“Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” – Acts of the Apostles 1:11
The Ascension of the Lord marks the end of the forty days which the risen Lord was with his disciples. He is now with the Father and from heaven he will come one day (The Second Coming) to judge the living and the dead. The Ascension of the Lord means that Jesus is no longer visible, but he still remains with us. Although at the right hand of his Father in heaven, He is with us in the Church in the preaching and proclamation of the Scriptures, and in the 7 sacraments, most especially in the Holy Eucharist which is his precious Body and Blood.
Note that the celebration of The Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord is transferred in our diocese and in most dioceses, but not all dioceses, from Thursday, May 29 to Sunday, June 1. In the dioceses in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, the New England states and Nebraska, the Ascension is celebrated on Thursday, May 29.
Begin praying the Novena (Nine Days) in preparation for the Coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday (June 8) starting on Friday, May 30 and concluding on the eve of Pentecost, Saturday June 7.
O Holy Spirit, by whose breath
Life rises vibrant out of death:
Come to create, renew, inspire;
Come, kindle in our hearts your fire.