email : Webview : A Time to Laugh and Dance

In my last newsletter, I promised that we would celebrate the goodness of this school year. As the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, there is a time to laugh and dance. This year we will celebrate—through our exhaustion, despite disappointment, and even amidst pain and death. We celebrate the accomplishments of our students and colleagues during what has been an unprecedented school year.

This cacophony of feelings reminds me of where we stand in the liturgical year. Soon we will celebrate Ascension Day and Pentecost Sunday. When we left the disciples at Easter, they were huddled in a locked room, confused by the events of Good Friday and the mystery of the empty tomb. However, at the Ascension, 40 days post-resurrection, we witness a very different response as the disciples observe Jesus ascending to heaven:

Then Jesus led them to Bethany, and lifting his hands to heaven, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up to heaven. They worshipped him and then returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy. And they spent all of their time in the Temple praising God. (Luke 24: 50-53)

Likewise, they waited on the Holy Spirit until Pentecost when Peter reminds representatives of the nations to recall Psalm 16:8-11:

I know the Lord is always with me,
I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.
No wonder my heart is filled with joy, and my mouth shouts his praises!
My body rests in hope.
For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.
You have shown me the way of life, and you will give me wonderful joy in your presence.

Joy awaited is often joy multiplied. Many of us missed normal year-end celebrations last year. . . . may you be filled with joy as you celebrate the accomplishments of this challenging school year. And may you find sources of fun and renewal this summer!

With gratitude for you and your work,

Erik Ellefsen
CACE Senior Fellow

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