At the Last Supper,
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
This past week we had First Confessions and First Communion for many of our young people. I couldn’t help but be concerned, once again, that these children were not ready, despite two years of formation. They still didn’t yet get it. As pastor, each time this happens, I cannot help but experience some anxiety and concern for them. Then, I go back and read Jesus words at the Last Supper,
“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.”
Recently, I spoke of how Simon didn’t understand his new title, “Peter”/Cephas/Rock. It took a while for Simon to become Peter. He received the title well before he understood how to be Peter.
I’ve reflected upon this recently. What comes to mind for me is the experience of teaching a child how to ride a bike. You can’t learn to ride a bike from a book or from watching a video. You have to ride the bike. You have to fall off of the bike. You have to get back up get on the bicycle, again.
Or, learning how to swim. You don’t learn how to swim from a book, or from watching a video. You must go into the water over and over again. People who do not know how to swim develop great fear of deep water. People who learn how to swim, have much less fear of the water. People who ride bicycles often or swim often, go on to learn more and more, and gain confidence as they go, overcoming their fears.
Here was Jesus, trying to teach his disciples how to become Apostles. They had been with him for three years. They knew a lot about him. They witnessed his miracles and his trials. He had told them they would do the things he did and even more. However, they still had little understanding about what was coming. One of them, Judas, fell away and betrayed him. Then there were only eleven disciples.
There is a day when Dad takes the training wheels off the kid’s bike. There is a day when the child no longer needs “floaties” or flotation vests and must jump into the water without assistance. There comes a day when a momma bird pushes her baby birds out of the nest. They lose the safety of the nest, but they grow stronger.
The Feast of the Ascension is one of those transition points essential for our salvation. Jesus had been telling the disciples that he had to return to the Father, and he would send them the Holy Spirit to guide them. Obviously, they had no idea what that meant. They had to go forward on faith, even though they didn’t quite understand.
After the Crucifixion of Jesus, they experienced his Resurrection. We know that was a big challenge for them, and they had difficulty understanding. Famously, Thomas had difficulty believing Jesus had come back to life. The Resurrected Jesus ate and drank and taught them for forty days. They experienced his glorified presence. They had many questions for him, and he explained there was much more they needed to learn, telling them,
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.”
When he had said this, as they were looking on,
he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.
Jesus was forming his Church, building upon the Apostles. He was teaching them about the Holy Trinity when he taught, “I am going to the Father, and he will send the Holy Spirit to guide you.” He entrusted these mysteries to the Church, with the authority to forgive sin. And he told them, “I will never leave you. I will be with you until the end of time.”
We live by faith, even when we cannot see or understand the entire picture. And yet, we must become witnesses to the ends of the earth. We learn to trust Jesus and the Holy Spirit even when we think we are facing complete darkness. The Apostles and the early Church confronted these mysteries, while they witnessed. We know about God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit because God revealed these truths to us.
It took the early Church almost three centuries to work out these truths. In the year 325 AD, all the bishops of the world convened at Nikea, a town near Constantinople, to work these truths out. The Holy Spirit was always guiding them. Nothing new was revealed. The mysteries were not changed. The great Council at Nikea affirmed what had been revealed and spoke clearly.
Today, after 1700 years, we still repeat the Nicene Creed each time we come together. We may not understand all the mysteries, but in faith we declare them to be true. This is how we are “One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.”
We will spend all our lives as disciples, learning and “becoming” something new. Jesus’ Ascension is a fact of life. He Ascended to the Father, and yet, he will remain with us until the end of time. We experience him in His Sacraments which he gave to the Church. I’m still learning how to be a priest. We are all still learning how to be Catholics. Although I am a widower, I am still learning about my Sacrament of Holy Matrimony after 37 years of marriage. And I understand that the children making their First Confessions and First Communion will require the help of their parents and Godparents and the Church to learn what these Sacraments mean. Parents, teach your children to pray and to worship God. They don’t have to understand it all. We teach them Faith. We teach them the truth of Jesus’ Ascension to the Father.