Sunday Lectionary: Going up?

In addition to being the Seventh Sunday in Easter, this Sunday is also Ascension Sunday. This has been an insanely busy week – sorry I didn’t get this posted earlier.

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord: 20th May, 2012

This Sunday we hear a glorious mystery! The Second Glorious Mystery to be precise! Yes, this Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ Ascension into Heaven.

In recent weeks, life among the Apostles had been, to put it mildly, a bit rocky (and not “rocky” in the good, “Peter” kind of way). In fact, things had been pretty awful. The Master had been betrayed, beaten and then killed on a cross. Dark times.

But then, something happened… He rose from the dead! For several weeks He had been appearing to His disciples! Life was good again! But then…what?…He left?

Huh? Things were finally starting to look up! Why did He leave? Did the Lord abandon His Church?

 

Reading I: Acts 1:1-11

Since we entered the Easter season, all our First Readings have come from the Acts of the Apostles. In past weeks we’ve read about a healing performed by St. Peter and the subsequent sermon to the crowd and his preaching to the Sanhedrin. The Acts of the Apostles covers roughly the first thirty years of Church history, but this week we backtrack to the very beginning of the book…

In the first book, Theophilus, I dealt with all that Jesus did and taught until the day he was taken up, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

When they had gathered together they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He answered them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has established by his own authority. 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. 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.”

Questions:

• What do you know about the Acts of the Apostles?
• When do the events found in this Sunday’s Reading take place in relation to the Readings we’ve been hearing since Easter Sunday?
• What did Jesus do after His Resurrection?
• What does Jesus promise His disciples? Was this foretold?
• What question do His disciples have? How does He respond?
• What is the significance of the four areas Jesus mentions (“Jerusalem…Judea…Samaria…the ends of the earth”)?
• What event takes place at the end of this passage?
• Who are the “two men” who speak to the disciples? What do they foretell?

Commentary:

In the first book, …

The Gospel of Luke. Acts of the Apostles is Volume II of his work, picking up where the Gospel left off. Jesus has resurrected and has been appearing to His disciples and teaching them.

…Theophilus, …

This name literally means “Lover of God”.

Luke’s Gospel is also addressed to “Theophilus”. It may refer to an actual person, a rich patron who commissioned the book. However, it may also be a literary device to refer to any believer reading this work, since all believers are “lovers of God”.

I personally like to think that it’s both of these options, that “Theophilus” was an actual person but that, through God’s providence, “lover of God”  would be an appropriate name for all future readers of Luke’s book.

…I dealt with all that Jesus did and taught…

Jesus’ teaching, life, death and resurrection.

Other, more literal translations (NIV and RSV) render this as “…began to do and to teach”.  What was begun by Jesus in Luke’s Gospel is continued in Acts through His disciples. The Acts of the Apostles chronicles the activity of the Church as She takes up the work of Her Bridegroom, all of which is sustained by the power of the Holy Spirit.

…until the day he was taken up, …

His ascension into Heaven.This is the last scene in Luke’s Gospel and the first scene in this book. Modern TV shows use a similar device to recap things and to set the scene before the story continues (“Last week on ‘The Bible’….”).

…after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.

Jesus spent the time between His Resurrection and His Ascension teaching His apostles “through the Holy Spirit”. The work of the Holy Spirit is constantly emphasized throughout Acts. It is through that same Holy Spirit that the Church continues to proclaim Christ to the world.

He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered, …

In recent weeks we have head about these encounters with the risen Christ, such as the account of “Doubting Thomas”.

…appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

Forty years marks a generation and the number forty is a significant Biblical number representing a time of preparation for some kind of event or change:

1. Genesis 7:4, 17
The flood lasted forty days

2. Exodus 34:28
Moses was on Mt. Sinai for forty days

3. Numbers 14:34
The time spent by the spies in Canaan and the number of years Israel wandered in the desert

4. Judges 13:1
Israel’s oppression by the Philistines

5. 1 Kings 19:8
Elijah traveled forty days to the mountain of God

6. Jonah 3:4
The duration of Nineveh’s opportunity to repent in response to the preaching of the Prophet Jonah

8. Mark 1:13
Jesus was tempted for forty days in the desert

The Apostles, being good Jews, should have known that since Jesus had spoken to them for forty days, there was change a-comin’…

While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, …

And this is what they do, spending the next nine days (novina) in prayer prior to Pentecost.

…but to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; …”

Jesus had previously promised “another advocate”:

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” – John 14:16-17

This advocate will come at the feast of Pentecost, ten days after the Ascension.

“…for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit….”

The “John” referred to here is John the Baptist. He too foretold this day:

“I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I… He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” – Luke 3:16

It will be the Holy Spirit which will allow the Church to continue the ministry of Jesus.

When they had gathered together they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

As usual, the disciples are concerned with different matters from that of their Master. They want to know if it’s time for an earthly restoration of Israel. Was it now time to kick out the Romans and re-establish the earthly Kingdom of Israel? That kingdom had lain in ruins since 6th Century BC! They were impatient! What was left to be done? The Suffering Servant had come and suffered. He had been resurrected. Also, Jesus was talking about the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit which had rested on King David when he was anointed in preparation to become king of Israel:

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Rama – 1 Samuel 16:13

It was time for a physical restoration of the Israel, right?

He answered them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has established by his own authority.

It is none of their concern!

“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” – Mark 13:32

…as it is none of ours:

Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night – 1 Thessalonians 5:1-2

Jesus deflects the question and focuses on what will take place in a few days…

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, …

Jesus says that the Holy Spirit is about to come. This event takes place at Pentecost, fifty days after Passover. Jesus says that they will “receive power”. This is testified to by the many miracles seen throughout the book of Acts.

In these words of Jesus there is also an echo of the Angel Gabriel at the Annunciation:

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you…” – Luke 1:35

In this way, Mary is the model of both every Christian and the Church as a whole.

…and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

This line summarizes the entire book of Acts.  The three regions He describes are three areas sequentially evangelized by the Apostles:

1. Jerusalem (Acts 1-7)
2. Judea and Samaria (Acts 8-9)
3. “ends of the earth” i.e. Caesarea, Antioch, Asia Minor, Greece and Rome (Acts 10-28)

The apostles are to be “witnesses” of Jesus’ death and Resurrection. The word “witness” in Greek is “martus” and it is the root from which we get the word “martyr”. In the Acts of the Apostles, Stephen (Acts 7:58-60) and James (Acts 12:1-2) witnesses to Christ ends in martyrdom.

When he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up…

Jesus ascends into Heaven – today’s feast.

The Lord ascended into Heaven for four reasons:

1. To demonstrate His own divine power by lifting Himself up body and soul into Heaven
2. To take possession of the Kingdom won by His Passion
3. To prepare for us a place (John 14:2)
4. To send the Holy Spirit

…and a cloud took him from their sight.

In the Old Testament these is a close association between clouds and the presence of God

By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. – Exodus 13:21

…and the glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the Lord called to Moses from within the cloud. – Exodus 24:16

Jesus’ ascension points back to Daniel’s vision:

 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence…” – Daniel 7:13

While they were looking intently at the sky as he was going, suddenly two men dressed in white garments stood beside them.

Two angels.

They said, “Men of Galilee, …

They came from the region of Galilee (except Judas, who was now dead).

“…why are you standing there looking at the sky? …”

Go! Be witnesses!

Two angels at the tomb ask a similar kind of question:

While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them…the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!..” – Luke 24:4-6

“…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.”

He’ll be back…

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. – Nicene Creed

…with the same resurrected body, in clouds with great glory:

“Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory” – Matthew 24:30

 

 

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9

In the First Reading, we read about how Jesus, the King of Kings, ascended to His throne in Heaven. The psalm this week is a celebratory psalm which describes God ascending to his throne and ruling over the whole world.

This psalm was possibly used in a liturgical procession in which the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the temple, the Ark representing God’s throne and the Temple representing Heaven.

R. (6) God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

All you peoples, clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness, For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome, is the great king over all the earth.

God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy; the LORD, amid trumpet blasts. Sing praise to God, sing praise; sing praise to our king, sing praise.

For king of all the earth is God; sing hymns of praise. God reigns over the nations, God sits upon his holy throne.

Questions:

• What does this psalm describe?
• How does this relate to the First Reading?
• What is the significance of mentioning “all the earth…the nations”?

Commentary:

R. (6) God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.

God is glorified. His people shout with joy and play trumpets in celebration.

All you peoples, clap your hands, shout to God with cries of gladness, For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome, is the great king over all the earth.

The psalmist invites all people to celebrate the Lord. He is not just the Lord of the Israelites, but the great king over all the earth. This nicely ties into Jesus’ commission in the First Reading to His disciples to be His “witnesses in Jerusalem…and the ends of the earth”.

God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy; the LORD, amid trumpet blasts. Sing praise to God, sing praise; sing praise to our king, sing praise.

Our response is drawn from this verse. The psalmist pleads for exuberant praise of God.

For king of all the earth is God; sing hymns of praise. God reigns over the nations, God sits upon his holy throne.

The universal nature of God’s dominion is asserted again.

God is on His throne – He is in charge.

Reading II: Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13

Since the Easter season began, our Second Readings have been drawn from St. John’s First Epistle. However, for today’s Feast of the Ascension, we hear from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

St. Paul stayed in Ephesus (Acts 18:19) in AD 52, towards the end of his Second Missionary Journey:

Paul founded the Church in that great city of Ephesus and later sent them a letter from Rome. The theme of his letter is that of the mystery of God’s redemption, His plan from all time to send Christ and the formation of the Church. The first part of the letter deals with doctrine and the second part deals with Christian life, from which this Sunday’s passage is drawn:

Brothers and sisters, I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature to manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ.

Questions:

• From this passage, what can you deduce as to Paul’s location?
• To what does St. Paul exhort his readers? What is its theme?
• What is the purpose of the roles “apostles…prophets…”?
• What is the goal of these ministries?

Commentary:

Brothers and sisters, …

Since we are united with God’s family through Baptism, we are all siblings.

…I, a prisoner for the Lord, …

Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians while under house arrest:

When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him… For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him – Acts 28:16, 30

He is in prison for proclaiming the Gospel.

…urge you to live in a manner worthy of the calling you have received, …

Our lives should be consistent with our calling. We have received a great honour in being called to be members of God’s family and Paul therefore exhorts the Ephesians to live lives which reflect this privilege.

…with all humility and gentleness, with patience, …

To live “in a manner worthy of the calling” means to live with “humility…gentleness…patience”.

It is interesting to note that, in Greek thought, “humility” was not considered as a virtue. Christians view it so because of the example of Christ:

“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” – Matthew 11:29

…bearing with one another through love, …

Church life is stressful and fraught with tensions! We must bear with one another in love!

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility,gentleness and patience. – Colossians 3:12

Nobody said that Church life would be easy!

…striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace: …

Christ achieved this unity through His cross. It is the responsibility of believers to not disturb that unity. We are called to be united in:

1. Creed (i.e. faith)
2. Code (i.e. life)
3. Cult (i.e. worship)

…one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

This is one of my all-time favourite Bible verses and was one of the first verses that opened my eyes to the Catholic faith. Notice how many times Paul uses words which relate to unity:

…striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

We are called to preserve peace and unity in the Church both visibly (“one body”) and spiritually (“one Spirit”).

“There is a common dignity of members deriving from their rebirth in Christ, a common grace as sons, a common vocation to perfection, one salvation, one hope and undivided charity. In Christ and in the Church there is, then, no inequality arising from race or nationality, social condition or sex, for ‘there is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither slave for free; there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus’ (Galatians 3:28; see Colossians 3:11)” – Vatican II, Lumen gentium, 32

This verse provides the basis for two things which we say every week in the Nicene Creed:

1. “I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church”. The first of the four “marks” of the Church is Her unity. Schism is unacceptable!

2. “I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins”. We are united by our Baptism.

The Lectionary now skips verses 8-10, which is really strange since it’s all about ascending! Oh well, moving on…

But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

Grace is God’s unmerited gift to us. It is bestowed by Him as He sees fit. God gives to us the graces we need to fulfill our vocations.

The diversity of gifts helps the Body rather than hinders it, in the same way that different parts of the body have different functions in order to make the body, as a whole, healthy.

And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, …

In other parts of his writing Paul focuses on other kinds of gifts, but here he examines the ecclesiastical offices of the Church:

1. Apostles. “Apostle” literally means “sent”. Paul may be referring to The Twelve, but he may also be referring to a larger group which would have included himself and others:

Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was – Romans 16:7

It’s quite likely that Paul is referring to this larger group, made up of those who performed missionary-type activities.

2. Prophets. Those to whom God gave a special messages for particular situations. The gift of prophecy was extremely active in these early years of the Church:

But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort – 1 Corinthians 14:3

3. Evangelists. Those who preached the Gospel.

Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven – Acts 21:8

4. Pastors and Teachers. The Greek grammar closely ties together these two roles. These would be the people who would govern the local community and give ongoing teaching.

Paul then goes on to explain the purpose of these roles…

…to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry,

The purpose of these roles is to prepare the rest of the Church for ministry! It’s not just those in leadership who do the work!

…for building up the body of Christ, …

The purpose of Apostles, Prophets etc. is to serve and build up the Body.

…until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature to manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ.

This is the goal. The purpose of “apostles…prophets” etc. is to build up the Church so that “unity of faith” and “knowledge of the Son of God” is achieved. Their purpose is to bring the body to fullness and maturity.

“As members of the living Christ, incorporated into Him and made like Him by Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, all the faithful have an obligation to collaborate in the spreading and growth of His body, so that they might bring it to fullness as soon as possible” – Vatican II, Ad gentes, 36

 

Gospel: Mark 16:15-20

We’ve been hearing from John’s Gospel for the last few weeks. This week we return to Mark’s Gospel and to its closing few sentences.  In these final verses Jesus gives the Great Commission and promises that signs and wonders will accompany His disciples. He then ascends into Heaven.

(It is thought by some scholars that verses 9-20 were a 2nd Century addition since they do not appear in the earliest manuscripts)

Jesus said to his disciples: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

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. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

Questions:

• What instruction does Jesus give?
• Who will be saved? Who will not e saved?
• What will accompany “those who believe”? How can we understand these words (a) literally (b) spiritually?
• What did the disciples do?

Commentary:

Jesus said to his disciples: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.

Jesus gives His instruction – go proclaim the Gospel. This is the mission of every Christian, and especially the mission of the bishops who are the successors to the Apostles.

The NAB uses the phrase “every creature”, but both the NIV says “all creation” and the RSV says “the whole creation”. Jesus is instructing them to proclaim the gospel to the whole world, Jew and Gentile.

…it had been said before, “Go not into the way of the Gentiles”. But now it is said, “Preach the Gospel to every creature”, so that the preaching of the Apostles which was thrust aside by Judea, might be an assistance to us… – St. Gregory

In the same way that the whole of creation was tarnished by The Fall, all of creation will be redeemed through the Gospel.

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.

The essential message of salvation – believe and be baptized. There are other things that we could say about this (“forgive your neighbour” etc.), but “believe and…baptize” is a nice, pithy summary. The centrality of Baptism is clearly seen:

For it is not enough to believe, for he who believes and is not baptized, but is a catechumen, has not yet attained to perfect salvation. – Theophyl

Belief is not a one-time event, nor is it simply words:

But perhaps some one may say in himself, “I have already believed, I shall be saved”. He says what is true, if he keeps his faith by works; for that is a true faith, which does not contradict by its deeds what it says in words. – St. Gregory

A common question is “How can babies be baptized if they cannot believe?”. St. Bede answers by saying that they believe “by others” in a similar way they inherited sin from Adam:

What shall we say here about infants, who by reason of their age cannot yet believe… In the Church then of our Savior children believe by others, as also they drew from others the sins which are remitted to them in baptism – St. Bede

These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages…They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

This proclamation will be accompanied with powerful signs.

1. Demons cast out (Acts 16:16-18)
2. Speak in new languages (Acts 2:4-11)
3. Survive serpent bits (Acts 28:1-6)
4. Heal the sick (Acts 3:6-8; 28:8)

This shows that the ministry of the Church is a continuation of Jesus’ ministry.

St. Gregory has some sage advice for us when we do not see all this signs regularly manifested today:

Are we then without faith because we cannot do these signs? No, but these things were necessary in the beginning of the Church, for the faith of believers was to be nourished by miracles, that it might increase. Thus we also, when we plant groves, pour water upon them, until we see that they have grown strong in the earth; but when once they have firmly fixed their roots, we leave off irrigating them. These signs and miracles have other things which we ought to consider more minutely – St. Gregory

So a plethora of signs was particularly important in the early years of the Church. Signs still continue, but not with the same frequency.

They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. 

Although Paul was bitten by a snake to no ill effects (Acts 28:1-6), there is no passage in the New Testament of anyone drinking poison and surviving.

We have to be careful with these verses otherwise we end up in very bad places. We should not put the Lord to the test:

Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah. – Deuteronomy 6:16

We should not test Christ, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes – 1 Corinthians 10:9

Since Satan (and therefore evil) is often depicted in Scripture as a snake, this verse means that Christians will be given the grace to encounter evil and heresy unafraid:

…even if they commit to their memory heretical statements which are declared to be worthy of disapproval, they receive no harm from the poisonous and depraved nature of these sentences.” – Saint Augustine, On the Soul and Its Origin, 2;23

St. Gregory offers us a spiritual interpretation of these verses:

For Holy Church does every day in spirit what then the Apostles did in body; for when her Priests by the grace of exorcism lay their hands on believers, and forbid the evil spirits to dwell in their minds, what do they, but cast out devils? And the faithful who have left earthly words, and whose tongues sound forth the Holy Mysteries, speak a new language; they who by their good warnings take away evil from the hearts of others, take up serpents; and when they are hearing words of pestilent persuasion, without being at all drawn aside to evil doing, they drink a deadly thing, but it will never hurt them; whenever they see their neighbors growing weak in good works, and by their good example strengthen their life, they lay their hands on the sick, that they may recover. And all these miracles are greater in proportion as they are spiritual, and by them souls and not bodies are raised. – St. Gregory

However, we also should not over-spirtualize the words of Scripture. The spiritual meaning builds upon the literal meaning:

…they shall scatter before them serpents, whether intellectual or sensible, as it is said, “you shall tread upon serpents and scorpions”, which is understood spiritually. But it may also mean sensible serpents, as when Paul received no hurt from the viper. There follows: And if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. We read of many such cases in history, for many persons have drank poison unhurt, by guarding themselves with the sign of Christ.  – Theophyl

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.

Jesus ascends into Heaven by His own power. Greek myths contained accounts of people going to Heaven, but they did not ascend under their own power.

We have seen in the Old Testament that Elijah was taken up into heaven…. our Redeemer, as we read, was not carried up by a chariot, not by angels, because He who had made all things was borne over all by His own power – St. Gregory

In Heaven He sits at the right hand of God:

We must also consider what Mark subjoins, “And sat at the right hand of God”, since Stephen says, “I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God”. Now sitting is the attitude of a judge, standing of one fighting or helping. Therefore Stephen, when toiling in the contest, saw Him standing whom he had for his helper; but Mark describes Him as sitting after His assumption into heaven, because after the glory of His assumption, He will in the end be seen as a judge. – St. Gregory

We declare this in the Nicene Creed at Mass each week:

“…He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”

But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

The disciples did what the Master told them. In Mark’s Gospel, this brings us full circle:

…Mark…began from the commencement of the preaching of…John, and he [finishes]… his narrative those times in which the Apostles sowed the same word of the Gospel throughout the world. – St. Bede

This preaching has been continued by the successors of the Apostles throughout history:

But how was this preaching fulfilled by the Apostles, since there are many nations in which it has just begun, and others in which it has not yet begun to be fulfilled?

Truly then this precept was not so laid upon the Apostles by our Lord, as though they alone…were to fulfill so great a charge; in the same way as He says, “Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the world”…but who does not understand that the promise is made to the Catholic Church, which though some are dying, others are born, shall be here to the end of the world? – St. Augustine