The Catholic Weekly 28 June 2020

8 28, June, 2020 F rom the archbishop catholicweekly.com.au We look up in prayer Heavenmay not be in the stars but gazing heavenwards - especially as we pray - is deeply symbolic W hy are you Jews gawking at the sky? Well, be- cause God told Abram, ‘Look up at the night sky, for your descendants shall be as many as the stars of heaven.’ Abram believed the Lord and this was reckoned to him as righ- teousness. (Gen 15:4-6) NGC 2359 is a helmet-shaped cosmic cloud with wing-like appendages popularly known to astronomers as Thor’s Helmet. God promisedAbram his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the night sky. IMAGE: NASA Why do the faithful, even great sport stars, often look upwards when they pray. PHOTO: RUBEN ORTEGA/WKIMEDIA COMMMONS, CC BY-SA 4.0 Moses also said, ‘Look up to the heavens, and see the sun and moon and stars, admire but do not worship them, for the Lord it was made these, and made you for his own people.’ (Deut 4:18-20) David, too, looked to the heavens and saw the angel of the Lord with his sword drawn over Jerusalem. He did penance, so God would spare his people from their plague. (1Chr 21:16-17). After the patriarchs it was the prophets’ turn to look to the heavens. They said, “Lis- ten, you that are deaf, and you that are blind, look up and see!” (Isa 42:18; Jer 3:2; Zech 5:5 etc.). Why are you Christians gawking at the sky? Well, because wise men looked up and saw a star ris- ing in the East, and followed it to Bethlehem, to the Infant King of the Jews. And shep- herds looked up to the heav- ens and saw the angel of the Lord, also pointing that way. And apostles looked up and saw Jesus transfigured (Mt 2:1-12; 17:1-8; Mk 9:2-8; Lk 2:8-13; 9:28-36). Jesus, too, looked up to heaven, and sighed a deep sigh, when He said to a deaf-mute, ‘Ephphatha – be opened’ and to a dead friend ‘Lazarus, come out!’ (Mk 7:34; Jn 11:38-44) And, on the night before He suffered, Jesus took bread in His holy and venerable hands, and with eyes raised to heav- en, to His almighty Father, giv- ing Him thanks, He said the blessing, broke the Bread and gave it to His disciples… (Ro- man Canon; Mt 14:19; 26:26; Mk 6:41; 14:22; Lk 9:16 22:19- 20; 1Cor 11:23-25) Which is why Christian priests to this day raise their eyes to heaven at the conse- cration. And why the faithful, even great sport stars, often look upwards when they pray. ‘Why are you men fromGal- ilee standing there gawking at the sky?’ the angels asked (Acts 1:1-11) And still we stare. Is it just nostalgia? In a sense, yes. St Thomas Aqui- nas teaches that the history of salvation is essentially one of God’s exitus and reditus , His comings and goings, especial- ly His coming in Christ Jesus to dwell among men before returning to the right hand of the Father. However sad it was for those left behind, the Ascension celebrates a homecoming for Jesus (Jn 16:5,10,17,28; 17:11,13; 20:17). As His mission began with kings and shepherds look- ing up to the skies, it comes now full circle with new-made shepherds gaping upwards. People gawking at the heav- ens bookend the Gospel. Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP