Ascension Of Jesus - Wikipedia

Biblical episode

The Ascension of Jesus (anglicized from the Vulgate Latin: ascensio Iesu, lit. 'ascent of Jesus') is the Christian and Islamic belief that Jesus ascended to Heaven. Christian doctrine, as reflected in the major Christian creeds and confessional statements, holds that Jesus ascended after his resurrection, where he was exalted as Lord and Christ,[1][2] sitting at the right hand of God.[3] Islamic doctrine holds that Jesus directly ascended to heaven without dying or resurrecting.

The Gospels and other New Testament writings imply resurrection and exaltation as a single event.[4][5] The ascension is "more assumed than described", and only Luke and Acts contain direct accounts of it,[6] but with different chronologies.[note 1]

In Christian art, the ascending Jesus is often shown blessing an earthly group below him, signifying the entire Church.[9] The Feast of the Ascension is celebrated on the 40th day of Easter, always a Thursday;[3] some Orthodox traditions have a different calendar up to a month later than in the Western tradition. The Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Communion continue to observe the Feast of the Ascension.[10] Certain Nonconformist churches, such as the Plymouth Brethren, do not observe the feast.[11][12]

Biblical accounts

[edit]

Although the ascension is an important article of faith in Christianity, only Luke and Acts contain direct accounts of it. In the shorter ending of Mark, in Matthew, and in John, it is only implied or alluded to.[6] The Gospels do not picture resurrection and ascension as clearly separated in time.[8] Other New Testament writings also imply resurrection and exaltation as a single event.[8]

Various epistles (Romans 8:34, Ephesians 1:19–20, Colossians 3:1, Philippians 2:9–11, 1 Timothy 3:16, and 1 Peter 3:21–22) refer to an ascension without specifying details, seeming, like Luke–Acts and John, to equate it with the post-resurrection "exaltation" of Jesus to the right hand of God.[13]

The ascension is detailed in both Luke and Acts, a pair of works ascribed to the same author, Luke the Evangelist:[14][7]

• Luke 24:51: Jesus leads the eleven remaining disciples to Bethany, a village on the Mount of Olives, and instructs them to remain in Jerusalem until the coming of the Holy Spirit: "And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he parted from them, and was carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy."
• Acts 1 (Acts 1:1–9): Jesus tells the disciples to remain in Jerusalem and await the coming of the Holy Spirit; he is then taken up from the disciples in their sight, a cloud hides him from view, and two men in white appear to tell them that he will return "in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."[15]

Luke and Acts appear to describe the same event but present quite different chronologies, the gospel placing it on the same day as the resurrection and Acts forty days afterwards;[16] various proposals have been put forward to resolve the contradiction, but none have been found satisfactory.[17] According to Dunn, the author of Acts separated the resurrection and ascension to put a limit on the number of resurrection appearances,[18] effectively excluding Paul's conversion experience from the bona fide resurrection appearances.[8] Zwiep argues that Jesus was originally believed to have been exalted with his ascension to heaven and seated at the right hand of God with his resurrection[5] until the late first century where he argues the exaltation had been separated from the resurrection, and moved to a final ascension into heaven after his appearances on earth.[5] Other scholars note that the biblical authors tended to conflate or compress different events and narrate them as one which was a literary theme seen in other ancient biographies to improve the narrative flow. Such scholars caution against a strictly chronological reading.[19][20]

John's Gospel has three references to ascension in Jesus' own words: "No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man" (John 3:13); "What if you [the disciples] were to see the Son of Man ascending where he was before?" (John 6:62); and to Mary Magdalene after his resurrection, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father..." (John 20:17).[7] In the first and second Jesus is claiming to be the apocalyptic "one like a Son of Man" of Daniel 7;[21] the last has mystified commentators – why should Mary be prohibited from touching the risen but not yet ascended Christ, while Thomas is later invited to do so?[22]

The longer ending of Mark describes an ascension, but is a later addition to the original version of that gospel.[23]

Views on the Ascension

[edit]

Background

[edit]

Ascension stories were fairly common around the time of Jesus and the evangelists,[24] signifying the deification of a noteworthy person (usually a Roman Emperor), and in Judaism as an indication of divine approval.[25] Another function of heavenly ascent was as a mode of divine revelation reflected in Greco-Roman, early Jewish, and early Christian literary sources, in which particular individuals with prophetic or revelatory gifts are said to have experienced a heavenly journey during which they learned cosmic and divine secrets.[25]

Figures familiar to Jews would have included Enoch (from the Book of Genesis and a popular non-Biblical work called 1 Enoch); the 5th-century sage Ezra; Baruch the companion of the prophet Jeremiah (from a work called 2 Baruch, in which Baruch is promised he will ascend to heaven after forty days); Levi the ancestor of priests; the Teacher of Righteousness from the Qumran community; the prophet Elijah (from 2 Kings); Moses, who was deified on entering heaven; and the children of Job, who according to the Testament of Job ascended heaven following their resurrection from the dead.[26][27]

Non-Jewish readers would have been familiar with the case of the emperor Augustus, whose ascent was witnessed by Senators; Romulus the founder of Rome, who, like Jesus, was taken to heaven in a cloud; the Greek hero Heracles (Hercules); and others.[13]

Christian theology

[edit]

In Christian theology, the death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus are the most important events, and a foundation of the Christian faith.[28][29] The early followers of Jesus believed that God had vindicated Jesus after his death, as reflected in the stories about his resurrection, ascension, and exaltation.[3] The early followers of Jesus soon believed that Jesus was raised as first of the dead,[30] taken into Heaven, and exalted,[1][2] taking the seat at the right hand of God in Heaven, as stated in the Apostles' Creed: "He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty."[3] Psalm 110 (Psalms 110:1) played an essential role in this interpretation of Jesus' death and the resurrection appearances: "The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool." It provided an interpretative frame for Jesus' followers to make sense of his death and the resurrection appearances.[31][3]

This understanding is summarized by the theologian Justus Knecht who wrote: "Our Lord went up Body and Soul into heaven in the sight of His apostles, by His own power, to take possession of His glory, and to be our Advocate and Mediator in heaven with the Father. He ascended as Man, as Head of the redeemed, and has prepared a dwelling in heaven for all those who follow in His steps (Sixth article of the Creed)."[32]

Cosmology

[edit]

The cosmology of the author of Luke–Acts reflects the beliefs of his age,[33] which envisioned a three-part cosmos with the heavens above, an Earth centered on Jerusalem in the middle, and the underworld below.[34][35] Heaven was separated from the Earth by the firmament, the visible sky, a solid inverted bowl where God's palace sat on pillars in the celestial sea.[36] Humans looking up from Earth saw the floor of Heaven, made of clear blue lapis-lazuli (Exodus 24:9–10), as was God's throne (Ezekiel 1:26).[37] According to Dunn, "the typical mind-set and worldview of the time conditioned what was actually seen and how the recording of such seeings was conceptualized,"[33] and "departure into heaven could only be conceived in terms of 'being taken up ', a literal ascension."[33]

In modern times, a literal reading of the ascension-stories has become problematic, due to the differences between the pre-scientific cosmology of the times of Jesus, and the scientific worldview that leaves no place for a Heaven above earth.[38][39] Theologian James Dunn describes the Ascension as at best a puzzle and at worst an embarrassment for an age that no longer conceives of a physical Heaven located above the Earth.[38] Similarly, in the words of McGill University's Douglas Farrow, in modern times the ascension is seen less as the climax of the mystery of Christ than as "something of an embarrassment in the age of the telescope and the space probe,"[39] an "idea [that] conjures up an outdated cosmology."[40]

Yet, according to Dunn, a sole focus on this disparity is beside the real importance of Jesus' ascension, namely the resurrection and subsequent exaltation of Jesus.[29] Farrow notes that, already in the third century, the ascension-story was read by Origen in a mystical way, as an "ascension of the mind rather than of the body," representing one of two basic ascension theologies.[41] The real problem is the fact that Jesus is both present and absent,[42] an ambiguity which points to a "something more" to which the Eucharist gives entry.[43][note 2]

Islam

[edit]

The same doctrine takes on another meaning for Muslims: most Islamic scholars hold that Jesus, the penultimate prophet of Islam, was not crucified or resurrected but his body directly ascended.[46][47][48]

Liturgy: Feast of the Ascension

[edit] Main article: Feast of the Ascension

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The Feast of the Ascension is a major feast day of the Christian liturgical year, along with the Passion, Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas.[11] Ascension Day is traditionally celebrated on the sixth Thursday after Easter Sunday, the fortieth day from Easter day, although some Catholic provinces have moved the observance to the following Sunday to facilitate the obligation to attend Mass. Saint Jerome held that it was of apostolic origin, but in fact the Ascension was originally part of Pentecost (the coming of the Holy Spirit), and developed as a separate celebration only slowly from the late 4th century onward. In the Catholic tradition it begins with a three-day "rogation" to ask for God's mercy, and the feast itself includes a procession of torches and banners symbolising Christ's journey to the Mount of Olives and entry into Heaven, the extinguishing of the Paschal candle, and an all-night vigil; white is the liturgical colour. The feast was retained at the Protestant Reformation. It continues to be observed in Lutheran, Anglican, Methodist, and most Reformed churches. Most of the Eastern Christian tradition (Eastern and Oriental Orthodox and some[which?] Eastern Catholic Churches, and the Church of the East), based on the Julian calendar, has a slightly different computation, up to a month later than in the Western tradition. Other denominations, such as the Plymouth Brethren and Quakers, do not celebrate it as they do not adhere to the traditional Christian calendar of feasts.[11][12]

One of the Ascension hymns is Christ fuhr gen Himmel.[citation needed]

In Christian art

[edit] Main article: Ascension of Jesus in Christian art

The Ascension of Jesus has been a frequent subject in Christian art.[49] By the 6th century, the iconography of the Ascension had been established and by the 9th century, ascension scenes were being depicted on domes of churches.[50][51] The Rabbula Gospels (c. 586) include some of the earliest images of the ascension.[51] Many ascension scenes have two parts, an upper (Heavenly) part and a lower (earthly) part. The ascending Christ may be carrying a resurrection cross-banner or make a sign of benediction with his right hand.[52] The blessing gesture by Christ with his right hand is directed towards the earthly group below him and signifies that he is blessing the entire Church.[9] In the left hand, he may be holding a Gospel or a scroll, signifying teaching and preaching.[9]

The Eastern Orthodox portrayal of the ascension is a major metaphor for the mystical nature of the Church.[53] In many Eastern icons, the Virgin Mary is placed at the center of the scene in the earthly part of the depiction, with her hands raised towards Heaven, often accompanied by various Apostles.[53] The upwards-looking depiction of the earthly group matches the Eastern liturgy on the Feast of the Ascension: "Come, let us rise and turn our eyes and thoughts high ..."[9]

Olivet and the Chapel of the Ascension

[edit] Main article: Chapel of the Ascension (Jerusalem) The Ascension aediculeClose-up of the Rock of the Ascension inside the Ascension aedicule

The traditional site of the ascension is the Mount of Olives, on which the village of Bethany sits. Before the conversion of Constantine the Great in 312 AD, early Christians honoured the ascension of Christ in a cave on the Mount, and by 384 the ascension was venerated on the present site, uphill from the cave.[54]

Around the year 390 a wealthy Roman woman named Poimenia financed construction of the original church called "Eleona Basilica" (elaion in Greek means "olive garden", from elaia "olive tree", and has an oft-mentioned similarity to eleos meaning "mercy"). This church was destroyed by Sassanid Persians in 614. It was subsequently rebuilt, destroyed, and rebuilt again by the Crusaders. This final church was later destroyed by Muslims, leaving only a 12×12 metre octagonal structure (called a martyrium – "memorial" – or "aedicule") that remains to this day.[55][better source needed] The site was ultimately acquired by two emissaries of Saladin in the year 1198 and has remained in the possession of the Islamic Waqf of Jerusalem ever since. The Russian Orthodox Church also maintains a convent of the ascension on the top of the Mount of Olives.

Gallery

[edit]

• Rabbula Gospels6th century
• Drogo Sacramentaryc. 850
• Andrei Rublev1408
• Pietro Perugino1496–1500
• The Ascension, Dosso Dossi, 16th century.
• Garofalo1520
• Armenian Gospel manuscript1609
• Rembrandt1636
• Macedonian icon, Bitola, Macedonia19th century
• Rosary Basilica, Lourdes19th century

See also

[edit]

• Ascension Parish
• Assumption of Mary
• Chronology of Jesus
• Church of the Ascension (disambiguation)
• Entering Heaven Alive
• Life of Jesus in the New Testament
• Rapture
• Session of Christ
• Transfiguration of Jesus

References

[edit]

Notes

[edit]

1. ^ In Luke, the ascension seems to be on the same day as the resurrection. In Acts, Jesus' ascension is situated on the fortieth day counting from the resurrection in the presence of eleven of his apostles,[7] thereby putting a limit on the number of resurrection appearances,[4] and effectively excluding Paul's conversion experience from the bona fide resurrection appearances.[8]
2. ^ According to Farrow, this ambiguity of absence and presence poses central christological and theological questions concerning the identity of the church and its relation to past (death and resurrection) and future (second coming) events,[44] and to the present world, in which it is situated, but from which it is also different, through "its mysterious union with one whose life, though lived for the world, involves a genuine break with it."[45]

Citations

[edit]

1. ^ a b Novakovic 2014, p. 135.
2. ^ a b Hurtado 2005, p. 508, 591.
3. ^ a b c d e Cross & Livingstone 2005, p. 114.
4. ^ a b Dunn 2009, p. 146.
5. ^ a b c Zwiep 2016, p. 145.
6. ^ a b Holwerda 1979, p. 310-311.
7. ^ a b c Holwerda 1979, p. 310.
8. ^ a b c d Dunn 2009, p. 140.
9. ^ a b c d Ouspensky & Lossky 1999, p. 197.
10. ^ Ascension Day. Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark. 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
11. ^ a b c Quast 2011, p. 45.
12. ^ a b Stokl-Ben-Ezra 2007, p. 286.
13. ^ a b McDonald 2004, p. 21.
14. ^ Thompson 2010, p. 319.
15. ^ Müller 2016, p. 113-114.
16. ^ Seim 2009, p. 24.
17. ^ Müller 2016, p. 113.
18. ^ Dunn 2009, pp. 140, 146.
19. ^ Richards & O'Brien 2012, pp. 137–152.
20. ^ Licona 2016, pp. 20, 34–36, 46.
21. ^ Köstenberger 2004, p. 85.
22. ^ Quast 1991, p. 134.
23. ^ Cresswell 2013, unpaginated.
24. ^ McDonald 2004, p. 22.
25. ^ a b Aune 2003a, p. 65.
26. ^ Munoa 2000, p. 109.
27. ^ Zwiep 2016, p. 16.
28. ^ Dunn 1985, p. 53.
29. ^ a b Dunn 2009, p. 149.
30. ^ Novakovic 2014, p. 152.
31. ^ Dunn 2009, p. 218.
32. ^ Knecht 1910, p. 729.
33. ^ a b c Dunn 2009, p. 148.
34. ^ Wright 2002, p. 53.
35. ^ Najman 2014, p. 93.
36. ^ Pennington 2007, p. 41-42.
37. ^ Wright 2002, p. 54,56.
38. ^ a b Seim 2009, p. 23.
39. ^ a b Farrow 2011, p. 16.
40. ^ Farrow 2004, p. 9.
41. ^ Farrow 2011, p. 17.
42. ^ Farrow 2004, p. 3, 8.
43. ^ Farrow 2004, p. 3.
44. ^ Farrow 2004, p. 8-9.
45. ^ Farrow 2004, p. 11.
46. ^ Hughes, Aaron W. (2013). "The Quran: The Base Narrative". Muslim Identities: An Introduction to Islam. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 85. ISBN 978-0-231-53192-4. JSTOR 10.7312/hugh16146.8. S2CID 169663918. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
47. ^ Reynolds, Gabriel S. (May 2009). "The Muslim Jesus: Dead or Alive?" (PDF). Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London). 72 (2). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press: 237–258. doi:10.1017/S0041977X09000500. JSTOR 40379003. S2CID 27268737. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
48. ^ Lanier, Gregory R. (May 2016). "'It Was Made to Appear Like that to Them:' Islam's Denial of Jesus' Crucifixion". Reformed Faith & Practice: The Journal of Reformed Theological Seminary. 1 (1). Orlando, Florida: Reformed Theological Seminary: 39-55. Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
49. ^ Becchio & Schadé 2006, unpaginated.
50. ^ Baggley 2000, p. 137-138.
51. ^ a b Jensen 2008, p. 51-53.
52. ^ Earls 1987, p. 26-27.
53. ^ a b Nes 2005, p. 87.
54. ^ Murphy-O'Connor 2008, p. 142.
55. ^ "The Christ Church Angelus". archive.constantcontact.com. Retrieved 2020-05-26.

Works cited

[edit]

• Aune, David (2003a). "Ascent, heavenly". The Westminster Dictionary of New Testament and Early Christian Literature and Rhetoric. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-21917-8.
• Baggley, John (2000). Festival Icons for the Christian Year. St Vladimir's Seminary Press. ISBN 978-0-88141-201-7.
• Becchio, Bruno; Schadé, Johannes P. (2006). "Ascension". Encyclopedia of World Religions. Foreign Media Group. ISBN 978-1-60136-000-7.
• Cresswell, Peter (2013). The Invention of Jesus: How the Church Rewrote the New Testament. Duncan Baird Publishers. ISBN 978-1-78028-621-1.
• Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, Elizabeth A. (2005). "Ascension". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-280290-3.
• Dunn, James D.G. (1985). The Evidence for Jesus. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-24698-3.
• Dunn, James D.G. (2009). Christianity in the Making Volume 2: Beginning From Jerusalem. Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-8028-3932-9.
• Earls, Irene (1987). Renaissance Art: A Topical Dictionary. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-24658-6.
• Farrow, Douglas (2004). Ascension And Ecclesia. A&C Black. ISBN 978-0-567-08325-8.
• Farrow, Douglas B. (2011), Ascension Theology, Bloomsbury Publishing
• Holwerda, D.E. (1979). "Ascension". In Bromiley, Geoffrey (ed.). The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-8028-3781-3.
• Hurtado, Larry (2005), Lord Jesus Christ. Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity, Eerdmans
• Jensen, Robin M. (2008). "Art in Early Christianity". In Benedetto, Robert; Duke, James O. (eds.). The New Westminster Dictionary of Church History. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-22416-5.
• Knecht, Friedrich Justus (1910). "Chapter ·LXXXIII. The Ascension of Jesus Christ". A Practical Commentary on Holy Scripture . B. Herder – via Wikisource.
• Köstenberger, Andreas J. (2004). John. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-0-8010-2644-7.
• Lawson, Todd (2009). The Crucifixion and the Quran: A Study in the History of Muslim Thought. Oneworld Publications. ISBN 978-1-85168-635-3.
• Licona, Michael R. (2016). Why Are There Differences in the Gospels?: What We Can Learn from Ancient Biography. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-026426-0.
• McDonald, Lee Martin (2004). "Acts". In Combes, Isobel A. H.; Gurtner, Daniel M. (eds.). Bible Knowledge Background Commentary. David C Cook. ISBN 978-0-7814-4006-6.
• Müller, Mogens (2016). "Acts as biblical rewriting of the gospels and Paul's letters". In Müller, Mogens; Nielsen, Jesper Tang (eds.). Luke's Literary Creativity. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-567-66583-6.
• Munoa, Phillip (2000). "Ascension". In Freedman, David Noel; Myers, Allen C. (eds.). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Eerdmans. ISBN 978-90-5356-503-2.
• Murphy-O'Connor, Jerome (2008). The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide from Earliest Times to 1700. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-164766-6.
• Najman, Hindy (2014). Losing the Temple and Recovering the Future: An Analysis of 4 Ezra. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-139-91584-7.
• Nes, Solrunn (2005). The Mystical Language of Icons. Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-8028-2916-0.
• Novakovic, Lidija (2014), Raised from the Dead According to Scripture: The Role of the Old Testament in the Early Christian Interpretations of Jesus' Resurrection, A&C Black
• Ouspensky, Léonide; Lossky, Vladimir (1999). The Meaning of Icons. St Vladimir's Seminary Press. ISBN 978-0-913836-77-4.
• Pennington, Jonathan T. (2007). Heaven and earth in the Gospel of Matthew. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-16205-1.
• Quast, Kevin (1991). Reading the Gospel of John. Paulist Press. ISBN 978-0-8091-3297-3.
• Quast, Kevin (2011). "Ascension Day". In Melton, J. Gordon (ed.). Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-205-0.
• Richards, E. Randolph; O'Brien, Brandon J. (2012). Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible. InterVarsity Press. ISBN 978-0-8308-3782-3.
• Seim, Turid Karlsen (2009). "The Resurrected Body in Luke-Acts: The Significance of Space". In Seim, Turid Karlsen; Økland, Jorunn (eds.). Metamorphoses: Resurrection, Body and Transformative Practices in Early Christianity. Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-11-020299-1.
• Stokl-Ben-Ezra, Daniel (2007). "Parody and Polemics on Pentecost". In Gerhards, Albert; Leonhard, Clemens (eds.). Jewish and Christian Liturgy and Worship. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-474-2241-9.
• Thompson, Richard P. (2010). "Luke-Acts: The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles". In Aune, David E. (ed.). The Blackwell Companion to The New Testament. Wiley–Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-4443-1894-4.
• Wright, J. Edward (2002). The Early History of Heaven. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-802981-6.
• Zwiep, Arie W. (2016). "Ascension scholarship past present and future". In Pao, David W.; Bryan, David K. (eds.). Ascent into Heaven in Luke-Acts: New Explorations of Luke's Narrative Hinge. Fortress Press. ISBN 978-1-5064-1896-4.

Further reading

[edit]

• Aune, David (2003b). "Cosmology". The Westminster Dictionary of New Testament and Early Christian Literature and Rhetoric. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-21917-8.
• Burkett, Delbert (2002). An introduction to the New Testament and the origins of Christianity. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-00720-7.
• Charlesworth, James H. (2008). The Historical Jesus: An Essential Guide. Abingdon Press. ISBN 978-1-4267-2475-6.
• Collins, Adela Yarbro (2000). Cosmology and Eschatology in Jewish and Christian Apocalypticism. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-11927-7.
• Davies, J. G. (1958). He Ascended into Heaven, London: Lutterworth Press.
• Dawson, Gerrit (2004). Jesus Ascended: The Meaning of Christ's Continuing Incarnation. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-567-11987-2.
• Deharbe, Joseph (1912). "The Sixth Article: 'He ascended into Heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.'" . A Complete Catechism of the Catholic Religion. Translated by Rev. John Fander. Schwartz, Kirwin & Fauss.
• Farrow, Douglas (2011). Ascension Theology. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-0-567-65188-4.
• Hurtado, Larry W. (2005). Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity. Eerdmans. ISBN 978-0-8028-3167-5.
• Knight, Douglas A.; Levine, Amy-Jill (2011). The Meaning of the Bible: What the Jewish Scriptures and Christian Old Testament Can Teach Us. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-209859-7.
• Lee, Sang Meyng (2010). The Cosmic Drama of Salvation. Mohr Siebeck. ISBN 978-3-16-150316-0.
• Lincoln, Andrew (2004). Paradise Now and Not Yet. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-60939-5.
• Packer, J. I. (2008). Affirming the Apostles' Creed. Crossway. ISBN 978-1-4335-2201-7.
• Park, Eung Chun (2003). Either Jew or Gentile: Paul's Unfolding Theology of Inclusivity. Westminster John Knox Press. ISBN 978-0-664-22453-0.
• Vermes, Geza (2001). The Changing Faces of Jesus. Penguin UK. ISBN 978-0-14-191258-5.
• Wynne, John Joseph (1907). "Ascension" . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
• Zwiep, Arie W. (1997). The Ascension of the Messiah in Lukan Christology. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-10897-4.

v t e Jesus
Outline List of topics
Chronologyof Jesus's life	Annunciation Nativity Virgin birth Date of birth Flight into Egypt Infancy (apocryphal) Christ Child Unknown years Baptism Temptation Apostles Selecting Ministry Disciples Sermon on the Mount/Plain Beatitudes Prayers Lord's Prayer Parables Miracles Transfiguration Homelessness Great Commandment Olivet Discourse Anointing Passion instruments Entry into Jerusalem Last Supper Farewell Discourse Agony in the Garden Betrayal Arrest Trial Crucifixion Sayings on the cross Instrument used True Cross Burial Tomb Resurrection Great Commission Ascension
New Testament	Gospels Matthew Mark Luke John Five Discourses of Matthew Gospel harmony Oral gospel traditions Historical background of the New Testament New Testament places associated with Jesus Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament
Historical Jesus	Quest for the historical Jesus Historicity Sources Josephus Tacitus Mara bar Serapion Gospels Christ myth theory
Depictions	Bibliography Life of Christ in art Life of Christ Museum Statues Transfiguration
Christianity	Christ Christianity 1st century Christology Incarnation Person of Christ Pre-existence "I am" Relics Second Coming Session of Christ Son of God Cosmic Christ
In other faiths	Jesuism In comparative mythology Judaism In the Talmud Islam Ahmadiyya Baháʼí Faith Manichaeism Jesus the Splendour Mandaeism Master Jesus
Family	Genealogies Mary (mother) Joseph (legal father) Holy Family Panthera (alleged father) Brothers of Jesus Holy Kinship Anne (traditional maternal grandmother) Joachim (traditional maternal grandfather) Heli (paternal grandfather per Luke) Jacob (paternal grandfather per Matthew) Alleged descendants Clopas (traditional uncle)
Related	Language of Jesus Interactions with women Mary Magdalene Mary, sister of Martha Christmas Easter Rejection of Jesus Criticism Mental health Race and appearance Sexuality and marital status Church of the Nativity Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Garden Tomb Shroud of Turin
Category

v t e Miracles of Jesus
Control of nature	Wedding at Cana Miraculous catch of fish Coin in the fish's mouth Feeding the multitude Cursing the fig tree Calming the storm Jesus walking on water
Cures	Jesus healing the bleeding woman Blind man of Bethsaida Healing the blind near Jericho Healing the two blind men in Galilee Healing the centurion's servant Jesus cleansing a leper Cleansing ten lepers Healing the deaf mute of Decapolis Healing a man with dropsy Jesus healing in the land of Gennesaret Jesus healing an infirm woman Healing the man blind from birth Healing the mother of Peter's wife Healing the paralytic at Bethesda Healing the paralytic at Capernaum Healing the royal official's son Healing the ear of a servant Healing the man with a withered hand
Exorcisms	Jesus in the synagogue of Capernaum Jesus exorcising at sunset Exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac Jesus exorcising a mute Exorcising the blind and mute man Exorcism of the Syrophoenician woman's daughter Exorcising a boy possessed by a demon
Raising the dead	Raising of the son of the widow of Nain Raising of Jairus' daughter Lazarus of Bethany
Personal	Transfiguration of Jesus Resurrection of Jesus Ascension of Jesus
Related	Jesus Ministry of Jesus Miracle
Christianity Portal

v t e Gospel of Luke
Bible(New Testament)	Chapters Luke 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Verses Luke 22:43–44
Events	Annunciation to Mary, Elizabeth, and the shepherds Adoration of shepherds John the Baptist's Birth Census of Quirinius Jesus' Birth Circumcision and Presentation at the Temple Finding in the Temple Genealogy Baptism Temptation Calling of Matthew Counting the cost Sermon on the Plain Beatitudes Calming the storm Feeding the 5000 Transfiguration Great Commandment Lord's Prayer Prodigal son Olivet Discourse Passion of Jesus Last Supper Pilate's court Crucifixion Burial Empty tomb Resurrection Ascension
Phrases	Benedictus Fishers of men Magnificat New Wine into Old Wineskins Nunc dimittis (Song of Simeon) Parable of the Unjust Steward Rich man and Lazarus The four woes of Jesus
People	Abijah Andrew Anna Annas Augustus Caiaphas David Elisha Elizabeth Gabriel Herod Antipas Herod the Great Jesus Christ John the Baptist Joseph Joseph of Arimathea Judas Iscariot Lazarus Lysanias Martha Mary, mother of Jesus Mary Magdalene Mary, sister of Martha Naaman Philip (apostle) Philip (tetrarch) Pontius Pilate Quirinius Simeon Simon Peter Theophilus Thomas Tiberius Caesar Zebedee Zechariah Groups Angels Pharisees Sadducees Samaritans Sanhedrin Seventy disciples
Places	Abilene Bethany Bethsaida Capernaum Decapolis Emmaus Galilee Iturea Jerusalem Jordan River Judea Nain Samaria Sea of Galilee Trachonitis
Related	Luke the Evangelist Luke–Acts Authorship of Luke–Acts Synoptic Gospels Gospel of Mark Q source L source Two-gospel hypothesis Jerusalem school hypothesis Textual variants Gospel of Marcion Jiizas: di Buk We Luuk Rait bout Im
Adaptations	St Luke Passion, BWV 246 (1730) St Luke Passion (Penderecki, 1966) Jesus (1979 film) Witness: Five Plays from the Gospel of Luke (2007, radio) The Savior (2014 film)
Manuscripts	Papyrus 2 3 4 7 42 45 69 75 82 97 111 Codex Nitriensis Ohrid Glagolitic fragments
Sources	Greek Text Latin Vulgate Wycliffe Version King James Version American Standard Version World English Version

v t e Acts of the Apostles
Bible chapters(New Testament)	Acts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
Events	Ascension Pentecost Conversion of Paul Peter's vision Peter's liberation Council of Jerusalem Areopagus sermon Book burning at Ephesus
People	Aeneas Agabus Agrippa Agrippa II Ananias (Damascus) Ananias (High Priest) Ananias (Judea) Apollos Aquila Aristarchus Bar-jesus Barnabas Berenice Blastus Cornelius Demetrius Dionysius Dorcas Drusilla Ethiopian eunuch Eutychus Felix Festus Gallio Gamaliel James the Just Jason Jesus Joseph Barsabbas Judas Barsabbas Judas of Galilee Lucius Luke Lydia Lysias Manaen (John) Mark, cousin of Barnabas Mary mother of John Mark Matthias Nicanor Nicholas Parmenas Paul Paullus Peter Philip Priscilla Prochorus Publius Rhoda Sapphira Sceva Seven Deacons Silas Simeon Niger Simon the Sorcerer Sopater Stephen Tertullus Theophilus Theudas Timothy Titus Trophimus Tychicus
Phrases	Christians Synagogue of the Libertines
Related	Apostolic Age Acts of the Apostles (genre) Luke–Acts Authorship Luke the Evangelist Historical reliability Holy Spirit in the Acts of the Apostles Textual variants Gamaliel's principle
Manuscripts	Papyrus 8 29 33 38 45 48 50 53 56 57 74 91 112 127 Codex Laudianus Codex Mutinensis Uncial 095 096 097 0120 0140 0165 0175 0189 0236 0244 0294 0304 Gršković's fragment Mihanović's fragment
In popular culture	A.D. (1985 miniseries) The Visual Bible: Acts (1994 film)

v t e Christianity
Index Outline Glossary Prophets People Lists of Christians By country
Bible(Scriptures)	Canon Old Testament New Testament
Foundations	Church Creed Gospel New Covenant Christian tradition Worship
History(timeline)(spread)	EarlyChristianity Jesus in Christianity Chronology Nativity Baptism Ministry Sermon on the Mount Parables Miracles Great Commandment Crucifixion Resurrection Great Commission Ascension Apostles Church Fathers Apostolic Fathers Great Church Ante-Nicene period Late antiquity Constantine First seven ecumenical councils Nicaea I Ephesus Chalcedon State church of the Roman Empire Christian biblical canon Middle Ages Monasticism Papal States East–West Schism Investiture Controversy Crusades Age of Discovery Modern era Auto-da-fé Protestant Reformation Catholic Reformation Thirty Years' War Enlightenment French Revolution Emigration from the Holy Land Relations with Judaism Relations with Islam Influences
Denominations(list, members)	Western Catholic Old Catholic Independent Catholic (Palmarian) Protestant Adventist Anabaptist Anglican Baptist Charismatic Evangelical Holiness Lutheran Methodist Pentecostal Quakers Reformed Western Rite Orthodoxy Eastern Eastern Orthodox Church Oriental Orthodox (Miaphysite) Church of the East (Nestorian) Eastern Catholic Restorationist Jehovah's Witnesses Latter Day Saint movement Iglesia ni Cristo
Theology	Ablution Angel Born again Christology Divine apathy Ecclesiology Four marks Body of Christ One true church People of God Canon law Faith Fall of man Forbidden fruit Garden of Eden Final Judgement God Trinity Father Son Holy Spirit Good works Heaven Hell Holy water Hygiene Kingdom of God Liturgy Catholic Eastern Catholic Eastern Orthodox Protestant Love of Christ of God Mariology Theotokos Mission Monasticism Mortification Catholic Of the flesh New Covenant Nicene Creed Old Covenant Views Original sin Penance Prayer Repentance Sacraments Baptism Eucharist Marriage Confirmation Penance Anointing of the Sick Holy orders Saints Salvation Satan Sin Eternal sin Mortal sin Sins that cry to Heaven for Vengeance Seven deadly sins Venial sin Tradition Values Vice Works of mercy Worship
Philosophy	Natural law Ethics Science Evolution Politics Social mortgage Universal destination of goods Views on poverty and wealth Option for the poor Worldview
Otherfeatures	Culture Alcohol Architecture Architecture of cathedrals and great churches Art Jesus Mary Trinity God the Father Holy Spirit Atonement Christmas Church buildings Lists of cathedrals Crucifix Cupio dissolvi Evangelism Catechesis Catechism Catholic priest Folk Christianity Open-air Pastor Fallen woman Magdalene asylum Flag Flagellant Forgiveness Literature Marriage Catholic Music Chant Choir Gospel Hymn Introit Pop Psalm Requiem Mythology Pilgrimage Popular piety Redemptive suffering Role in civilization Self-flagellation Sign of the cross Symbolism Movements Crusading movement Anarchism Charismatic Democracy Evangelism Mission Environmentalism Existentialism Fundamentalism Liberation Left/Right Mysticism Pacifism Prosperity Supremacy Terrorism Traditionalist Catholicism Cooperation Christendom Ecumenism Charta Oecumenica World Council of Churches World Evangelical Alliance Nondenominationalism Related ... and Bhuddhism ... and Druze ... and Hinduism ... and Islam ... and Judaism ... and Paganism ... and other religions ... and violence ... as an ethnicity Anti-Christian sentiment Christian universalism Criticism Jesus Cultural Christians Good and evil Great Apostasy Martyrs Miracle Nominal Christian Persecution Religious views on love Role of Christianity in civilization Christianization Cultural Christians Spread Unlimited atonement Views on homosexuality
Christianity portal Category

v t e History of Christianity
Spread History of theology Historicity of the Bible List of martyrs
Timeline	Centuries 1st 2nd and 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st
EarlyChristianity	Origins andApostolic Age Background Chronology of Jesus birth baptism ministry crucifixion resurrection Great Commission ascension historical Jesus Holy Spirit Apostles in the New Testament Jewish Christianity Split Paul the Apostle Council of Jerusalem Gospels Acts Pauline epistles General epistles Revelation Ante-Niceneperiod Diversity Adoptionism Arianism Docetism Donatism Gnosticism Marcionism Montanism Canon development Persecution Apostolic / Church Fathers Clement of Rome Polycarp Ignatius Irenaeus Justin Martyr Tertullian Origen Great Church Early African Thomasines
Late antiquity	Constantine Constantinian shift Roman state religion Monasticism Councils Nicaea I Creed Christianity Athanasius Jerome Augustine Constantinople I Ephesus I Chalcedon Chalcedonian / Non-Chalcedonian Biblical canon
Catholicism(Timeline)	Papacy Development of primacy Eastern Orthodox opposition Peace and Truce of God Crusading movement Lateran IV Art patronage of Julius II Leo X Counter-Reformation Trent Art Catholic Reformation Jesuits Xavier Thomas More Monastery dissolution Wars Mass rocks and priest holes Guadalupe Jansenists Molinists Neo-Scholasticism Teresa Modernism Independent Catholics Vatican I and Vatican II Ecclesial community
EasternChristianity	Eastern Orthodoxy Oriental Orthodoxy Church of the East Chrysostom Nestorianism Icons Iconodulism Iconoclasm Great Schism Fall of Constantinople Armenia Georgia Greece Egypt Syriac Ethiopia Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Russia Serbia North America
Middle Ages	Pelagianism Gregory I Celtic Germanic Anglo-Saxon Franks Gothic Scandinavian Iceland Slavs Bohemia Bulgaria Kievan Rus' Moravia Poland Pomerania Investiture Anselm Abelard Bernard Bogomils Bosnian Cathars Apostolic Brethren Dulcinian Crusades Waldensians Inquisition Early Scholasticism Christian mysticism Dominic Francis Bonaventure Aquinas Five Ways Wycliffe Avignon Papal Schism Bohemian Reformation Hus Conciliarism Synods
ReformationandProtestantism	Erasmus Eucharist Calvinist–Arminian debate Arminianism Wars Resistance theories Separation of church and state Nicodemites Hymnody of continental Europe Formal and material principles Law and Gospel Literature Protestant work ethic Lutheranism Luther Ninety-five Theses Diet of Worms Theology Bible Melanchthon Book of Concord Orthodoxy Eucharist Art Calvinism Zwingli Calvin Huguenots Presbyterianism Scotland Knox TULIP Baptism Dort Three Forms of Unity Westminster Orthodoxy Metrical psalters Anglicanism(Timeline) Henry VIII Cranmer Elizabethan 39 Articles Puritans Civil War Church music Book of Common Prayer King James Version Anabaptism Theology Radical Reformation Grebel Swiss Brethren Müntzer Martyrs' Synod Menno Simons Smyth Martyrs Mirror Ausbund
1640–1789	Revivalism Missionaries timeline Baptists Separation of church and state Edicts of toleration Congregationalism First Great Awakening Methodism Millerism Pietism Fostering of early experimental science Neo- and Old Lutherans
1789–present	Camp meeting Holiness movement Second Great Awakening Restorationists Jehovah's Witnesses Mormonism Seventh-day Adventist Adventism Oxford Movement Laestadianism Finnish Awakening Christian existentialism Third Great Awakening Azusa Revival Gospel music Fundamentalist – Modernist controversy Pacifism Ecumenism Five solae Jesus movement Pentecostalism Charismatics Liberation theology Reformed epistemology Fourth Great Awakening Evangelical and Mainline Protestants Christian right and left Political influence of Evangelicalism in Latin America

Authority control databases
International	GND
National	United States France BnF data Czech Republic Spain Chile Argentina Israel
Other	IdRef Yale LUX