Then just this week another story from a private encounter was told publicly for the first time. Right before Pope Benedict visited with the youth and seminarians of the nation at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Dunwoodie, he made a visit to the Jesuit infirmary at Fordham University. He went to see the only American Cardinal who is not a bishop: Avery Cardinal Dulles, of the Society of Jesus.
Cardinal Dulles is almost 90 years old. He was born in 1918, the great-grandson and son of US Secretaries of State – in fact, Dulles Airport in Washington DC is named for his father. Born a Presbyterian, Avery Dulles entered the Catholic Church in 1940, and after serving in the Navy during World War II he entered the Jesuits and was ordained a priest in 1956.
Dulles became one of the most brilliant and prolific theologians in the history of the Catholic Church in America. And in honor of his important contributions to theological studies, Pope John Paul II elevated him to the College of Cardinals in 2001.
Sadly, this brilliant and remarkable scholar and teacher is now suffering from the effects of post-polio syndrome. Though his mind is as active and brilliant as it ever was, his muscles continue to atrophy: he is no longer able to walk, and now is unable even to speak.
As a result, Cardinal Dulles was not able to attend the Papal events with the other Cardinals. But as a sign of esteem and affection, the Holy Father himself decided to go to the Cardinal’s infirmary for a private visit. While he was there, a Jesuit priest read a brief statement that Cardinal Dulles had written for the Pope. Within it, Cardinal Dulles had this to say about his own condition:
I couldn’t help but be struck by this story and this quote, not just because it is such a remarkable and heartwarming story, but also because what Cardinal Dulles had to say was focused on his body and on power – and, in a certain sense, today’s feast of the Ascension is about these very two things: our bodies, and power.
The Ascension is about our bodies, because forty days after His Resurrection from the dead, Jesus ascended into heaven in His body!
We have spent the past forty days listening to the stories of Jesus’ Resurrection appearances, and all of them in some way make clear that this Risen Jesus is the same Jesus who the disciples had known in Galilee – the same Jesus who had been crucified and buried. Jesus shows the Apostles his wounds, and he eats fish in front of them, and Mary Magdalene grabs his feet. The Incarnation is real, and Jesus, the Word made flesh is risen in His body!!
And now, on the feast of the Ascension, Jesus ascends into Heaven in His body. So that just as the Resurrection of Jesus gives us the hope of life after death, so too His Ascension gives us the hope of bodily life in Heaven. Where Jesus has gone, we too will follow: with a resurrected, glorified body we will reign with Him in Heaven.
Do we think about our bodies in this way? Do we glory in the miracle of our bodily existence, and do we respect our own bodies in a way that reflects our belief in the Resurrection of the body?
If we’re honest, I think we’re more often dissatisfied or frustrated by our bodies. We often experience our bodies as a limitation or as a constant source of wants, needs, even temptations. For example, we can be dissatisfied with our physical appearance. Or, as we age, or injure ourselves in some way, we can be frustrated by our loss of mobility. Especially when we are sick, we can feel trapped by our flesh and bones. And when we are hungry or tired we think of our bodies as merely one more thing on our list of things to worry about.
I think Cardinal Dulles had it right. He said, paraphrasing St. Paul: “If the Lord now calls me to a period of weakness, I know that His power can be made perfect in infirmity.” Power is made perfect in weakness.
You see, the power of Christ is not the power of this world. The power that raised Christ from the dead, and seated Him at God’s right hand in Heaven, and put all things under His feet is not the power of armies, or weapons, or violence, or muscles.
The power of Christ is that, “though He was in the form of God, He did not deem equality with God something to be grasped at; rather He emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave and accepting even death, death on a Cross.”
Friends, the power we receive through Christ is a power made perfect in weakness. It is a power that proves its strength by emptying itself in self-sacrificing love. That, is the power that propelled the Apostles to every corner of the world, proclaiming the Gospel, giving even their blood for the growth of the Faith.
That is the power that drove Mother Theresa into the slums of Calcutta, reverencing the bodies of even the most destitute, disfigured and forgotten. That is the power that let Pope John Paul II, and now Cardinal Dulles, see even in their infirmity and death an opportunity to praise and proclaim Jesus Christ.
Today we celebrate the fact that at the Ascension our human flesh, our human nature, rose with Christ to a dignity above all heavenly creatures: to the glorious throne of God.
And we are reminded that this glory and power we possess as members of His Body, could only have been made perfect in weakness.
“Suffering and diminishment are not the greatest of evils, but are normal ingredients in life, especially in old age. They are to be accepted as elements of a full human existence. As I become increasingly paralyzed and unable to speak, I can identify with the many paralytics and mute persons in the Gospels, grateful for the loving and skillful care I receive and for the hope of everlasting life in Christ. If the Lord now calls me to a period of weakness, I know that His power can be made perfect in infirmity. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
The Ascension is about our bodies, because forty days after His Resurrection from the dead, Jesus ascended into heaven in His body!
We have spent the past forty days listening to the stories of Jesus’ Resurrection appearances, and all of them in some way make clear that this Risen Jesus is the same Jesus who the disciples had known in Galilee – the same Jesus who had been crucified and buried. Jesus shows the Apostles his wounds, and he eats fish in front of them, and Mary Magdalene grabs his feet. The Incarnation is real, and Jesus, the Word made flesh is risen in His body!!
And now, on the feast of the Ascension, Jesus ascends into Heaven in His body. So that just as the Resurrection of Jesus gives us the hope of life after death, so too His Ascension gives us the hope of bodily life in Heaven. Where Jesus has gone, we too will follow: with a resurrected, glorified body we will reign with Him in Heaven.
Do we think about our bodies in this way? Do we glory in the miracle of our bodily existence, and do we respect our own bodies in a way that reflects our belief in the Resurrection of the body?
If we’re honest, I think we’re more often dissatisfied or frustrated by our bodies. We often experience our bodies as a limitation or as a constant source of wants, needs, even temptations. For example, we can be dissatisfied with our physical appearance. Or, as we age, or injure ourselves in some way, we can be frustrated by our loss of mobility. Especially when we are sick, we can feel trapped by our flesh and bones. And when we are hungry or tired we think of our bodies as merely one more thing on our list of things to worry about.
But the Ascension makes us think differently about our bodies – and I think it does so by making us think differently about power.
Power isn’t a particularly strong theme in the Christian Scriptures, and yet it appears in all three of our readings today. In the Gospel, Jesus Himself tells His Apostles that “all power in Heaven and earth has been given to Him.” Appropriately enough, in today’s Psalm we sang a hymn of praise to God as He mounts His throne of power in Heaven. And then in the second reading, St. Paul tells the Ephesians that God has put all powers and authority beneath Jesus’ feet, and has made Him head over all things.
But just as the Resurrection and Ascension don’t just happen to Jesus, they happen to us, so too, Jesus’ power isn’t just for Him. Jesus Himself tells the Apostles, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth.” St. Paul, too, prays for the Ephesians that the “eyes of their hearts be enlightened, that they may know the surpassing greatness of His power for us who believe.”
So, do you feel powerful?! Well, hopefully sometimes. But as I said, I think most of the time we feel the weakness of our bodies, and even more the weakness of our sins. How, then, do we reconcile what we so often feel about ourselves with the truth of Christ’s promise to give us His power?
So, do you feel powerful?! Well, hopefully sometimes. But as I said, I think most of the time we feel the weakness of our bodies, and even more the weakness of our sins. How, then, do we reconcile what we so often feel about ourselves with the truth of Christ’s promise to give us His power?
I think Cardinal Dulles had it right. He said, paraphrasing St. Paul: “If the Lord now calls me to a period of weakness, I know that His power can be made perfect in infirmity.” Power is made perfect in weakness.
You see, the power of Christ is not the power of this world. The power that raised Christ from the dead, and seated Him at God’s right hand in Heaven, and put all things under His feet is not the power of armies, or weapons, or violence, or muscles.
The power of Christ is that, “though He was in the form of God, He did not deem equality with God something to be grasped at; rather He emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave and accepting even death, death on a Cross.”
Friends, the power we receive through Christ is a power made perfect in weakness. It is a power that proves its strength by emptying itself in self-sacrificing love. That, is the power that propelled the Apostles to every corner of the world, proclaiming the Gospel, giving even their blood for the growth of the Faith.
That is the power that drove Mother Theresa into the slums of Calcutta, reverencing the bodies of even the most destitute, disfigured and forgotten. That is the power that let Pope John Paul II, and now Cardinal Dulles, see even in their infirmity and death an opportunity to praise and proclaim Jesus Christ.
Today we celebrate the fact that at the Ascension our human flesh, our human nature, rose with Christ to a dignity above all heavenly creatures: to the glorious throne of God.
And we are reminded that this glory and power we possess as members of His Body, could only have been made perfect in weakness.
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