The Ascension

The mystery of the Ascension is best addressed through looking more closely at the consequences of the Incarnation. It is a matter of doctrine that Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, is fully divine and being conceived in his humanity, he is fully human. By assuming life in the flesh he lost none of his divinity however he took on the capacity to be tempted, to suffer and to die. In other words he entered into our reality in all ways except he did not sin. By doing so he enabled human beings to participate in his divinity. Saint Paul tells us that we participate in the life of Christ through baptism: "For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his ... The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you all must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ." (Rom 6: 5, 10-11) Since we are joined to him in this way the lack of a tangible experience of his risen body is not problematic because, through the sacraments and the Church, Christ is present to us now in a way that far surpasses a one on one physical encounter. In the Ascension we see that he has set a pattern for us which is not bound by earthly realities: "Thus it is written, 'The first man, Adam, became a living being'; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first, but the physical, and then the spiritual." The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the amn of dust, so are those who are of dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the man of heaven."  (1 Cor. 15: 45-49) Our gaze therefore should not remain on the crucifix, with the sufferings of Christ, nor should it be directed to heaven searching for when he will come again. Rather it is alert to Christ present in our midst through the power of the Holy Spirit working in, with and through us. Thus, we pray for and anticipate our renewal in the Holy Spirit next Sunday at Pentecost. We need not worry that Christ has been taken from our sight. We know in faith that if we stay faithful we will be joined with him in the heavenly realities when our time comes.