# The Ascension and Our Mission
*2015-05-16*

> Bill reflects on the abrupt ending of Mark’s Gospel, the Ascension of the Lord, and the call for disciples to proclaim the Good News everywhere.

## Scripture Reading

Mark 16:19‑20 (RSVCE): “So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.”

## The Abrupt Ending of Mark

The second ending of the Gospel according to Mark is strikingly abrupt. Jesus is whisked away to the glory of God, and the universe seems to praise Him. The evangelist tells us simply that the disciples are to take the Good News everywhere, without hesitation about whom to preach to. This urgency reveals much about Mark’s original audience and serves as a powerful testimony to the effectiveness of God’s presence in mission.

## The Ascension as a Missionary Catalyst

From the very beginning of the Ascension narrative, we hear that Jesus appeared to all the disciples and was taken up in their sight so that He might make us sharers of His divinity. During this Easter season we have been richly blessed by the revelations of God among us—through the vigil, the liturgy, the sprinkling rite, and the beauty of the flowers and plants that surround us. All these signs point to God’s continual work in our lives.

## Living the Mission Today

May we follow the disciples’ example, allowing the same divine energy that lifted Jesus into heaven to empower our own acts of kindness and evangelization. Let us go forth, confident that the Lord works with us and confirms our mission by the signs that accompany our witness.

*The Ascension calls us to become active sharers of Christ’s divinity, proclaiming the Good News wherever we are sent.*