Beauty Ascending. The Ascension of the Lord.

Grant, we beseech thee, Almighty God: that like as we do believe thy Only-Begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into the heavens; so we may also in heart and mind thither* ascend, and with him continually dwell; who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

—Collect for The Ascension Of The Lord, Divine Worship: the Missal

* toward that place.

With the observance of the three minor rogation days now complete, we turn in amazement to the Feast of The Ascension of the Lord.

For those who appreciate the significance and symbolism of numbers, not superstitious numerology, the retention of the Thursday position of the Ascension of Our Lord is a great boost to recovering an awareness, on behalf of the whole Church, of the rhythm or design that God has established to aid us in our immersion in the rhythm of the fourfold mystery of the passion, death, resurrection and ascension of Christ. Which, as Fr. Christopher of Atonement Parish reminds us, "make up one continuous event, the event which conquered sin and Satan."

In the Mass, we pray with the Apostles in the Upper Room, immersed in the mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ.

O Saviour of the world,

who by thy Cross and precious Blood hast redeemed us:

save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

—Mysterium Fidei from Divine Worship: the Missal

"Save us." Jesus Christ is our salvation. "Help us". The Lord gives us His grace to enable us grow in holiness and love for God.

By whom and with whom and in whom,

to thee, O Father Almighty,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

be all honour and glory throughout all ages,

world without end.

—the Per Ipsum from Divine Worship: the Missal

Dear readers, you may find it quite uplifting, pun intended, to recall the following section of the Mass (Divine Worship: the Missal) during the Consecration. Pay attention to the rubrics (in red) that pertain to the celebrant's actions:

Who the day before he suffered, 

took bread into his holy and venerable hands,

He raises his eyes.

and with eyes lifted up to heaven, unto thee,

God, his almighty Father, giving thanks to thee,

he blessed, broke and gave it to his disciples,

saying:

TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND EAT OF IT:

FOR THIS IS MY BODY,

WHICH WILL BE GIVEN UP FOR YOU.

He genuflects, shows the consecrated Host to the People, places it on the paten, and again genuflects in adoration. 

Both the host and the chalice are elevated during this summit of the Holy Eucharist. Recall earlier the celebrant's invitation in the Preface Dialogue to "Lift up your hearts." And, our response: "We lift them up unto the Lord." The ascent of our hearts is the assent of our hearts and minds to the truth, toward the summit of the Eucharist and Holy Communion.

In a real sense, because the Mass transcends time and space, we in the Mass are there present when the Lord goes up, and the disciples are standing their looking to heaven, and the angels appear and remind us that "(Jesus) shall so come."

Acts 1:9-11

And when he had said these things, while they looked on, he was raised up: and a cloud received him out of their sight.

And while they were beholding him going up to heaven, behold two men stood by them in white garments.

Who also said: Ye men of Galilee, why stand you looking up to heaven? This Jesus who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come, as you have seen him going into heaven.

We Catholics acknowledge Jesus' return in every Mass, for as Holy Mother the Church declares, as Holy Scripture declares: Jesus is really and truly present, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Holy Eucharist.

https://www.catholic.com/tract/the-real-presence

Thanks be to God for the Ordinariate and the preservation of the Ascension on a Thursday therein.

Catholics have allowed themselves to be somewhat distracted away from knowing the beauty of the symbolism and poetry of numbers, the sequence of events recorded in Holy Scripture—emphasis on 'Holy', as in don't play lightly with the word of God—that God intends for us to receive in order that we might more fully enter into His plan, His will.

The counting from the day the Apostles entered the Upper Room until the day of Pentecost is properly nine. Our word novena—Latin: nine—brings to mind this period of prayer.

Acts of the Apostles 1:12-14

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away; and when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. All these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

There, in the upper room, the disciples stayed and prayed (nine days) until Whitsun, Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended upon them. During this "retreat", Matthias was chosen to replace Judas Iscariot.

In those days Peter stood up among the brethren (the company of persons was in all about a hundred and twenty), and said, “Brethren, the scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David, concerning Judas who was guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was numbered among us, and was allotted his share in this ministry. (Now this man bought a field with the reward of his wickedness; and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their language Akel′dama, that is, Field of Blood.) For it is written in the book of Psalms,

‘Let his habitation become desolate, and let there be no one to live in it’;

and

‘His office let another take.’

So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.” And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsab′bas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthi′as. And they prayed and said, “Lord, who knowest the hearts of all men, show which one of these two thou hast chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside, to go to his own place.” And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthi′as; and he was enrolled with the eleven apostles.

It may be interesting to note that, even though the women were present, including Mary the Mother of God, none of them was chosen to fill Judas' former place among the Apostolic College. The Apostles were merely continuing the practice given them by the Lord Jesus Christ. Dare we try to make improvements to the design of Holy Orders established by the Lord?

"(T)he lot fell upon Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles."

Furthermore, it may be interesting to note that, once the Apostolic College was restored to twelve, the Holy Spirit descended. A sign of God's approval?

Acts of the Apostles 2 Douay-Rheims 1899

And when the days of the Pentecost were accomplished, they were all together in one place: And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them: And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they began to speak with divers tongues, according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak.