The Ascension of the Lord
No fixed feast day in the calendar
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Forty days after rising, Jesus goes up to heaven and promises to be with us always
What is this feast?
The feast of the Ascension of the Lord celebrates the risen Jesus returning to the Father with his glorious body. This solemnity falls on the fortieth day after Easter, the Thursday after the Sixth Sunday of Easter. In Vietnam, many places move the feast to the following Sunday (the Seventh Sunday of Easter) so that everyone can take part; check your diocese’s calendar.
The story
After he rose, Jesus stayed with his disciples, “appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3). On the last day, he promised to send the Holy Spirit and sent them out as his witnesses “to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).
“When he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.” (Acts 1:9). While they were still looking up at the sky, two men dressed in white appeared and told them that Jesus would come back in the same way they had seen him go up to heaven (cf. Acts 1:10-11). They went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, full of joy (cf. Acts 1:12; Lk 24:52).
The Gospel does not describe the Lord’s clothes or where each person stood, and it does not say that Mary was there when the Lord went up to heaven; showing her among the apostles is the traditional way of painting the scene. The Acts of the Apostles tells that afterward, the apostles devoted themselves to prayer together with Mary, the mother of Jesus (cf. Acts 1:14).
Why does the Church celebrate this feast?
Because Jesus is the first to open the gate of heaven for humankind. Where he has gone, we hope to go too. He went up to heaven, but he is still with us in a new way: through God’s Word, the sacraments and the Church. From then on, the Church prayed with Mary, waiting to welcome the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
A lesson for you
- Look up to heaven: your true home is with God.
- Bear witness to the Lord by doing good at home, at school and in your parish.
- When you are sad or afraid, remember that the Lord promised to be with you always.
Identifying marks
- Jesus lifted up among white clouds, his arms open in blessing: he returns to the Father, but he leaves while blessing them, which means he does not abandon his disciples.
- A halo with a cross, a white robe and a red mantle: the One who died out of love has now risen in glory.
- Mary kneeling among the apostles, hands joined, looking up: the Mother stays with the young Church, praying with the disciples and waiting for the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14).
- White-haired Saint Peter raising his hand, young Saint John beside Mary, the apostles looking up: they are witnesses, who will go and proclaim the Gospel everywhere.
- The city of Jerusalem in the distance, olive trees on the hill: the Lord went up to heaven from the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem, where the Church would begin.
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Compiled by i-Catholic · About