主日讀經反思 Sunday Scripture Meditation (20/05/2012)
本主日乙年讀經︰
宗徒大事錄 1:1-11
聖詠 47[46]:2-3,6-7,8-9
厄弗所書 1:17-23 或 4:1-13 或 4:1-7,11-13
馬爾谷福音 16:15-20
默想︰
耶穌升天意味著祂和天父圓滿地融合為一，證明祂就是那超乎諸天，充滿萬有的那一位。祂的光榮升天使基督徒充滿希望，切望在塵世結束之後，也分享天主的光榮。這位進入天父光榮中的耶穌，就是那位為正義和真理而死的人。祂生命的點點滴滴聚合在一起，促成了祂和天父的完全融合。基督徒既切望死後的安息和新生命，就應激勵自己在生活中懷著謙遜、溫和、愛德，做耶穌的證人。耶穌的一舉一動都展示了天父對人的愛，祂的升天是因為天父願意光榮祂，願意藉著祂賜給人更豐厚的恩寵和智慧，從而使他們認清，人性所應達到的尊貴程度。耶穌為人指出了一條淬礪人性的道路，就是信賴和捨己。
耶穌鼓勵基督徒懷著這樣的態度等候天父的恩許。爲了建樹自己的教會，耶穌賜予基督徒不同的職位，職位雖不同，卻是爲了相同的目標：與人分享耶穌的福音，彰顯天父的大愛。基督徒就是一個被派遣的人，進入世界並聖化世界。
天主，為耶穌作證的能力取決於靈修深度及個人修養，請祢教我坦蕩開懷，讓祢的聖神進入我的生命，將我改造，將我聖化。
【摘自和平五月號】
Acts 1: 1-11
Psalm 47: 2-3, 6-7, 8-9
Ephesians 1: 17-23 or 4: 1-13 or 4: 1-7, 11-13
Mark 16: 15-20
The Feast of the Ascension is really the completion of Jesus' Resurrection from the dead. In His Resurrection He returned from death on the cross to a new and never-ending life. In today's feast we celebrate the second element - Jesus' return to the glory He shares with His Father. It is more the meaning of what we celebrate that we need to concentrate on rather than focus on how it happened. In fact, there are quite different accounts in the four gospels and in the Acts of the Apostles.
And today, too, is not an occasion for us simply to recall something that happened about 2,000 years ago. The Ascension is something which touches our Christian lives today. Jesus makes it very clear that His going away does not mean the end of His work. On the contrary, he calls on every one of His followers to continue the work He has been doing. We are to proclaim the Word that gives life, we are to heal and reconcile; we are to give witness as the visible Body of Christ in whatever part of the world we live in. As we saw in an earlier reading this month, we are called to bring the Good News of the Kingdom to all the places that Jesus was never able to reach. The Ascension is not an end; it is really only the beginning.
I am with you always, to the end of the world.
Shalom – Thoughts for Prayer
