The Ascension of the Lord #
From the Book of the Acts of the Holy Apostles, we know that after His Resurrection, the Lord appeared to the disciples repeatedly over the course of forty days, “with many infallible proofs, […] speaking of the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3)—that is, of His Second Coming, of the universal judgment of the living and the dead, and of the life of the age to come. He was preparing them for preaching, so that they would be able to give an answer to anyone who asked concerning all the saving truths of the faith which He had revealed to them. Moreover, the Lord warned the disciples: “Do not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, of which you have heard from Me” (Acts 1:4), referring to the imminent descent of the Holy Ghost, of which He had foretold them before His Passion.
But the minds of the disciples were still bound by earthly limitations. They asked the Risen Teacher: “Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?”—still thinking that Christ had come only for the Jews, to deliver them from Rome and to restore to them the throne of the kings of David’s line. But instead of answering their misplaced question, the Lord said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:7–8). From their small homeland, they who had never seen other nations were now lifted up to the expanse of the whole world. He again bore witness to Himself as the Savior of all mankind, declaring that His Kingdom is without bounds, just as His forefather David once prophesied: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. […] Yea, all kings shall fall down before Him: all nations shall serve Him” (Ps. 71).
But Christ’s Kingdom is not of this world; it spreads and is upheld not by the force of arms, nor by fear, nor by wealth, but by the power of the Holy Ghost—through apostolic preaching and divine signs, and still more through love and virtue, which dwell in the hearts of Christ’s true followers and are manifest in their deeds. This He taught them constantly from the very beginning of His ministry, saying: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16); “By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35).
Having reminded the apostles of all this, the Lord was lifted up from the earth before their eyes, and as it is written in the Book of Acts, “a cloud received Him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9). Two men, appearing to them in shining white garments, comforted them in their bewilderment and sorrow, assuring them that Christ would one day return from heaven in the same manner in which He had ascended.
It is especially important to note that, each time the Lord appeared to His disciples, He showed them clear signs that He had risen in the flesh—in the entirety of human nature in which He had lived during His earthly life. “And thus, showing them that there is a true resurrection of the flesh, and wishing also to demonstrate, just as He had said, that our dwelling is in the heavens […] He ascended before their eyes into heaven in the flesh,” emphasizes one of the earliest Christian writers, St. Justin the Martyr (“On the Resurrection”). “Today, the heavenly hosts beholding our nature in the heavens are filled with wonder,” echoes a hymn of the Church.
This is the theological mystery of today’s feast: Christ did not merely ascend into heaven, but He raised human nature itself to the throne of the Holy Trinity—upon which He had unceasingly dwelt in His Divinity throughout His earthly ministry. Having united human nature with the Divine in His conception from the Virgin in this world, He now made it worthy of Triune glory in the heavenly realm. The Ascension is the feast of the deification of human nature.
This is precisely what St. Paul the Apostle meant when he said that at the hour of the Lord’s Second Coming and the resurrection of the dead, “we”—that is, those of us who have truly believed and lived righteously in Christ—“shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:17). We—that is, those among us who are saved—shall not simply be spatially near to God (for God is omnipresent and transcends place and dimension), but we shall be united to Him in nature.
Likewise, in another epistle, Paul writes: “For our citizenship is in heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body” (Phil. 3:20–21). Again, he speaks of the body of Christ—risen and now enthroned upon the seat of Divinity with His Father. It is to this glorified body of our Savior, as the Apostle says, that the bodies of those who are found worthy of the life of the age to come shall be conformed.
This is a miracle beyond all speech and all thought, a gift of mercy beyond measure, a glory surpassing even that of the angels. Woe unto us if, bearing the name of Christians, we ourselves deprive ourselves of that to which we are called.
In contrition of heart, conscious of our many sins, betrayals, and falls, let us cry out to the merciful God with the words of the Psalm:
“A sacrifice unto God is a broken spirit; a heart that is broken and humbled God will not despise.”
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation; and with Thy guiding Spirit establish me” (Ps. 50 [51]:10–12, 17).
May the Holy Ghost—the Spirit of Truth and Life, who guides into all truth—cleanse us, renew us, and teach each of us to walk the path in life by which we may best please the Lord and serve our neighbor, granting us strength and zeal from on high. With prayer for this, in love and unity, let us—like the apostles—prepare ourselves for the radiant feast of Pentecost.
At Great Vespers, at the Lity, Stichera, Tone 1
Thou didst ascend into the heavens, whence Thou hadst come,
that Thou mightest not leave us orphans, O Lord;
let Thy Spirit come, bringing lowliness to the world.
Show forth Thy mighty works unto the sons of men,
O Lord, Lover of mankind.
Another Stichera, Tone 4
When Thou camest unto the Mount of Olives, O Christ,
to fulfill the good pleasure of the Father,
the heavenly angels were astonished,
and the netherworld was shaken with fear.
Thy disciples stood before Thee with trembling joy
as Thou spakest with them.
And lo, a throne was made ready before the clouds, awaiting Thee.
The gates of heaven were opened,
filled with wonder at Thy beauty,
and the earth revealed its mysteries—
to make known Adam’s descent and now his ascent.
And lo, Thy feet were lifted up with power,
Thy lips blessed greatly, even as was heard.
The cloud received Thee, and heaven welcomed Thee within.
This is the work, O Lord, which Thou hast accomplished:
great and most glorious,
for the salvation of our souls.