They Were Continually in the Temple
“For the Souls in Purgatory – Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord”
Luke 24:52-53
They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple praising God.
Grace Prayed For
Lord, teach us the discipline of waiting — not anxious waiting, but attentive, prayerful waiting that is already a form of participation in what you are about to do.
Reflection
Great joy. This is surprising, given the circumstance. The disciples have just watched Jesus leave — taken from their sight by a cloud. One would expect grief, confusion, perhaps the same despondency that followed the crucifixion. Instead: great joy and continual praise.
The difference, presumably, is what they now understand. They are not watching the story end. They are watching a preparation. They have been promised the Spirit. They have been given a mission. They have seen the Risen Lord with their own eyes and touched him and eaten with him. They know that death is not the end and that the one they love has not abandoned them.
So they return to Jerusalem — to the city where everything terrible happened — with great joy. And they go to the temple, not to hide, not to mourn, but to praise.
There is a discipline here for our own periods of waiting. Between the Ascension and Pentecost there are ten days. Ten days of what must have been a peculiar in-between — the familiar world still in place, the great transformation promised but not yet arrived. How do you spend such a time?
The disciples spent it in prayer and praise. Not striving to produce the Spirit by their own effort, but creating the conditions of receptivity through worship and community. They were together (Acts 1:14 tells us this), and they were praying.
The waiting seasons of our lives — the periods between what has happened and what we sense is coming — are not empty. They are preparatory. What we do with them matters.
Praise is the posture of readiness. Pray your way toward the coming fire.
When Time Allows Reflect on the Posts in Library and Musings
Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the drafting of this Post