Passing of the Baton

/ Pastor Message

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
Reading I: Acts 1:1-11
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9
Reading II: Ephesians 1:17-23
Gospel: Mark 16:15-20

The Feast of the Ascension tells us about the “going up” to heaven of Christ by His own power, in the presence of the Apostles, the Blessed Mother and His disciples, 40 days after His resurrection. The feast tells us that our Lord is not leaving us orphans after He ascended to His Father’s bosom. He assured His disciples then, and now us, “…And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” His earthly life may have ended but His presence among us endures forever.

We might compare the Feast of the Ascension to the passing of a baton from one to the other in a relay race. Jesus passed the baton of continuing His work on earth to His apostles and through these first followers, to us now His new followers. This responsibility is handed to us Christians when we were baptized. We must do and give our best just as He has done during His life on earth. He went around doing good to people, especially to the poor and the needy. When we feel downcast and defeated, we remind ourselves of what he assured us with, “Behold, I will be with you always until the end of time.

Picture of Efren Tomas

Efren Tomas

In 2004, Father Efren arrived on Maui, Hawaii to be the Pastor of Christ The King Catholic Church in Kahului, Maui until 2012. He calls Christ The King his home because this was his first parish in Hawaii.
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