Commissioned to Witness in the Family, Parish

By Bishop Paul S. Loverde
Bishop of Arlington
(From the issue of 6/5/03)

Commissioning ceremonies are familiar to us. Indeed, in recent weeks, we have seen glimpses of such ceremonies on the Evening News as the various United States service academies commissioned their new graduates.

As the Lord Jesus prepared to return to His Father in heaven after "appearing…during 40 days and speaking about the Kingdom of God," He commissioned "the apostles whom he had chosen." "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature." In fact, Jesus equipped them for this mission, promising them that "…in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." Yes, in proclaiming the Gospel, they were to be His witnesses. "…You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and to the ends of the earth."

Moreover, He Himself would also strengthen them from Heaven where He "took his seat at the right hand of the Father."

As we journey through each Liturgical Year, we relive the various mysteries of the Lord’s life. In today’s sacred liturgy, we are reliving the mystery of the Lord’s Ascension. Therefore, like the first apostles and disciples, we too are being commissioned to proclaim the Gospel and to be witnesses for the Lord Jesus. Lest we become discouraged by our limitations, our human frailties and, indeed, our sinfulness, we are being reminded that the power of the Holy Spirit has been given to us as well, in Baptism and, in a new and specific way, in Confirmation. We can go forth and proclaim the Gospel by our witness of life, knowing that the Lord is working through us, praying for us from heaven and sending us the Holy Spirit as a second Advocate to be our guide and strength.

Yes, on this celebration of the Lord’s Ascension, we are being commissioned to be witnesses. Our witness must be evident wherever we live, work and interact with others. Obviously, it must first begin within the family, for there we find the church in its most evangelizing form. In fact, we call the family "the domestic church." Are we truly witnessing for Jesus in living out our relationships as family members? Do we pray for and with one another? Do we respect each other? Do our words and actions support and encourage or do they wound and pull down?

What we say and do as members of the family, we should also say and do as member of the parish family. After all, Pope John Paul II reminds us, the parish is where the Church finds its most immediate and visible expression. Again, are the words we speak and the actions we do within the parish life-giving and supportive, or death-dealing and destructive? Are we proclaiming the Gospel and witnessing to Jesus in these two very specific worlds in which we live – the family and the parish?

Yes, as we celebrate the Lord’s return to His Father in heaven – His Ascension, we are being commissioned to go forth and proclaim the Gospel of life and love, of hope and peace, by our witness of life. On this day of hope, encouragement and commissioning, let us renew our commitment to be true disciples everywhere we go, beginning with our family and our parish, "living in a manner worthy of the call [we] have received…."

Copyright ©2003 Arlington Catholic Herald.  All rights reserved.