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| The Ascension of Jesus Christ into Heaven |
Ascension
Meditation
On the fortieth day after His Resurrection, after having
trained His Apostles for their high calling to establish the Kingdom of God on
earth, Jesus prepared to ascend on high to where the glories of heaven awaited
Him. He blessed His loving Mother and
His Apostles and disciples and bade them farewell. A cloud received Him out of their sight.
The countless blessed spirits whom He had released from
limbo accompanied Him as the first fruits of the redemption. All the hosts of heaven’s Angels came out to
meet Him, the Savior of the world.
As He took His place beside His heavenly Father, the whole
court of heaven gave forth a glorious song of praise. It was the song heard by John in his
visions: “Worthy is the Lamb That was
slain to receive power and riches, wisdom and strength, honor and glory and
praise!” (Rv 5:12)
Jesus ascended into heaven to enter into possession of His
glory. While on earth He had always
enjoyed the vision of God, but the glory of His Sacred Humanity had shone forth
only at His Transfiguration. On His
Ascension into heaven He took His place as Man beside His heavenly Father and
was exalted above all other human creatures.
The night before He died Jesus prayed to His Father: “I have
given You glory on earth by finishing the work You gave Me to do. Do You now, Father, give Me glory at Your
side, glory I had with You before the world began” (Jn 17:4-5)
Since His Humanity is united to the Divine Word, the second
Person of the Blessed Trinity, It enjoys the right of eternal glory. It shares with the Father the infinite bliss
and mighty power of God. This is the
reward for all He has done and merited on earth. In heaven He is raised above all because on
earth He has lowered Himself below all.
When the struggle of this life is over Jesus will give us
the grace to share His joy and triumph in heaven for all eternity.
Jesus ascended into heaven to be our Mediator with His
Father. There He is pleading for
us. He ascended into heaven to give an
account to His heavenly Father of the great work He had done on earth. The Church was born, grace springs up in
abundance from His Cross of Calvary and is distributed through the Sacraments,
God’s justice is satisfied, hell and death are conquered, heaven is opened and
man saved. Jesus had a right to the
glorious homecoming.
Christ’s Ascension is also the assurance of our own
ascension into heaven after the Last Judgment.
He entered into His Kingdom to prepare a place for us, for He promised
to come again to take us to Himself.
Let us ascend into heaven with Jesus in spirit, there to
dwell by faith, hope and charity. Let us
seek only the joys that are true!
The Word of God
“After speaking to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into
heaven and took His seat at God’s right hand.” Mk 16:19
“When He ascended on high, He took a host of captives and
gave gifts to men.” Eph 4:8
“Since you have been raised up to company with Christ, set
your hearts on what pertains to high realms where Christ is seated at God’s
right hands. Be intent on things above
rather on things on earth.” Col 3:1-2
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| Christ's Ascension into Heaven |
Novena Prayers
Jesus, I honor You on the feast of Your Ascension into heaven.
I rejoice with all my heart at the glory
into
which You entered to reign as King of heaven and earth.
When the struggle of this life is over,
give
me the grace to share Your joy
and triumph in heaven for all eternity.
I believe that You entered into Your glorious Kingdom
to
prepare a place for me,
for You promised to come again
to take me to
Yourself.
Grant that I may seek only the
joys of Your friendship,
so that I may deserve to be united with You in heaven.
In the hour of my homecoming,
when I appear before Your
Father
to give an account of my life on earth,
have mercy on me.
Jesus, in Your love for me
You have brought me from evil to
good
and from misery to happiness.
Give
me the grace to rise
above my human weakness.
May Your Humanity
give me courage in my weakness
and free me from my
sins.
Through Your grace
give me the courage of perseverance
for
You have called and justified me by faith.
May I hold fast to the life You have given me
and come to the eternal
gifts You promised.
You love me, dear Jesus.
Help me to love You in return.
I
ask You to grant this special favor (Mention your request.)
By Your unceasing care,
guide my steps toward the life of
glory
You have prepared for those who love You.
Make me grow in holiness and thank You
by a life of faithful service.
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| Sacred Heart of Jesus, Have Mercy on us! |
Prayer of Praise to Jesus in Glory
I praise You, dearest Heart of Jesus, Fountain of all
goodness.
I praise You, most kind Heart of Jesus,
for the boundless
graces that have flowed
and shall continue to flow from You into the souls of
the just.
I praise You, most gentle Heart of Jesus,
for the tender
love with which You have
so often refreshed devout hearts through Divine
consolations.
I praise You, most loving Heart of Jesus,
for the fullness
of Your grace,
the splendor of Your virtues,
the generosity of Your Heart,
and
the purity of Your love.
I praise You, royal Heart of Jesus,
for Your victory over
death and sin,
Your power over souls,
and Your triumph over the living and the
dead.
I praise You, Heart so poor and yet so rich,
for having
despised all earthly riches
and for having renounced all earthly honors.
I praise You, most obedient Heart of Jesus,
that hungered
after the fulfillment of the Divine Will
and thirsted after the greater glory
of God and the salvation of souls.
I praise You, most generous Heart of Jesus,
that did not
seek its own glory;
most patient Heart, that willingly bore the greatest
insults;
most unselfish Heart, that longed for and lovingly embraced the Cross.
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus,
teach me to love You with my
whole Heart,
and grant that, according to the little strength I have,
I may
imitate Your wonderful virtues. Amen.
Prayer
God Our Father, make us joyful in the Ascension of Your Son
Jesus Christ.
May we follow Him into the
new creation, for His Ascension is our glory and our hope.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God,
forever.
Amen.
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