THE LORD’S DIVINE ASCENSION Part II

My beloved brothers and sisters in Our Risen Lord, God, and Savior,

CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

THE LORD’S DIVINE ASCENSION [Part II]

FORTY DAYS AFTER HIS RESURRECTION Christ ascended into heaven, where He had been previously, according to His own words to the Disciples before His Passion: "Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ASCEND where He was before?" [John 6:61-62]. Of course this DOES NOT MEAN that Christ, as God, was not in heaven during the time of His Incarnation, but that He WOULD GO UP EVEN WITH HIS HUMAN FLESH. Moreover, His COMING DOWN FROM HEAVEN IS MEANT AS DIVINE CONDESCENSION AND NOT AS A CHANGE OF PLACE.

The Feast of the Lord’s Ascension has great meaning and importance for the Christian and spiritual life, because it is CONNECTED WITH THE DEIFICATION (THEOSIS) OF EVERY PERSON. In what follows, presenting the central Christological points of this Great Feast of the Lord, we shall also establish its great value.

First we must see exactly what Holy Scripture says about the Divine Ascension. The Old Testament makes prophecies about this Great Event, and the New Testament presents it. Just as we have prophecies about all the happenings of the Lord in the Old Testament, this is true for the Divine Ascension as well. The Prophet Ezekiel saw a vision, which certainly refers to Christ’s Ascension: "Then the glory of the Lord departed from the threshold of the temple and stood over the cherubim. And the Cherubim lifted their wings and mounted up from the earth in my sight" [Ezekiel 10:18-19].

What was prophesied in the Old Testament was realized in the New Testament by the Incarnation of the Logos/Word of God. Thus Christ’s Ascension is mentioned many times in the New Testament. First, in the teaching of Christ Himself. In His speech to the Disciples before His Passion He said the following: "I came forth from the Father and have come into the world, Again I LEAVE THE WORLD AND GO TO THE FATHER" [John 16:28]. And in another situation Christ gave assurance: "No one has ascended to heaven but THE ONE WHO CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN, THAT IS, THE SON OF MAN WHO IS IN HEAVEN" [John 3:13].

Secondly, we see the Ascension in the stories of the Evangelists, who refer to this event. Concretely, it is told by the Evangelist Mark (Mark 16:19) and by Saint Luke, both in his Gospel (Luke 24:50-53) and in the Acts of the Apostles, which he himself wrote: (Acts 1:3 and 9-11). The details of the event of the Ascension and of the way in which it happened are described in the Book of Acts of the Apostles.

From these passages which have been cited it is very clear that the Church attaches great meaning to the Event of the Divine Ascension, because, CHRIST’S ASCENSION EXPRESSES THE DEEPEST MEANING OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE. Before going on to the theology of the Ascension we should look at why Christ WAS RAISED UP FORTY DAYS AFTER HIS RESURRECTION, because what happened in Christ’s life is NOT WITHOUT REASON. All things have their reason and purpose.

Saint Nicodemos the Hagiorite, calling on the witness of Macarius Chrysocephalos and Gregory of Agrigentum, says that Christ in His HUMAN NATURE HAD THREE BIRTHS, the First from the Ever-Virgin Mary, the Second by Baptism and the Third by Resurrection. And with reference to these three births He was called FIRST-BORN, BECAUSE IN THE FIRST HE IS FIRST-BORN AMONG MANY BROTHERS" ACCORDING TO COMMUNION OF THE FLESH, in the Second He was called first-born OF THE NEW CREATION, and in the Third, first-born OF THE DEAD.

To be sure, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ could have raised human nature to Heaven immediately after His Resurrection, but He did not do it, lest the Resurrection SHOULD SEEM TO BE AN ILLUSION. After His Resurrection our Lord Christ showed Himself to His Holy Disciples, PERFORMED MIRACLES AND THUS STRENGTHENED THEIR FAITH SO THAT THEY BECAME WITNESSES TO HIS RESURRECTION. In this way, after undoing the suspicion that He was an illusion and referring to the things concerning the coming of the Holy Spirit and His Ascension, in the end He made them spectators of His Ascension (St. Athanasios the Great). In this way we have A TRUE WITNESS OF THIS DIVINE HAPPENING.

Finally, Our Savior and God Jesus Christ, in great charity and love is humbled and accepts the infirmity of human nature. Just as He has assumed all the so-called INNOCENT PASSIONS, so also He accepts THE INFIRMITY OF HUMAN NATURE AND DOES EVERYTHING, IS HUMBLED, IN ORDER TO SAVE MAN.

The Greek word for ‘ascension’ is ‘analipsis’. This word is used to point TO THE ASCEND OF THE GODMAN TO HAVEN WHERE HE SITS WITH GOD THE FATHER. He was always sharing THE THRONE WITH HIS FATHER, BUT NOW HE IS INCARNATE SHARING THE THRONE. Observing Christ’s Ascension to heaven, we are looking at a "peculiar racecourse," because the Creator of the world borne up in a human chariot" (Saint Epiphanius of Cyprus).

Christ IS THE FIRST AND ONLY ONE WHO HAS GONE UP TO HEAVEN WITH THE BODY WHICH HE ASSUMED FROM PANAGIA, THE ALL-HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, THE THEOTOKOS. On this subject we have assurance from Christ Himself , Who said: "No one has ascended to heaven but the one who came from heaven, the Son of Man Who is in heaven" [John 3:13).