye Witness
[Revised draft]
Homily for the Feast of the Ascension
When you open the Bible,
you find a lot of different people
living inside its pages:
You find:
fishermen and shepherds,
farmers and merchants,
preachers and prophets.
Some of them have names, some of them don’t.
Some are heroes, some aren’t.
Some of them get saved, some stay lost.
In today’s gospel, however, we come across a new category of people,
a class of folks that includes not only
farmers and merchants and shepherds,
but will eventually come to include:
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers…to name just a few.
This new category,
coming out of the gospel
like a fast throw from pitcher’s mound,
is a term that refers to individuals called witnesses.
One of the last things that Jesus says to his disciples
before being taken up into heaven is:
“You are witnesses of these things.”
In other words:
“You have seen and experienced events
that will change the course of the world.”
“You have seen the hand of God at work,
you have witnessed the power of God,
you have eye-witness experience of a new creation
breaking in upon the world.”
“You are witnesses of these things.”
After having said this, Jesus is taken up into heaven before their eyes.
And that’s how of the gospel of St. Luke ends.
* * *
So, what do you think of that term?
You might find yourself scratching your head
and feeling a bit puzzled.
“I’m a witness?
What, exactly, have I witnessed?”
If so, you’re not alone.
A lot of Christians automatically conclude
that it means “witnesses-to-things-back then,”
as in “original witnesses.”
That’s because a lot of Christians, when put on the spot,
can’t exactly say what they’ve seen
or how it connects to what they believe.
Nevertheless, Christ says to us today,
“You are an eye-witness to the work of God.”
* * *
Let’s think on this a minute.
What could this “fast pitch” of a gospel verse about witnesses
actually mean for us today?
Well, have you visited the art museum and stared at a masterpiece?
Have you stood at the window of a hospital nursery
as a nurse in a mask and gown
holds a newborn up to the window?
If you’re a guy,
do you remember opening your wallet
and taking a look at a picture
of the girl you love?
If you’re a grandmother,
do you remember the last time
you smelled a fistful of dandelions in the hands
of a grandchild?
If so, you are eye-witnesses to the work of God.
One of the reasons God commands that we keep holy the Sabbath
and the Church requires our attendance at Mass on Sunday
is to get us into the habit
of stepping back and taking a good look
at God’s masterpiece called life.
That’s part of what we do here at Mass,
we hold life close to the heart
then offer it up.
We take the events of our life
like a nurse with a baby in her arms,
or man with a paycheck in the wallet
or a graduate with a diploma in hand…
we take these events,
hold them up and say,
“Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
you are the creator of life
and you do all things well.
Praise and glory to you now and forever!”
Or, if you’re from the west side,
you might put it this way:
“Gosh, you do good work, God, keep it up!”
Words in the mouth don’t matter,
but praise in the heart does.
It matters a lot.
Why?
Because when you take the time to step back
and take a good look at life,
you develop a good eye;
you find yourself getting good
at catching a glimpse of God.
You get a good eye for grace…
and God shows up all over the place.
Soon, you can’t help but see God’s good work
all around.
The result is that,
the next time the Bible says,
“You are witnesses to these things,”
you say to yourself,
“That’s right!
I have witnessed the Lord at work in my life.”
In the work of the mechanic who fixes your car,
In the neighbor who coaches your kid,
In the nurse’s aid who bathes your grandfather over at Hillebrand.
These events are clothed with grace.
We hold them close
then offer them up.
That’s what happens at Mass,
we place upon the altar,
the work of our hands,
the bread and wine of human life.
In the process, God sanctifies life
and makes strong
and makes memorable
all those times and places when, in the course of our week,
we witness thing…
we make connections between earth and heaven,
connections between what we do “day in and day out”
and what God does, “day in and day out.”
Then is our sacrifice be complete.
Then do we experience the power of the Mass to transform,
not only bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ,
but we discover that we ourselves, by the power of the Holy Spirit,
are being transformed as well.
That’s what happens here at Mass.
That’s what transpires.
That’s right!
We become witnesses of God’s mighty deeds
and begin to discover ample evidence all about us.
Why, that picture of that girl in your wallet
becomes a picture of someone God made…just for you.
And the dandelions in the hand of that child…
those weeds escaped the blade of the lawn mower…just for you.
The miracles go on and on.
Soon they move on…
from the wallet in the back pocket
and the flowers in the front lawn…
they move to the region of the soul
where the fear in your heart turns into trust,
the anger in your life gives way to compassion,
and the hectic schedule slows down its pace.
It’s amazing how it happens.
You can’t explain it.
But you know it’s real.
After all, you’re a witness.
An eye-witness to the work of God.
[First draft]
When you open the Bible,
you find a lot of different people
living inside its pages:
You find:
fishermen and shepherds,
farmers and merchants,
preachers and prophets.
Some of them have names, some of them don’t.
Some are heroes, some are villains.
Some of them get saved, others don’t.
In today’s gospel, however, we come across a new category.
In this passage, Jesus uses a new term that describes not only
farmers and merchants and shepherds,
but will come to include:
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers…to name just a few.
The category of people I’m talking about,
the new term thrown out with a strong pitch from today’s gospel
is the word “Witnesses.”
One of the last things that Jesus says before being taken up into heaven is:
“You are witnesses of these things.”
In other words,
“You have seen and experienced events
that will change the course of the world.”
“You have seen the hand of God at work,
you have witnessed the power of God,
you have eye-witness experience of a new creation
breaking in upon the world.”
“You are witnesses of these things.”
After having said this, Jesus is taken up into heaven before their eyes.
And that’s the end of the gospel of St. Luke.
And I dare say that, from that time on,
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers and everyone else
who’s ever heard of Christ and believed in him
are left scratching their heads
and feeling a bit puzzled.
“I’m a witness?
What, exactly, have I witnessed?”
Like a person on a witness with second-thoughts
and beset with doubt,
there are a lot of Christians who, when put on the spot,
can’t exactly say what they’ve seen
or why they believe it.
Still, Christ says to us today,
“You are an eye-witness to the work of God.”
Have you visited the art museum and stared at a masterpiece?
Have you stood at the window of a hospital nursery
as a nurse in a mask and gown
holds a newborn up to the window?
Do you remember opening your wallet
and taking a look at a picture
of the girl you love?
Do you remember the last time
you smelled a fistful of dandelions in the hands
of a grandchild or niece or nephew?
If so, you are eye-witnesses to the work of God.
One of the reasons we are commanded to keep holy the Sabbath
and are required to attend Mass at church on Sunday
is to drop back and take a good look
at the masterpiece of God called life.
Here at the offering of the Mass
we take the events of our life
and, like a nurse with a baby in her arms,
we hold them up and we say, “Lord, you are the creator of all life.
Blessed are you, now and forever.”
Or, if you’re from the west side,
you might say,
“Lord, you do good work!”
And the Lord will know you mean the same thing.
And because you take the time to step back
and take a good look at life,
you’ll develop a good eye,
you’ll find yourself getting good
at catching a glimpse of God
the way a hunter gets good at spotting deer in a woods.
And next year,
on the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord into Heaven,
when you hear the words from the Bible say:
“You are witnesses to these things”
you’ll be able to say,
“Yes, I have witnessed the Lord at work in my life.”
You might even list some of the ways
you’ve witnessed the hand of God at work:
in the work of the mechanic who fixes your car,
in the neighbor who coaches your kid,
in the teacher who tutors your grandchild,
in the nurse’s aid who bathes your grandfather over at Hillebrand.
These are the things we place upon the altar,
the work of our hands,
the bread and wine of human life.
That’s what happens at Mass,
and that’s why we’re required to Mass;
so God can sanctify our lives
and make strong and make memorable
all those times and places when, in the course of our week,
we witness connections…
connections between earth and heaven,
connections between what we do “day in and day out”
and what God does, “day in and day out.”
Then will our sacrifice be complete.
Then will we experience the power of the Mass to transform,
not only bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ,
but we’ll discover that we ourselves, by the power of the Holy Spirit,
are being transformed as well.
That’s what happens here at Mass.
That’s what transpires.
We become witnesses of God’s mighty deeds
and discover ample evidence all about us.
The picture of that girl in your wallet
becomes a picture of someone God made…just for you.
Those dandelions in the hand of that child
escaped the blade of the lawn mower…just for you.
The fear in your heart turns into trust,
the anger in your life gives way to compassion,
the hectic schedule slows down its pace
It’s amazing how it happens.
You can’t explain it.
But you know it’s real.
After all, you’re a witness.
An eye-witness to the work of God.
Homily for the Feast of the Ascension
When you open the Bible,
you find a lot of different people
living inside its pages:
You find:
fishermen and shepherds,
farmers and merchants,
preachers and prophets.
Some of them have names, some of them don’t.
Some are heroes, some aren’t.
Some of them get saved, some stay lost.
In today’s gospel, however, we come across a new category of people,
a class of folks that includes not only
farmers and merchants and shepherds,
but will eventually come to include:
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers…to name just a few.
This new category,
coming out of the gospel
like a fast throw from pitcher’s mound,
is a term that refers to individuals called witnesses.
One of the last things that Jesus says to his disciples
before being taken up into heaven is:
“You are witnesses of these things.”
In other words:
“You have seen and experienced events
that will change the course of the world.”
“You have seen the hand of God at work,
you have witnessed the power of God,
you have eye-witness experience of a new creation
breaking in upon the world.”
“You are witnesses of these things.”
After having said this, Jesus is taken up into heaven before their eyes.
And that’s how of the gospel of St. Luke ends.
* * *
So, what do you think of that term?
You might find yourself scratching your head
and feeling a bit puzzled.
“I’m a witness?
What, exactly, have I witnessed?”
If so, you’re not alone.
A lot of Christians automatically conclude
that it means “witnesses-to-things-back then,”
as in “original witnesses.”
That’s because a lot of Christians, when put on the spot,
can’t exactly say what they’ve seen
or how it connects to what they believe.
Nevertheless, Christ says to us today,
“You are an eye-witness to the work of God.”
* * *
Let’s think on this a minute.
What could this “fast pitch” of a gospel verse about witnesses
actually mean for us today?
Well, have you visited the art museum and stared at a masterpiece?
Have you stood at the window of a hospital nursery
as a nurse in a mask and gown
holds a newborn up to the window?
If you’re a guy,
do you remember opening your wallet
and taking a look at a picture
of the girl you love?
If you’re a grandmother,
do you remember the last time
you smelled a fistful of dandelions in the hands
of a grandchild?
If so, you are eye-witnesses to the work of God.
One of the reasons God commands that we keep holy the Sabbath
and the Church requires our attendance at Mass on Sunday
is to get us into the habit
of stepping back and taking a good look
at God’s masterpiece called life.
That’s part of what we do here at Mass,
we hold life close to the heart
then offer it up.
We take the events of our life
like a nurse with a baby in her arms,
or man with a paycheck in the wallet
or a graduate with a diploma in hand…
we take these events,
hold them up and say,
“Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
you are the creator of life
and you do all things well.
Praise and glory to you now and forever!”
Or, if you’re from the west side,
you might put it this way:
“Gosh, you do good work, God, keep it up!”
Words in the mouth don’t matter,
but praise in the heart does.
It matters a lot.
Why?
Because when you take the time to step back
and take a good look at life,
you develop a good eye;
you find yourself getting good
at catching a glimpse of God.
You get a good eye for grace…
and God shows up all over the place.
Soon, you can’t help but see God’s good work
all around.
The result is that,
the next time the Bible says,
“You are witnesses to these things,”
you say to yourself,
“That’s right!
I have witnessed the Lord at work in my life.”
In the work of the mechanic who fixes your car,
In the neighbor who coaches your kid,
In the nurse’s aid who bathes your grandfather over at Hillebrand.
These events are clothed with grace.
We hold them close
then offer them up.
That’s what happens at Mass,
we place upon the altar,
the work of our hands,
the bread and wine of human life.
In the process, God sanctifies life
and makes strong
and makes memorable
all those times and places when, in the course of our week,
we witness thing…
we make connections between earth and heaven,
connections between what we do “day in and day out”
and what God does, “day in and day out.”
Then is our sacrifice be complete.
Then do we experience the power of the Mass to transform,
not only bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ,
but we discover that we ourselves, by the power of the Holy Spirit,
are being transformed as well.
That’s what happens here at Mass.
That’s what transpires.
That’s right!
We become witnesses of God’s mighty deeds
and begin to discover ample evidence all about us.
Why, that picture of that girl in your wallet
becomes a picture of someone God made…just for you.
And the dandelions in the hand of that child…
those weeds escaped the blade of the lawn mower…just for you.
The miracles go on and on.
Soon they move on…
from the wallet in the back pocket
and the flowers in the front lawn…
they move to the region of the soul
where the fear in your heart turns into trust,
the anger in your life gives way to compassion,
and the hectic schedule slows down its pace.
It’s amazing how it happens.
You can’t explain it.
But you know it’s real.
After all, you’re a witness.
An eye-witness to the work of God.
[First draft]
When you open the Bible,
you find a lot of different people
living inside its pages:
You find:
fishermen and shepherds,
farmers and merchants,
preachers and prophets.
Some of them have names, some of them don’t.
Some are heroes, some are villains.
Some of them get saved, others don’t.
In today’s gospel, however, we come across a new category.
In this passage, Jesus uses a new term that describes not only
farmers and merchants and shepherds,
but will come to include:
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers…to name just a few.
The category of people I’m talking about,
the new term thrown out with a strong pitch from today’s gospel
is the word “Witnesses.”
One of the last things that Jesus says before being taken up into heaven is:
“You are witnesses of these things.”
In other words,
“You have seen and experienced events
that will change the course of the world.”
“You have seen the hand of God at work,
you have witnessed the power of God,
you have eye-witness experience of a new creation
breaking in upon the world.”
“You are witnesses of these things.”
After having said this, Jesus is taken up into heaven before their eyes.
And that’s the end of the gospel of St. Luke.
And I dare say that, from that time on,
mechanics, waitresses,
nurses, accountants,
teachers, soccer coaches and computer programmers and everyone else
who’s ever heard of Christ and believed in him
are left scratching their heads
and feeling a bit puzzled.
“I’m a witness?
What, exactly, have I witnessed?”
Like a person on a witness with second-thoughts
and beset with doubt,
there are a lot of Christians who, when put on the spot,
can’t exactly say what they’ve seen
or why they believe it.
Still, Christ says to us today,
“You are an eye-witness to the work of God.”
Have you visited the art museum and stared at a masterpiece?
Have you stood at the window of a hospital nursery
as a nurse in a mask and gown
holds a newborn up to the window?
Do you remember opening your wallet
and taking a look at a picture
of the girl you love?
Do you remember the last time
you smelled a fistful of dandelions in the hands
of a grandchild or niece or nephew?
If so, you are eye-witnesses to the work of God.
One of the reasons we are commanded to keep holy the Sabbath
and are required to attend Mass at church on Sunday
is to drop back and take a good look
at the masterpiece of God called life.
Here at the offering of the Mass
we take the events of our life
and, like a nurse with a baby in her arms,
we hold them up and we say, “Lord, you are the creator of all life.
Blessed are you, now and forever.”
Or, if you’re from the west side,
you might say,
“Lord, you do good work!”
And the Lord will know you mean the same thing.
And because you take the time to step back
and take a good look at life,
you’ll develop a good eye,
you’ll find yourself getting good
at catching a glimpse of God
the way a hunter gets good at spotting deer in a woods.
And next year,
on the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord into Heaven,
when you hear the words from the Bible say:
“You are witnesses to these things”
you’ll be able to say,
“Yes, I have witnessed the Lord at work in my life.”
You might even list some of the ways
you’ve witnessed the hand of God at work:
in the work of the mechanic who fixes your car,
in the neighbor who coaches your kid,
in the teacher who tutors your grandchild,
in the nurse’s aid who bathes your grandfather over at Hillebrand.
These are the things we place upon the altar,
the work of our hands,
the bread and wine of human life.
That’s what happens at Mass,
and that’s why we’re required to Mass;
so God can sanctify our lives
and make strong and make memorable
all those times and places when, in the course of our week,
we witness connections…
connections between earth and heaven,
connections between what we do “day in and day out”
and what God does, “day in and day out.”
Then will our sacrifice be complete.
Then will we experience the power of the Mass to transform,
not only bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ,
but we’ll discover that we ourselves, by the power of the Holy Spirit,
are being transformed as well.
That’s what happens here at Mass.
That’s what transpires.
We become witnesses of God’s mighty deeds
and discover ample evidence all about us.
The picture of that girl in your wallet
becomes a picture of someone God made…just for you.
Those dandelions in the hand of that child
escaped the blade of the lawn mower…just for you.
The fear in your heart turns into trust,
the anger in your life gives way to compassion,
the hectic schedule slows down its pace
It’s amazing how it happens.
You can’t explain it.
But you know it’s real.
After all, you’re a witness.
An eye-witness to the work of God.
posted by BlueCollarPreacher at 1:03 PM
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