Sh01blog
And
truly great and unspeakable was their cause for joy, when in the
sight of the holy multitude [i.e. at the Ascension], above the dignity of all heavenly
creatures, the Nature of mankind went up, to pass above the angels’
ranks and to rise beyond the archangels’ heights, and to have Its
uplifting limited by no elevation until, received to sit with the
Eternal Father, It should be associated on the throne with His
glory, to Whose Nature It was united in the Son.

Since then Christ’s
Ascension is our uplifting, and the hope of the Body is raised,
whither the glory of the Head has gone before, let us exult,
dearly-beloved, with worthy joy and delight in the loyal paying of
thanks. For today not only are we confirmed as possessors of
paradise, but have also in Christ penetrated the heights of heaven,
and have gained still greater things through Christ’s unspeakable
grace than we had lost through the devil’s malice. For us, whom our
virulent enemy had driven out from the bliss of our first abode, the
Son of God has made members of Himself and placed at the right hand
of the Father, with Whom He lives and reigns in the unity of the
Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

Pope St. Leo the Great, On the Lord’s Ascension I:IV (Sermon 73)

Photo from Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, Euclid, Ohio; taken by Jonathan Bennett