Why Are You Still Looking at the Sky?

06-01-2025Weekly ReflectionFr. Augustine Acheme, VC

As Jesus ascends into heaven, the disciples stand staring upward- bewildered, amazed, maybe even a bit lost. Then two men in white appear with a question that still pierces our hearts today: “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?” (Acts 1:11). It’s not a rebuke- it’s a reminder. Jesus may have ascended, but the mission has just begun.

The Ascension is not the end of Jesus’ story; it is the continuation of His presence through the Church. Far from abandoning His disciples, Jesus entrusts them with a task: “You will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). And He assures them they won’t do it alone- “I am sending the promise of my Father upon you… you will be clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:49).

This solemnity reminds us that we are a people in between- between Ascension and Pentecost, between promise and fulfillment. And yet, we are not powerless. The Holy Spirit, already at work in our lives through baptism and confirmation, equips us to be Christ’s presence in the world. We don’t have to wait for the sky to open. He is already with us- in the Eucharist, in the poor, in the Word, and in the community of believers.

St. Paul prays that the “eyes of your hearts may be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to His call” (Eph 1:18). The Ascension lifts our gaze- not just upward, but outward. We are called not to escape the world, but to engage it with courage, hope, and love. The Risen Christ now reigns in glory, but He also reigns in every act of mercy, every word of truth, and every heart that dares to witness to Him.

St. Augustine once wrote, “Christ is now exalted above the heavens, but He still suffers on earth all the pain that we, the members of His body, have to bear.” The mission is His- and ours. Until He returns, we are His hands, His feet, His voice.

So why are we still looking at the sky? The world needs witnesses. Not perfect ones, but willing ones- disciples who remember that the One who ascended is the same One who promised: “I am with you always, until the end of the world” (Mt 28:20).

Fr. Augustine Acheme, VC