In the providence of God, the eternal design of the Father, the hour came for Christ to depart. He would leave his Apostles, with his Mother Mary, but only after he had given them instructions. The Apostles had a mission to perform and these instructions were the faithful expression of the Father’s will:
Go and Preach!
The Apostles had to wait for the Holy Spirit, the gift of the Father to empower them to preach. It is clear that the source of the Apostles’ strength is the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who guides the Church in the way of Truth. The Gospel preaches the power of God, not the power of human wisdom or strength, which is a problem today
The Apostles were instructed to teach – to proclaim the Good News. They were to baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Like Jesus, they were to speak explicitly about the Kingdom of God and salvation. The Apostles were to give witness to Christ to the ends of the earth. The early Church clearly understood these instructions and the missionary era began. This missionary era cannot end until the same Jesus, who went up to heaven comes back again. This is our hope that what happened at the Ascension will happen again and we too will be taken up, perfect by grace.
The preaching of Jesus became a treasure for the Church to guard and to proclaim, to meditate on and to thrive. At the same time, the Holy Spirit implanted in the Church an apostolic charism, to keep the Scriptures intact. Through his words, Jesus lives in his Church as He tells us: “I am with you always.”
We the Church, conscious of our need for fidelity to the preaching of Jesus, uphold Truth, the source of our faith. Today more than ever, the teaching of God’s word in all its purity and integrity, with all its exigencies and in all its power, is needed.
The word of God – and the word of God alone,
is the basis for all preaching and living.
Great concern exists: that the preaching of the Scriptures and Tradition be effectively guarded from confusion and taught with clarity because Jesus took his place.
After the humiliation of his passion and death, Jesus took his place at the right-hand of God; He entered heaven as our Head. Whereupon, Leo the Great preaches,
The glory of the Head became the hope of the body.
Jesus now lives for ever to intercede for us with the Father and at the same time, from his throne of glory, Jesus sends out to the whole Church a message of hope, a call to holiness.
Because of Christ’s merits, because of his intercession with the Father, we are able to attain union and holiness of life, in him.