Discussion Questions

First Reading

Acts 1:1-11

F1. “Then they prayed.” Do you pray before you make important choices? Would you feel comfortable “casting lots,” throwing dice, or flipping a coin after you pray? How would you make a final choice like the one they had to make?

F2. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This could be the definition of evangelization. Pope Francis says that Jesus himself is the model of evangelization. How important is listening to people’s needs in being a witness and evangelist for Christ?

Second Reading

Ephesians 1:17-23 or 4:1-13

S1. “God is love and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.” Whenever you experience true love, is God present? Can we find God in all true love? So does it work both ways: love of God leads to love of neighbor, and love of neighbor leads to love of God?

S2. “ … live in a manner worthy of the call you have received … ” If your call isn’t to be an evangelist or a pastor, what is it? Could it be to feed the hungry? To lead Eco-justice or Green Teams? Help people find jobs or housing?

Gospel

Mark 16:15-20

G1. Why does Pope Francis say Jesus remains forever with the disciples (and with us) even though he ascended into heaven? What is the second reason for our great joy or confidence?

God, the Son of God, descends and becomes man, takes our humanity and redeems it—he now ascends into heaven, taking our flesh with him. He is the first man who enters heaven, because Jesus is man, true man; he is God, true God; our flesh is in heaven and this gives us joy. Now a human body sits at the right hand of the Father for the first time, the body of Jesus, and in this mystery we each contemplate our own future destination.

This is not at all an abandonment; Jesus remains forever with the disciples—with us. He remains in prayer, because as man, he prays to the Father, and as God, man and God, he shows him his wounds, the wounds by which he has redeemed us. Jesus’ prayer is there, with our flesh: he is one of us, God-man, and he prays for us.

And this should give us confidence, or rather joy, great joy! And the second reason for joy is Jesus’ promise. He told us: “I will send you the Holy Spirit.”

Regina Caeli for the Ascension
Pope Francis, May 16, 2021

G2. Jesus said signs would accompany those who believed. Most of us will not be picking up serpents with our hands or drinking deadly things without being harmed. What kinds of signs might you see today when you or someone else proclaims the Gospel in some way? Crises (racial, environmental, trafficking) brought into the light? Voice for the voiceless? Change for the good?

Anne Osdieck

**From Saint Louis University