I'm Father Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars the Renewal and this is the Rosary in a Year podcast where through prayer and meditation the rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is day 26. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a Year visit ascensionpress.com forward slash rosary in a year or text R-I-Y to 33-777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast in the Ascension app, there's special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full Rosary with myself and other friars. On behalf of myself and the whole team here at Ascension we wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped support this podcast financially. Your support is so appreciated and helps us to reach as many people as possible and if you haven't already please consider supporting us at ascensionpress.com forward slash support. On the third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead. Let's continue to build on this home theme that we talked about yesterday. This is from John chapter 14 verse 1 and following. Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. For not so what I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you. When I go and prepare a place for you I will come again and will take you to myself that where I am you may be also and you know the way where I am going. And I've said before and I'll say again I love doing this and I love this opportunity to really just have some space of intentional prayer with these basic truths and articles of our faith and I love what God is doing and the new insights etc. that he's offering to me and that I'm hoping to offer to you and I love this theme of home and this reminder that the Lord has prepared a place for us. There's a room for us in the Father's house. And what's true of this mystery of the ascension is that in some way like we celebrate this idea of already but not yet in some way the room is already ours. We're already there because Christ is there. Jesus has ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. We could say that Jesus has returned and is enthroned in his home in the Father's house in the Father's heart. And you and I too insofar as we are baptized in him already sharing this truth and in this victory. And I'm going to offer some words from Pope Benedict 16th. I love Pope Benedict 16th and I love his reflections on some of these truths of our faith. It's a bit of a longer reading but I think it's worth it. This is from a homily. In Christ ascended into heaven the human being has entered into intimacy with God in a new and unheard of way. Man henceforth finds room in God forever. The room in the Father's house is room in God in Jesus Christ ascended into heaven and seated at the right hand of the Father. Those were my words. Heaven. This is Pope Benedict heaven. This word heaven does not indicate a place above the stars but something far more daring and sublime. Far more daring and sublime. It indicates Christ himself. The divine person who welcomes humanity fully and forever. The one in whom God and man are inseparably united forever. Man's being in God. This is heaven. What is heaven? What is our home? What is the room? It's our being in God in Jesus Christ through baptism. This is what Pope Benedict says. When we draw close to heaven indeed we enter heaven to the extent that we draw close to Jesus and enter into communion with him. For this reason today's solemnity of the ascension invites us to be in profound communion with the dead and risen Jesus. We are truly present in the life of each one of us. Let's say this again. We enter heaven. We already are in our room in the Father's house and our Father's heart to the extent that we draw close to Jesus and enter into communion with him. So here's this already. Are we already in communion with Jesus? Absolutely yes. By baptism, by fidelity, by self-evific grace. And I'm going to share a couple of analogies and these are really weak analogies. There's just no analogies for these articles of our faith. They're always going to limp. But it's a little bit like Jesus just bought a huge mansion, but we're all going to live with him. And so we're driving there and we're just pulling up the driveway. But you're like FaceTiming Jesus or somebody who's not driving me the passengers FaceTiming Jesus and you already are getting the tour and you're seeing the whole house and you're already taking it in, already appreciating it. You can already see your room and the setup and the view and it's like, it's already there. It's already purchased. It's already prepared. It's already got your name on the door and you're already in a certain sense like experiencing it as you're in relation to Jesus. You're in this communication with Jesus. There's a part that's totally not fulfilled. And you know, maybe like you're in the car and it's been a long car ride and you got to go to the bathroom and maybe you're a little bit annoyed with somebody else in the car and your legs are a little bit stiff. There's still some suffering. There's still some pain involved. It's not comfortable. But by seeing it, like this hope, this confidence, this experience of already, even though it's not yet, it fills us and it makes us like, okay, we're almost there. We're almost there. We got this. And again, this is a really poor analogy. But I think this is maybe helpful in communion with Jesus, in relationship with Jesus, in our conversation with Jesus, in our following with Jesus. We already draw close to heaven. We already experience a foretaste of heaven here and now. And this is a real thing. And yes, we still continue our journey in the valley of tears and there's the aches and the pains and the sufferings. But part of the mystery of the Ascension reminds us that these things are passing. Pain and suffering, physical suffering does not have the last word. Sickness does not have the last word. Sadness does not have the last word. Death does not have the last word. What does have the last word is that Jesus Christ is risen. He is ascended to the Father and He's already prepared a place for us. We already have a place with Jesus in His home, in His heart, in the Father's house. And as we continue to grow into communion and to remain in communion with Jesus Christ, already now with Him, already we draw close to heaven and heaven draws close to us. So practically, what do we do with this today? I'm just going to invite you to, with a prayer of your imagination, to talk to Jesus, to face time Jesus. And again, I'm sorry, I know it's kind of corny, but hey, Jesus, tell us about the Father's house. You know what it was to suffer. You know what it was to walk in this valley of tears. Tell us about what it's like in the Father's house. Tell us what you have prepared for us. Remind me that it's all worth it. Remind me that the pain and the suffering are passing and they will not have the last word, but that which is eternal in you, Jesus, and with you, Jesus, is the joy of residing with you in the Father's house and in the Father's heart. Please help me today with you to already rejoice in your victory. Let us pray in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Hail Mary full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners. Now and at the hour of our death, amen. Hail Mary full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners. Now and at the hour of our death, amen. Hail Mary full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners. Now and at the hour of our death, amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be. Without end, amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. All right. Thanks everybody. Thanks again for joining me and praying with me today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you tomorrow. Poco a poco friends. All right. God bless y'all.
