The Feast of the Ascension is a vision of the future and an act of hope. The forces hostile to God and to true humanity have by no means yet been fully overcome. The essential blow has been struck in the Paschal victory of Jesus but his messianic work continues as he breathes his Spirit into the Church that carries on his mission. What the Church must understand – what the Ascension assures her – is that accompanying all her labour and suffering is the victory of her risen Lord, who now stands at the right hand of God interceding on behalf of all. It is the feast that celebrates the hope that his triumph will ultimately be ours as well.