The Ascension of the Lord

The biblical account

Luke 24 and Acts 1 give the clearest accounts. After appearing to his followers for forty days, Jesus blessed them, parted from them and was taken up to heaven; they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy (Luke 24:50-52). The Mount of Olives is traditionally held to be the site. A cloud took him from their sight (Acts 1:9-11). He returned to heaven as the risen God-man with a glorified body and soul, and reigns at the Father's right hand (Hebrews 1:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21-22).

His appearances after the Resurrection, first to Mary Magdalene and then to the apostles, ground the Church's proclamation that he rose on the third day as he foretold (Matthew 16:21). The core group of disciples, especially the apostles, witnessed the Ascension (Acts 1:2-3). Before ascending he recommissioned them to evangelize the world (Acts 1:8; cf. Matthew 28:18-20) and prepared them for the Holy Spirit's coming at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4).

Its meaning

The Ascension marks Christ's exaltation and the completion of his earthly ministry. He ascends not to abandon us but to intercede for us and to send the promised Advocate (John 14:16, 26; 15:26). Where he has gone we hope to follow (John 14:1-3), and we long for his return (Matthew 25:31-34, 46).

The Ascension and the Mass

Protestants argue that Christ's sacrifice concluded on the cross because he said "It is finished" (John 19:30). The suffering did end with his death, but his one sacrifice continues in his Resurrection and Ascension: on Easter Jesus told Mary Magdalene he had not yet ascended to the Father (John 20:17). His sacrifice culminates in everlasting glory at the Ascension (Hebrews 9:11-14; see 7:23-25). He is the high priest of heaven (8:1-4; 9:23-24), whose one sacrifice is made present sacramentally at every Mass, according to the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:1-3), under the appearances of bread and wine, as instituted at the Last Supper (Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:14-22; see Genesis 14:18-20). Because Jesus is both God and man, the Father is both Father and God to the risen Lord.

The feast

The Ascension is celebrated forty days after Easter and is a holy day of obligation (CCC 2181); in many U.S. dioceses it is transferred to the following Sunday, and the obligation is then fulfilled at Sunday Mass. It links Easter and Pentecost: Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem (Luke 24:44-52; Acts 1:4-9), and ten days later the Holy Spirit descended, fifty days after Easter counting Easter Sunday. It is the turning point between the Resurrection and the Church's manifestation to the world at Pentecost (CCC 1076).

Common questions

• When did Jesus rise? Early on Easter Sunday, while it was still dark (John 20:1), on the third day counting the day of his crucifixion, as the ancient Israelites numbered days.
• Did Jesus go to hell? Not the hell of the damned. "He descended into hell" means he went to Sheol, the abode of the dead, to bring the good news to the righteous who had died before him; 1 Peter speaks of him preaching to the "spirits in prison."