An adjective meaning 'away from home' or 'gone on a journey to a foreign country.' Used in Mark 13:34 in the parable of the absent master who leaves servants in charge until he returns.
The absent master parable describes the interval between Christ's Ascension and return. This is not absence in the sense of neglect -- Jesus promised 'I am with you always' (Matthew 28:20) -- but absence in visible, bodily presence. Faithful stewardship in the interval is the church's calling. The return is certain.