Mark 16:15-20 Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Then Jesus told them, ?Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation. The one who believes it and is baptized will be saved. The one who refuses to believe it will be condemned. ?Signs such as these will accompany those who have professed their faith: in my name they will expel demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will be able to handle poisonous snakes; if they drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; and the sick upon whom they lay their hands will recover.? Then after speaking to them, Jesus was taken up into heaven and was seated at God?s right hand. The disciples went forth and preached everywhere. Christ worked with them and confirmed their message through the signs that accompanied them. Homily for 01 June 2003 Rev. Frank Baiocchi A saintly woman died and went straight to heaven. She had been born in Wisconsin and baptized and then raised in the Lutheran church. This good woman was greeted at the pearly gates by an awesome-looking angel who promptly took her on a grand tour of heaven. The tour began in a large hallway, having golden doors on each side. As they approached the first door, the sound of gospel music and handclapping was so loud that the door shook. ?Inside that door are the Baptists,? the angel said. ?They?re loud, and God loves them.? Continuing down the hallway, the awesome angel and the woman arrived at another door. Here it was so quiet inside that even when they put their ears against the door, they still couldn?t hear much.. ?Those are the Quakers,? the angel said. ?They?re very silent, and God loves them.? Te tour continued, with elaborate rooms designated for Episcopalians and Methodists, for Muslims and Buddhists alike, all beloved by God. As the two arrived at the final door the angel asked the new saint to be quiet. ?But why?? she inquired. ?Who is inside this room?? The angel replied, ?This door is for the Catholics, they think they are the only ones here!? Today we celebrate the feast of Jesus? ascension into heaven. I?ve often considered this to be Jesus? personal homecoming. He had left his Parent God 33 years earlier when he was born in a Bethlehem stable; now he returns to the very home from which he came. Mission accomplished! Remember the story of the loving parent and the prodigal son? The son ran off with his inheritance money and squandered it. The money ran out. The parties were over. His fair-weathered friends left him, and he ended up living with the pigs ? a terrible scandal for a nice Jewish boy. What?s more, he was so hungry and down on his luck that even the slop being fed to the pigs was looking pretty good. So, feeling guilty and sorry, the prodigal son decided it was time to go home to see if he might be taken back as a hired hand. His parent, though, had never stopped hoping for the son?s return. Seeing the son in the distance, the parent ran out to meet him, hugged him, welcomed him home and threw a real party to celebrate his homecoming! The wayward son quickly discovered he still had an honored place at the family table and in the family circle. What a homecoming that was! We are all like that prodigal child. We too have squandered our inheritance, neglecting the graced opportunities to become the best we can be, misusing our God-given talents by serving ourselves rather than serving others. Yet we shouldn?t lose hope over this because, just like the prodigal child, God still loves us! Through it all, God continues to love us! For all of us, God is our home, and our hearts remain restless until we find our home in God. In today?s Gospel, Jesus says, those who believe in the Good News and are baptized will be saved. That?s what baptism does. Because of the faith of her parents, Chris and Amy, Julia Lynn is baptized today. God is placing that seed of faith in her tiny heart, and her tiny heart thus expands and becomes God?s home on earth and will eventually lead to her own ascension, her own heavenly homecoming. But there is one further point. God is not simply making a home for Julia and for us in heaven; but by the way we choose to live our lives, we are making a home for God here on earth! To those who love God, Jesus declares, he will send the Spirit, the Sanctifier, who will come live with us and in us. Then Jesus adds, ?Those who love me will keep my word, and my heavenly Parent will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.? Radical stuff, this homecoming business, and with a surprising twist! We don?t have to wait till we die to be at home with God. By living our lives as Jesus taught us, God comes to us and makes a home in our hearts! We literally have God?s word on that! Today we celebrate Jesus? homecoming. Jesus returns to his Parent God and sits in the place of honor at the family table. We need to remember homecoming is intended for all of us. We have a loving God whose deepest longing is that each one of us prodigal children, whatever our life circumstances, comes home. There is a place at that heavenly banquet for each of us ? a place of welcome, of healing, of forgiveness and unimaginable joy.