Although Christ ascended into heaven, he remains present in a new form through the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit in order to accompany and guide people in their daily lives, Pope Francis said. Because, "by ourselves, without Jesus, we can't do anything," he said at his Regina Coeli address to those gathered in St. Peter's Square on June 1, the day the feast of the Ascension was celebrated in Italy and many other countries. The feast day comes 40 days after Easter and commemorates Jesus' ascension into heaven to be seated at the right hand of God. But some countries, like Italy, observe the feast day the following Sunday. Pope Francis said Jesus returns to heaven to open the way and "show us that the destination of our journey is the Father." But Jesus still "remains present and operates in human history with the power and gifts of his Spirit; he is by the side of each one of us; even if we don't see him with our eyes," he said.
The spiritual climax of the Gospel of John, as Father John Waiss points out, occurs at the foot of the Cross, where Jesus utters his parting words: “Woman, behold, your son!” and “Behold your mother!” (John 19:26-27). While these words were addressed to the Apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, the Church has long understood this moment as a universal adoption. To truly image Christ, we must share in His parentage; if we embrace God as our spiritual Father but reject Mary as our mother, we treat Christ as a half-brother rather than our "firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29). As Origen noted as early as the third century, the profound depths of the Gospel are only accessible to those who, like John, rest their heads on Jesus’ breast and receive Mary into their own homes. This maternal role is deeply rooted in biblical typology, positioning Mary as the fulfillment of the great mothers of the Old Covenant. She is the New Eve , the mother of all the living according ...