21 May 2023
The Ascension of the Lord
You are accustomed to glorifying God, at least in Church on Sunday. “Glory to God in the highest,” you say. Gloria in excelsis Deo. And if you are familiar with my religious order, you know how much we Jesuits strive for the greater glory of God, ad maiorem Dei gloriam.
You are also accustomed to humbling yourself, at least in Church on Sunday. “Lord, I am not worthy,” you say. Domine non sum dignus. Maybe you also know how Jesuits strive for humility, for example, by frequent examinations of conscience.
So, glorify God and humble yourself. Nevertheless, don’t forget to ask for your very own glory, too, as Jesus, himself, did. In his last supper discourse, he prayed “Now glorify me, Father, with you.” Et nunc clarifica me tu, Pater, apud temetipsum. Kαὶ νῦν δόξασόν με σύ, πάτερ, παρὰ σεαυτῷ. So did our savior speak. Mutatis mutandis, so should you. The glory you seek for yourself is nothing other than being lifted up above this fallen world and into heaven where you may see God, face to face. Others may care nothing for such glory, remaining wholly in this world, in this stew, floating along in its currents, never lifting their head ups, never looking to the eternal. Be warned: if, like them, you let your gaze and your heart sink into this world, you will all perish together. As St. Ignatius put it in his Spiritual Exercises, apart from the salvation of Jesus Christ, all human beings are going down to hell (SpEx 102).
Ask, therefore, for the savior to lift you up. Sursum corda. When St. Peter, trying to walk on water, began to sink, he prayed “Lord, save me” (Matt 14:30). In other words, he asked to be lifted up out of the mess that he was in, and to be brought closer to Jesus Christ. That is a glory to which every sinner may aspire.