Jesus has ascended. The Apostles watched as He departed from their presence and returned to the Father, but rather than standing and looking at the sky, lamenting this departure, they returned to Jerusalem, as we heard in our first reading, collectively gathered in the upper room, and there, together, they prayed.

No longer do they seem like the Apostles they once were, hesitant, doubting what they have seen, confused as to what to do, their lives are now simply governed by prayer, they recognize its power and it instills within them patience as they wait, once again, only this time for the coming of the Holy Spirit, the fulfillment of the promise made by Christ.

And, this is how the infant church began, its foundation was a spiritual foundation and from that foundation, they learned to wait, they learned to anticipate the coming of the Holy Spirit, so that the Church grew and became what it is today.

That is why, like the Apostles, we, too, are called to do the same, to pray, not just for ourselves, but for each other, for this church, for the entire church and to come together not just on Sundays but any day that we can, in order to, literally, meet each other in the midst of the Eucharist, to place those prayers before this altar and, in patience, anticipate the same indwelling of the Holy Spirit.   

So that, like the Apostles, we can have a deep and lasting prayer life, especially by following the model of she who was with the Apostles herself, she who stands as the example of prayer, Mary, the mother of Jesus, our Mother and patroness.

And, if, indeed, she stands as that model to follow, then our first reading shows us something very important, because this is the last time Mary will ever be mentioned in the Scriptures, and the last time we see her, the way we see her is deep in contemplation, quietly anticipating the presence of God.

There was a priest who encapsulated this well, he said: “This last portrait that Luke (the author of the Acts of the Apostles) paints of Mary is like the first portrait he painted of her in his Gospel. She is the disciple, he says, who is not paralyzed but who is waiting, praying, expecting that great things are going to happen. That is why, he says, we call her the “Mother of the Church.”

Indeed, it is Mary, above all, who shows us this proper way to pray and how to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit, but she also shows us something else as well, that is, how we are to receive the Holy Spirit when He comes.

For, like her, we must be willing to give ourselves completely, so completely, in fact, that our will becomes His Will, so that there is no difference between the two. That like her, our deep prayer life will allow us to be enveloped by the presence of God, completely overshadowed by the power of the Holy Spirit. In fact, this is why Mary is often called the spouse of the Holy Spirit, because she experienced this in greater depth and intimacy than we could ever know or imagine.

And, because of this, because of this example she leaves us, because of what she teaches us, because of what God has made her, it should be no surprise then that the last time we see her is, indeed, at prayer.

That is why over 11 years ago I turned to her to learn this model of prayer, to let her lead me to Christ, to let her teach me the ways in which to receive the Holy Spirit in my own life.

And, that is why 11 years ago I received the grace of the Holy Spirit in a powerful way as I prostrated myself upon the floor, giving my life to the Church, when I was ordained a priest. And while there were great challenges, especially in terms of my health, it was by turning to Mary, by learning to trust in the Holy Spirit, and by being lifted up by the countless prayers of others, that I can still stand here today.

I guess it was fitting that I chose for my ordination card, the Mother of Sorrows, and while I thought I knew why I did that, it turns out, it wasn’t just because I found her at the foot of the Cross, it is because I learned to suffer like her and like her son.

Therefore, I invite everyone today to look to the example of these Apostles to the example of this humble woman, our Mother and model of holiness, the spouse of the Holy Spirit, that she may teach us how to pray, both for ourselves and one another, so that we may live in true humility and quietly anticipate those great things that, if we allow Him, God wishes to do, from that altar, from that tabernacle and throughout the entirety of our lives.