There is a delightful character in the original Dr. Dolittle Tales called the “Pushmi-Pullyu.” It is a beast with two identical halves, with a head at each end. No matter which direction the beast walks, one end is the “push me” and the other is the “pull you.” Today’s feast is a bit like that in the life of the church. In the book of the Acts of the Apostles, it is the ascension of Christ that calls for the Holy Spirit, which consequently sends or “pushes” the church out on its mission. This is the message that we hear from the angels today as they tell the friends of Jesus not to look up into the clouds, but to get busy. It is the message of Jesus himself in Matthew’s Gospel, as he sends them out to baptize. He also tells them, “I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). And it is this message, confident in faith that Jesus has ascended to shouts of joy, that “pulls” us along to our final destiny. The life of the faithful disciple, sent into the world on mission, will one day know the same risen, ascended glory.
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