I would bet
good money on the proposition that everyone who believes in God has tried to
imagine what He looks like, what He sees when He looks at His creatures, and
the depth of His love for all of His creation.
No image of God will ever capture the full complexity of the Ultimate
Reality, but some images are better than others. Some worked better when I was young while
others work better now as I age.
I recall a
prayer that was shared with me years ago. The prayer goes something like this: The
fact that my mom and dad met and loved each other, whatever the circumstances,
is just a small part of the miracle of my existence. Indeed, our parents play an important part in
our lives and my scripture reading today gives me opportunity to reflect on
them. For most of us, it’s our
biological parents who lead, carry, teach and sustain us from our beginnings. As we grow, others also assist in this
process, but it’s our parents who are there to bring us through these tender
stages to the point where we can take care of ourselves—and even take on the
process of having and raising our own children.
My own
parents made a great home for myself and my siblings, which included being
welcomed and reverenced from the beginning of life. We were nurtured with the food we needed to
grow, and with the education we needed to be successful. We were also raised in the practice of the
faith…and taught how to be good people!
I have, of
course, become painfully aware that this good upbringing that my siblings and I
enjoyed is not always the case. And so,
the metaphors and language of mother and father in my readings today can also
cast a shadow of darkness and fear. Some
even seek other metaphors or examples for the care and concern of the Lord.
Isaiah and
Jesus provide two different (but are they, really?) images of God. Isaiah offers the image of a mother who can
never forget her child (Isaiah 49:8-15). And so, we may imagine God looking at us with
the tenderness of a nursing mother. Jesus
offers a second image: God the Father (John 5:17-30). As used by Jesus, this image suggests a deep
and intimate relationship. We may be
comfortable with both images. Or we may
prefer one over the other. Or we may
have our own favorite image of God.
The Gospel
gives us another way to understand God. Recall
that Jesus is the Word made Flesh, the incarnate God (John 1:1-5). Jesus tells us that He is uniquely qualified
to represent God. Jesus is doing and
saying what God sent Him to do. We’ll never
fully understand the nature of God. We’ll
never fully understand the Trinity. We’ll
never fully understand exactly how Jesus can be both different from and united
to God. This Ultimate Reality will elude
our understanding. Our images of God
will always fall short. But we do have
Jesus who is God incarnate. We are
invited to know Jesus more intimately and so, enter into a deeper relationship
with Ultimate Reality.
************************************
The Highs
and Lows and Ups and Downs of the Most Holy Rosary
The Glorious
Mysteries
II. Jesus is Ascended
into Heaven
Brief meditation:
For forty
days Jesus remained among His disciples. They saw His pierced hands, feet and side, He
ate with them and walked with them. He
bestowed on them the power to forgive sins saying, “Receive the Holy Spirit,
for those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you
retain, they are retained.” (John 21:22-23) Jesus’ mission on earth was complete so He
took His disciples to the outskirts of Bethany, blessed them and as He did so, He was carried up to Heaven.
Scriptural
meditations:
1. “But now I am going to the one who sent me,
and not one of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I told you this,
grief has filled your hearts.” (John 16:5-6)-
Hail Mary…
2. “But I tell you the truth, it is better for
you that I go. For if I do not go, the
Advocate will not come to you. But if I
go, I will send him to you.” (John 16:7)- Hail Mary…
3. Then he led them out as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. (Luke 24:50)- Hail
Mary…
4. When they had gathered together they asked
him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts
1:6)- Hail Mary…
5. He answered them, “It is not for you to know
the times or seasons that the Father has established by his own authority.”
(Acts 1:7)- Hail Mary…
6. “But you will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the
earth.” (Acts 1:8)- Hail Mary…
7. When he had said this, as they were looking
on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their
sight. (Acts 1:9)- Hail Mary…
8. 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. (Mark 16:19)- Hail Mary…
9. While they were
looking intently at the sky as he was going, suddenly two men dressed in
white garments stood beside them. They said, “Men of
Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been
taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him
going into heaven.” (Acts 1:10-11)- Hail Mary…
10. They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were
continually in the temple praising God. (Luke 24:52-53)- Hail Mary…
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