Tonight the Church stands looking at a King.
Not a king sat on a throne in London.
Not a king guarded by soldiers.
Not a king voted in or pushed out.
Christ the King.
Risen from the dead.
Ascended into heaven.
Reigning now.
That is what the Ascension is.
And if we miss that, we miss the feast entirely.
The apostles stand on the mountain watching Him go.
And St Luke tells us: “He was lifted up.”
Not disappearing. Not vanishing. Ascending.
He is not escaping the world.
He is taking our humanity into the glory of God.
Think about that properly.
A real human body—
the body born of Our Lady,
the body nailed to the Cross,
the body that still carries the wounds—is now enthroned in heaven.
Human nature sits at the right hand of the Father.
That has never happened before.
One of us is there.
And then comes the cloud.
Not a weather effect.
In Scripture, the cloud means God is present.
The cloud covered Sinai.
The cloud filled the Temple.
Now the cloud receives Christ.
Why?
Because this is a coronation.
The Son returns to the Father in glory.
The King takes His throne.
And then the angels ask the apostles something almost sharp:
“Why are you standing there looking into heaven?”
In other words: Don’t just stand there staring.
The mission begins now.
Because the Church cannot stay stood on the hillside.
Christ reigns—and now the world must hear it.
Then the Gospel strikes like thunder:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”
All authority.
Not some. Not spiritual authority only. All.
Kings answer to Him.
Governments answer to Him.
Nations answer to Him.
Whether they admit it or not.
Christ reigns now.
Not later.
Now.
And we badly need reminding of that.
Because the world looks a mess.
Truth gets mocked.
The Church gets attacked.
People live as though God does not matter.
And it can begin to feel as though darkness is winning.
But tonight the Church says: No. Christ reigns.
The risen Christ sits above every power on earth.
Above every politician.
Above every ideology.
Above every empire that thinks itself permanent.
All of them will pass.
Christ will not.
St Paul says exactly that: “He has put all things under his feet.”
Everything.
Sin.
Death.
Hell.
The victory is won.
The Cross looked like defeat.
But the Ascension reveals what the Cross really was: The triumph of the King.
And this changes how we live.
Because if Christ is King, then He does not get a corner of life.
He gets all of it.
Not Sunday only.
Everything.
Your work.
Your speech.
Your money.
Your family life.
Your choices when nobody sees.
Everything under His rule.
That is where the Catholic Faith becomes uncomfortable.
Because people are happy enough with a Christ who inspires.
A Christ who comforts.
But a King?
A King demands allegiance.
A King has authority.
A King says: Follow me.
Not: Pick and choose.
Not: Fit me around your life.
Follow me.
And then Christ gives the Church her mission:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.”
Notice what He does not say.
He does not say: “Go and keep quiet.”
He does not say: “Go and fit in.”
He says: Make disciples. Baptise. Teach.
The Church exists to bring souls under the kingship of Christ.
That is why she preaches. That is why she baptises.
That is why she cannot change the truth to suit the age.
Because the Church belongs to the King.
And then comes the promise: “I am with you always.”
That is the wonder of the Ascension.
Christ goes—and yet remains.
Not visible as before.
But truly present.
In His Church.
In His sacraments.
Above all in the Eucharist.
The King who reigns in heaven is here at the altar.
The same Christ who ascended into glory tonight
will place Himself into your mouths in Holy Communion.
And that means heaven is not far away.
At every Mass, heaven touches earth.
The veil parts.
The Church joins the worship of angels and saints.
And the King feeds His people with His own Body and Blood.
Now think again about the apostles stood on that mountain.
A little frightened.
Still not fully understanding.
Watching Christ disappear from sight.
And yet from that small group comes the Church that spread across the world.
Because Christ reigns.
Not Caesar.
Not Rome.
Not the powers of the age. Christ.
And the same is true now.
The Church may look weak at times.
People may mock the Faith.
The culture may drift further from God.
But none of that changes the truth proclaimed tonight: Jesus Christ is King.
And His Kingdom will outlast every kingdom on earth.
So the question tonight is very plain.
Who rules your life? Really.
What rules your decisions? Your habits? Your priorities?
Christ—or something else?
Because everyone serves a king.
The world. Money. Comfort. Pride. Or Christ.
And tonight the Church lifts her eyes to heaven and sees the truth:
The throne is occupied. The King reigns.
And He reigns not by force—but through the wounds of the Cross.
So do not live as though earthly things are ultimate.
Do not live as though this world is all there is. Lift your eyes higher.
Because human nature already sits at the right hand of the Father.
And where the Head has gone, the Body is meant to follow.
Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat.
That is our hope. That is our destiny.
And that is the glory of the Ascension:
Christ conquers, Christ reigns, Christ commands.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 