“In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world”

Today the Universal Church commemorates the Feast of the Ascension - The day our Lord ascend into heaven - A new chapter is about to begin guided by the Holy Spirit…….”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”……Everything we do must be grounded in the Holy Spirit….That means we are merely vessels….Our job is not to formulate what we are to do - Our job is to empty ourself to make room for God…The more we empty ourself, the more the Holy Spirit has room within us to work…..Remember these words from John the Baptist - They are instructing us to this very day - “I must decrease and he must increase”….What was John talking about? - We can do nothing that will last with the assistance of the Holy Spirit - This is why all our “great ideas” when they deviate from God’s will and Church teaching never bear fruit that lasts….Are you convinced of that reality?…..Many will say they are - But actions speak louder than words….Our “power” as a Catholic rests in God’s will alone - It does not matter how smart you are - How gifted you are….All our natural gifts in time turn to dust…But if we ground our life in the Holy Spirit - Making room for the Spirit to animate our life - The witness of our life will stop traffic!…..”Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age”……..Notice the words Jesus chose - ”Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you”……What we are to teach does not come from us - It comes from God himself…The Deposit of Faith does not belong to anyone person - Not even the Pope - We are simply to pass it on….And when we “adhere to the vine”, knowing we are merely a “branch” of that “vine”…Jesus tells us - We will “bear fruit”…..That all begins with us following the instructions of John the Baptist….“I must decrease and he must increase”…Once we are empty - We will be given what we are to do and also given the “power” to get it done!

“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”

Now that Jesus has ascended to heaven - How does a group of twelve uneducated fishermen start a global Church? - Have you ever “stepped back” and thought about that?…..If you were starting a goal enterprise - What kind of men would you choose to lead it?….Would they come from the best Universities? - Would they be brilliant orators? - Would they have the best resumes? - These were not the kind of men Jesus picked and yet today the Catholic Church is all over the world….Again, “step back” and think about that reality - How did that happen?!!?…..It happened because the Catholic Church is divinely guided and protected….There is no other way to look at it…There is no other way the Catholic Church would have survived two thousand years….The secular world forgets what I just stated and for the most part would not agree with my claim - A HUGE mistake!….The Holy Spirit animates that Catholic Church….Our job as Catholics is not to “re-create the wheel”…Our job is merely to “adhere to the vine”…..And when we do, even if we are like those twelve uneducated fisherman, God will accomplish amazing things through us….The power of the Holy Spirit manifests itself to this very day…We see it in new religious orders being formed - We see it in new Catholic Colleges being founded - We see it in the rise of young men entering the Church in America and in France in record numbers…..The Holy Spirit can not be extinguished…Its like the wind - Again, our job is simply to harness “the wind”, like a sail on a boat and allow “the wind” to move us….And it will move us! - If we allow it too!

“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”

Today on the Feast of the Ascension, the Universal Church reminds us - Jesus did not leave us orphans - He is still with us…As we know, he is fully present in the Blessed Sacrament in the Mass - But he is also fully present in the Holy Spirit…..Every Catholic at their Baptism receives the gift of the Holy Spirit - We are also given that gift when we are Confirmed….When we were Confirmed by a Bishop of the Church - These are the words said to us - “"Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit”…..That means we are “fully armed” to become “Soldiers of Christ”…This idea that we are “soldiers” is not used anymore in many segments of the Church - Catholic tradition refers to the faithful on earth as "Church Militant” - Those who are engaged in a spiritual battle with the forces of evil…To pretend that evil does not exist and that we are not to battle against it as Catholics is a false narrative that needs to be refuted….Evil and the powers of the world, the flesh and the devil are all around us - But we are not to fear - We have been ‘fully armed” with the Holy Spirit…“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” - Its time to get to work! - The battle wages on!……”I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.”…………….JMJ