Today, the departing Jesus does not make his way to some distant star. He enters into communion of power and life with the living God, into God’s dominion over space.

Hence, he has not ‘gone away’, but now and forever, by God’s own power he is present with us and for us. In the farewell discourses of Saint John's Gospel, this is exactly what Jesus says to his disciples: “I go away, and I will come to you”. These words sum up beautifully what is so special about Jesus' “going away”, which is also his “coming”, and at the same time they explain the mystery of the Cross, the Resurrection, and the Ascension. His going away is in this sense a coming, a new form of closeness, of continuing presence, which for John, too, is linked with “joy”.

—Because Jesus is with the Father, he has not gone away but remains close to us. Now He is no longer in one particular place, but He is present and accessible to all of us.