The Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Sunday, May 12, 2024

Mark 16, 15–2

Jesus said to his disciples: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”  So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

For forty days, as St. John informs us, the Lord Jesus appeared to the Apostles and taught them, preparing them to go out to the world to preach the Gospel for the conversion of the human race.  We see how like a tender parent he does this: not living among them as he had before, but only coming to them at certain times so that they became accustomed to living on their own and living and working with each other without his being physically present.  And then, rather than simply cutting off his appearances without warning, he leaves them in a most dramatic display of his power, ascending into heaven and disappearing into the depths of the sky.  Still, through grace he did remain with them as he had promised, and they saw his hand in all that they did: “The Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.”

The great question about the Ascension is why did Jesus leave us?  Of course, he did not abandon us.  He is present among us most especially in the Most Blessed Sacrament.  Yet he is not visibly present.  The Lord ascended into heaven not to go away from us, but to draw us closer to him.  If he remains here, then we would not see him there.  Throughout the Gospels, the Lord draws on the Apostles.  He leads them.  He does not wander, but he leads them very purposefully.  He does the same with us now.  And the way to him, the way through which he leads us, is his own life, for he is “the way, the truth, and the life”.  We imitate his life and follow in his footsteps in lives of prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and preaching.

We celebrate this day as a day of the Lord’s glory revealed on earth, and as a day on which he bids us follow him.

The thirty-second article in our continuing series on the Holy Mass: The Liturgical Colors

The outer vestment the priest wears at Mass as well as the veil of his chalice are variously colored throughout the Church year.  The color signifies the solemnity of feast that is celebrated or, on days when this is not done, the current liturgical season.  This custom developed after the end of the Roman persecutions when the Faith could be practiced openly and publicly.  By the seventh century, at the latest, the colors warn on a particular day were standardized.  

White or gold is worn on Solemnities such as Christmas and Easter as well as during the seasons that follow them.  White is also worn for the feast days of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and of saints who were virgins or confessors.  Red is worn for Pentecost, signifying the flames of the Holy Spirit which stood over the heads of the Apostles when he came to them.  Red is also worn to signify the blood shed by the holy martyrs. Green is worn during the season of Ordinary Time, which occurs between the Epiphany and Ash Wednesday and between Pentecost and the First Sunday of Advent.  This color signifies the hope in which we live, awaiting the Lord’s return in glory.  Violet is worn during the days of Advent and Lent.  Originally a color associated with royalty, it is worn during these penitential seasons as a reminder that the Lord Jesus was clothed in a violet garment at the time of his Passion and mocked by the soldiers.  Rose vestments are worn on two Sundays of the year: on the third Sunday of Advent and on the Fourth Sunday of Lent.  It gives us pause during the rigors of our penances to recall the glory of the Lord which will soon be revealed at Christmas and Easter.  Black is worn on All Souls’ Day and at funeral Masses.  Purple may be substituted for it.  Both colors remind us of the brevity of this life and the urgent need to convert to Jesus.  White may also be substituted as a reminder of the resurrection to come.

Next: The Priest’s Vestments