Clergy from left, The Rev. Mary Ann Hill, Pastor Nicolé Ferry, Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, retired, Associate Priest Lynn Finnegan and Pastor Deb Church. Photo by Nate Limback/ladailypost.com
By Pastor LYNN FINNAGAN
Associate Priest
The Episcopal Church of the Holy Faith
Santa Fe
The Christian holy day of Ascension occurs forty days after Easter (counting Easter as Day One). The Western Church celebrated Ascension this past Thursday May 9. While considered an essential part of Christian faith proclaiming the birth, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, Ascension Day gets short shrift. First, Ascension always falls on a Thursday, instead of the more popular Sunday time slot. Talk about a poor marketing strategy! Second, Ascension sometimes feels like an afterthought to resurrection, and its significance is unfortunately shadowed by the two major feasts of Easter and Pentecost. And third, the Ascension story is just a little weird for our modern sensibilities.
The story of Christ’s ascension is recorded in the bible in two locations and implied in others. The writer of the Book of Acts describes a scene where Jesus, after having made several post-resurrection appearances, “was taken up into a cloud while they [the apostles] were watching, and they could no longer see him.” Acts 1:9. For some time I was perplexed by the image of Jesus levitating into the sky and then drifting out of sight like an escaped balloon. Or perhaps shooting into the stratosphere like an Elon Musk SpaceX mission. If you are inclined to be skeptical, you might add this to your repertoire of religious hocus-pocus and look away. Or, like many Christians today, you might just give lip service to the Ascension. No doubt about it, the Ascension challenges us. I’d like to encourage you, however, to look deeper into this rich mystical event.
In the Ascension, we affirm that the mysterious union of Christ’s full humanity and full divinity continues – no bodies are left behind. The Ascension allows for God’s fullness on earth and in heaven to continue – Jesus isn’t escaping or “going home.” He is “lifted up” (a metaphorical biblical expression) but not away. The disciples would no longer be joining him for a boat ride, but prior to ascending Jesus assured them (and us!) of two things: 1) he will never abandon them (and us!) and 2) he will prepare a place for them (and us!).
My favorite Ascension painting is by the 16th century German artist Hans Süss von Kulmbach. Only Christ’s dangling feet and lower legs appear, while on the ground the twelve apostles and the Virgin Mary gaze upward. I like it because the emphasis is not on the levitating Christ, but on those whose feet remain grounded. As Christ’s feet depart, our feet remain. We gaze upward, but also down at our feet and hands that have work to do. We gaze around at our companions who will join us in that work. Christ, St Teresa of Ávila wrote, has “no hands, no feet on earth but yours, yours are the eyes with which He looks Compassion on this world, yours are the feet with which He walks to do good, yours are the hands, with which He blesses all the world.” Amen.
The Ascension of Christ by Hans Süss von Kulmbach 1513. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/436835
Editor’s note: ‘All Shall Be Well’ is a column written by local women clergy including ELCA Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, M.Div., retired (czoebidd@gmail.com); Pastor Nicolé Ferry, Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church (pastornicole@bethluth.com); Associate Priest Lynn Finnegan, The Episcopal Church of the Holy Faith, Santa Fe (rev.lynn@holyfaithchurchsf.org); Pastor Deb Church, White Rock Presbyterian Church (pastor@wrpchurch.com) and The Rev. Mary Ann Hill, Rector, Trinity on the Hill Episcopal Church (momaryannhill@gmail.com).
