In the mystery of the Ascension which we as the Church will celebrate in the coming days, Jesus no longer walks among us in the same manner as he did before. No wonder we hear in today’s Gospel that grief filled the hearts of the disciples when Jesus told them, “I am going to the one who sent me” (John 16:6). It is a loss not to be able to sit down next to the Lord, the Son of God incarnate, and talk with him face-to-face; it is a loss not to have him personally lead and guide us through the difficulties of life. If we know the profound gift and joy of Jesus’ presence, how could we not weep in his absence?
And yet: our Lord says, “It is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you” (John 16:7). Somehow, paradoxically, it is better for us that Jesus is no longer here among us in the same way as he was before! For now he has given us the Spirit, the Spirit whose coming we will soon celebrate at Pentecost. And it is through the Spirit’s power that we can still speak with the Lord face-to-face in our brothers and sisters; it is through the Spirit that the Lord does personally lead us through the difficulties of life. This reality can only be perceived through faith, by the gift of the Spirit. If we struggle to see it today, then let us ask the Spirit to renew his presence in our hearts.