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TheAscension of Jesus (anglicized from theVulgateLatin:ascensio Iesu,lit. 'ascent of Jesus') is theChristian andIslamic belief thatJesusascended to Heaven. Christian doctrine, as reflected in the majorChristian creeds and confessional statements, holds that Jesus ascended after hisresurrection, where he wasexalted as Lord andChrist,[1][2]sitting at theright hand of God.[3]Islamic doctrine holds that Jesus directly ascended to heaven without dying or resurrecting.
The Gospels and other New Testament writings imply resurrection and exaltation as a single event.[4][5] The ascension is "more assumed than described," and onlyLuke and Acts contain direct accounts of it,[6] but with different chronologies.[note 1]
InChristian art, the ascending Jesus is often shown blessing an earthly group below him, signifying the entire Church.[9] TheFeast of the Ascension is celebrated on the 40th day ofEaster, always a Thursday;[3] some Orthodox traditions have a different calendar up to a month later than in the Western tradition. TheLutheran Churches and theAnglican Communion continue to observe the Feast of the Ascension.[10] CertainNonconformist churches, such as thePlymouth Brethren, do not observe the feast.[11][12]
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Although the ascension is an important article of faith in Christianity, only Luke and Acts contain direct accounts of it. In the shorter ending of Mark, in Matthew, and in John, it is only implied or alluded to.[6] The Gospels do not picture resurrection and ascension as clearly separated in time.[8] Other New Testament writings also imply resurrection and exaltation as a single event.[8]
Various epistles (Romans 8:34,Ephesians 1:19–20,Colossians 3:1,Philippians 2:9–11,1 Timothy 3:16, and1 Peter 3:21–22) refer to an ascension without specifying details, seeming, likeLuke–Acts andJohn, to equate it with the post-resurrection "exaltation" of Jesus to the right hand of God.[13]
The ascension is detailed in both Luke and Acts, a pair of works ascribed to the same author,Luke the Evangelist:[14][7]
Luke and Acts appear to describe the same event but present quite different chronologies, the gospel placing it on the same day as the resurrection and Acts forty days afterwards;[16] various proposals have been put forward to resolve the contradiction, but none have been found satisfactory.[17] According to Dunn, the author of Acts separated the resurrection and ascension to put a limit on the number of resurrection appearances,[18] effectively excluding Paul's conversion experience from thebona fide resurrection appearances.[8] Zwiep argues that Jesus was originally believed to have beenexalted with his ascension to heaven and seated at the right hand of God with his resurrection[5] until the late first century where he argues the exaltation had been separated from the resurrection, and moved to a final ascension into heaven after his appearances on earth.[5] Other scholars note that the biblical authors tended to conflate or compress different events and narrate them as one which was a literary theme seen in other ancient biographies to improve the narrative flow. Such scholars caution against a strictly chronological reading.[19][20]
John's Gospel has three references to ascension in Jesus' own words: "No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man" (John 3:13); "What if you [the disciples] were to see the Son of Man ascending where he was before?" (John 6:62); and to Mary Magdalene after his resurrection, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father..." (John 20:17).[7] In the first and second Jesus is claiming to be the apocalyptic "one like a Son of Man" ofDaniel 7;[21] the last has mystified commentators – why should Mary be prohibited from touching the risen but not yet ascended Christ, while Thomas is later invited to do so?[22]
Thelonger ending ofMark describes an ascension, but is a later addition to the original version of that gospel.[23]
Ascension stories were fairly common around the time of Jesus and the evangelists,[24] signifying the deification of a noteworthy person (usually a Roman Emperor), and in Judaism as an indication of divine approval.[25] Another function of heavenly ascent was as a mode of divine revelation reflected in Greco-Roman, early Jewish, and early Christian literary sources, in which particular individuals with prophetic or revelatory gifts are said to have experienced a heavenly journey during which they learned cosmic and divine secrets.[25]
Figures familiar to Jews would have includedEnoch (from theBook of Genesis and a popular non-Biblical work called1 Enoch); the 5th-century sageEzra;Baruch the companion of the prophetJeremiah (from a work called2 Baruch, in which Baruch is promised he will ascend to heaven after forty days);Levi the ancestor of priests; theTeacher of Righteousness from theQumran community; the prophetElijah (from2 Kings);Moses, who was deified on entering heaven; and the children ofJob, who according to theTestament of Job ascended heaven following theirresurrection from the dead.[26][27]
Non-Jewish readers would have been familiar with the case of the emperorAugustus, whose ascent was witnessed by Senators;Romulus the founder of Rome, who, like Jesus, was taken to heaven in a cloud; the Greek heroHeracles (Hercules); and others.[13]
InChristian theology, the death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus are the most important events, and a foundation of the Christian faith.[28][29] The early followers of Jesus believed thatGod had vindicated Jesus after his death, as reflected in the stories about his resurrection, ascension, and exaltation.[3] Theearly followers of Jesus soon believed that Jesus was raised asfirst of the dead,[30] taken into Heaven, andexalted,[1][2]taking the seat at the right hand of God in Heaven, as stated in theApostles' Creed: "He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty."[3]Psalm 110 (Psalms 110:1) played an essential role in this interpretation of Jesus' death and the resurrection appearances: "The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool." It provided an interpretative frame for Jesus' followers to make sense of his death and the resurrection appearances.[31][3]
This understanding is summarized by the theologianJustus Knecht who wrote: "Our Lord went up Body and Soul into heaven in the sight of His apostles, by His own power, to take possession of His glory, and to be our Advocate and Mediator in heaven with the Father. He ascended as Man, as Head of the redeemed, and has prepared a dwelling in heaven for all those who follow in His steps (Sixth article ofthe Creed)."[32]
Thecosmology of the author of Luke–Acts reflects the beliefs of his age,[33] which envisioned a three-part cosmos with the heavens above, an Earth centered on Jerusalem in the middle, and theunderworld below.[34][35] Heaven was separated from the Earth by thefirmament, the visible sky, a solid inverted bowl where God's palace sat on pillars in the celestial sea.[36] Humans looking up from Earth saw the floor of Heaven, made of clear bluelapis-lazuli (Exodus 24:9–10), as was God's throne (Ezekiel 1:26).[37] According to Dunn, "the typical mind-set and worldview of the time conditioned what was actually seen and how the recording of such seeings was conceptualized,"[33] and "departure into heaven could only be conceived in terms of 'being taken up ', a literal ascension."[33]
In modern times, a literal reading of the ascension-stories has become problematic, due to the differences between the pre-scientific cosmology of the times of Jesus, and the scientific worldview that leaves no place for a Heaven above earth.[38][39] TheologianJames Dunn describes the Ascension as at best a puzzle and at worst an embarrassment for an age that no longer conceives of a physical Heaven located above the Earth.[38] Similarly, in the words of McGill University's Douglas Farrow, in modern times the ascension is seen less as the climax of the mystery of Christ than as "something of an embarrassment in the age of the telescope and the space probe,"[39] an "idea [that] conjures up an outdated cosmology."[40]
Yet, according to Dunn, a sole focus on this disparity is beside the real importance of Jesus' ascension, namely the resurrection and subsequent exaltation of Jesus.[29] Farrow notes that, already in the third century, the ascension-story was read byOrigen in a mystical way, as an "ascension of the mind rather than of the body," representing one of two basic ascension theologies.[41] The real problem is the fact that Jesus is both present and absent,[42] an ambiguity which points to a "something more" to which the Eucharist gives entry.[43][note 2]
The same doctrine takes on anothermeaning for Muslims: most Islamic scholars hold that Jesus, the penultimate prophet of Islam, was not crucified or resurrected but his body directly ascended.[46][47][48]
Russian skepticKirill Eskov in his "Nature"-praised workThe Gospel of Afranius argues that it was politically prudent for the local Roman administration to strengthen Jesus's influence by spreading rumors about his miracles viaactive measures, with this story originating as a well-crafted deliberate lie.
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The Feast of the Ascension is a majorfeast day of the Christianliturgical year, along with thePassion,Easter,Pentecost, andChristmas.[11] Ascension Day is traditionally celebrated on the sixth Thursday after Easter Sunday, the fortieth day fromEaster day, although someCatholic provinces have moved the observance to the following Sunday to facilitate the obligation to attend Mass.Saint Jerome held that it was of apostolic origin, but in fact the Ascension was originally part ofPentecost (the coming of theHoly Spirit), and developed as a separate celebration only slowly from the late 4th century onward. In the Catholic tradition it begins with a three-day "rogation" to ask for God's mercy, and the feast itself includes a procession of torches and banners symbolising Christ's journey to theMount of Olives and entry into Heaven, the extinguishing of thePaschal candle, and an all-night vigil; white is the liturgical colour. The feast was retained at theProtestant Reformation. It continues to be observed inLutheran,Anglican,Methodist, and mostReformed churches. Most of theEastern Christian tradition (Eastern andOriental Orthodox and some[which?]Eastern Catholic Churches, and theChurch of the East), based on theJulian calendar, has a slightly different computation, up to a month later than in the Western tradition. Other denominations, such as thePlymouth Brethren andQuakers, do not celebrate it as they do not adhere to the traditional Christian calendar of feasts.[11][12]
One of the Ascension hymns isChrist fuhr gen Himmel.[citation needed]
The Ascension of Jesus has been a frequent subject inChristian art.[49] By the 6th century, the iconography of the Ascension had been established and by the 9th century, ascension scenes were being depicted on domes of churches.[50][51] TheRabbula Gospels (c. 586) include some of the earliest images of the ascension.[51] Many ascension scenes have two parts, an upper (Heavenly) part and a lower (earthly) part. The ascending Christ may be carrying a resurrection cross-banner or make a sign of benediction with his right hand.[52] The blessing gesture by Christ with his right hand is directed towards the earthly group below him and signifies that he is blessing the entire Church.[9] In the left hand, he may be holding a Gospel or a scroll, signifying teaching and preaching.[9]
TheEastern Orthodox portrayal of the ascension is a major metaphor for the mystical nature of the Church.[53] In many Eastern icons, theVirgin Mary is placed at the center of the scene in the earthly part of the depiction, with her hands raised towards Heaven, often accompanied by various Apostles.[53] The upwards-looking depiction of the earthly group matches the Eastern liturgy on the Feast of the Ascension: "Come, let us rise and turn our eyes and thoughts high ..."[9]
The traditional site of the ascension isMount Olivet (the "Mount of Olives"), on which the village of Bethany sits. Before the conversion ofConstantine the Great in 312 AD, early Christians honored the ascension of Christ in a cave on the Mount, and by 384 the ascension wasvenerated on the present site, uphill from the cave.[54]
Around the year 390 a wealthyRoman woman named Poimenia financed construction of the originalchurch called "Eleona Basilica" (elaion in Greek means "olive garden", fromelaia "olive tree", and has an oft-mentioned similarity toeleos meaning "mercy"). This church was destroyed bySassanid Persians in 614. It was subsequently rebuilt, destroyed, and rebuilt again by theCrusaders. This final church was later destroyed by Muslims, leaving only a 12×12 meter octagonal structure (called amartyrium—"memorial"—or "edicule") that remains to this day.[55][better source needed] The site was ultimately acquired by two emissaries ofSaladin in the year 1198 and has remained in the possession of the IslamicWaqf of Jerusalem ever since. TheRussian Orthodox Church also maintains aconvent of the ascension on the top of the Mount of Olives.
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