{"id":7716,"date":"2015-05-22T19:07:35","date_gmt":"2015-05-22T18:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/?p=7716"},"modified":"2015-05-22T19:07:35","modified_gmt":"2015-05-22T18:07:35","slug":"ascension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/?p=7716","title":{"rendered":"Ascension"},"content":{"rendered":"

Peeling Back The Depth Of A Word\u00a0<\/strong>Words\u2019 deeper meanings can be masked by casual over usage. Christians use distinctive words to describe a person leaving this world. We hear phrases such as \u2013 \u2018dying\u2019, \u2018going to God\u2019, and \u2018passing\u2019. When speaking of Jesus and of Mary the words used are quite particular, Jesus \u2018ascends\u2019 and Mary is \u2018assumed\u2019. Is there a distinction and, if so, what might it be? We don\u2019t describe ourselves as candidates either for ascending or being assumed! Since this is the feast of The Ascension of the Lord our focus is \u2018ascension\u2019.The word ascension has overtones of a fitting and to be expected conclusion. In England, a Prince of Wales is spoken of as, one day, ascending the throne. The implication being that, by birth, this person is uniquely called to be a monarch. Now, with gender equality, perhaps it is more correct to say that a Prince or Princess of Wales will ascend the throne.<\/p>\n

Jesus\u2019 Ascension is out of this world and, therefore, of a different order. Jesus is, forever, at one with God in heaven as the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. As God-made-Man, Jesus, without absenting himself from the Trinity, took human form on earth, like us in all things but personal sin.<\/p>\n

Jesus by adoption of human form raised humanity to a new state; namely, becoming the brothers and sisters of God\u2019s only Son by adoption. \u00a0God-made-Man in Ascending to heaven brings humanity with him into a new and ennobled relationship with the Father in heaven as, by becoming the adopted brothers and sisters of Jesus, we are entitled to call God the Father, \u2018our\u2019 Father. Our newly enhanced relationship with the Father, through the Son, also brings us to share in The Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. \u00a0Before the birth of God-made-Man, humankind was affiliated to God, being made in God\u2019s image and likeness. \u00a0Affiliation is quite distinct from adoption.<\/p>\n

The Ascension of the Risen God-made-Man to his Father embraces, potentially, the whole of humanity. Note the word potentially, inferring that each person must continuously make individual choices to translate potentiality to reality. God has \u2018upgraded\u2019 his original embrace of humanity. Now, as members of Christ\u2019s Body on earth, we have our way opened directly to the Father. Note, not to the Garden of Eden where God walked with our first parents who then brought banishment on themselves through their disobedience. \u00a0Eden does not equate with heaven.<\/p>\n

God becoming Man, in the person of Jesus, gave humanity the opportunity of entering heaven. Prior to their succumbing to Satan, Adam and Eve were fulfilled, content even, in the \u2018Garden of Eden\u2019. There\u2019s no indication that our forebears were \u2018in transit\u2019. By contrast, humanity now can never be fulfilled, that is at home, here on earth \u2013 exiles are always aware, deep down, of being exiles.<\/p>\n

Humanity is the potential beneficiary of Christ\u2019s Ascension. The possibility of something so new is opened for us through Christ\u2019s Death and Resurrection culminating in The Ascension that we can neither visualise nor anticipate it. It is a gift that we are not worthy to receive. We frequently say the words – \u201cLord, I am not worthy \u2026 \u201d- but do we own them? We are unable to either merit or win Heaven. It is God\u2019s gratuitous gift to us. By contrast, Heaven is the \u2018rightful\u2019 place for the Only Begotten Son, the place to which He has the right to Ascend.<\/p>\n

Life\u2019s daily distractions and temptations can take us away from the bigger picture. Our celebration of The Ascension does not do the feast justice unless it includes Jesus\u2019 journey to this point. The annual flow of Christian celebrations from The Annunciation and Jesus\u2019 being conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit, through his heavenly signposted development \u2013 such as the voice of his heavenly Father at his Baptism by John \u2013 to his Suffering, Death, Resurrection and Ascension are to help us maintain our overall Baptismal journey on earth.<\/p>\n

Jesus came among us, at his heavenly Father\u2019s behest, out of love for us. He calls us to follow in his footsteps, as no other way will lead to the \u2018ascension\u2019 to which God calls us. Countless of his adopted sisters and brothers over subsequent centuries have done so. Some we know of, we call them \u2018Saints\u2019 and celebrate their lives. Many more are, for now, known only to God.<\/p>\n

We are called to walk faithfully, with many falls and mini-resurrections, in the footsteps of God\u2019s Divine Son who, if we are willing, will support us to our last breath. As believers, we pray for a holy and Sacramentally provided for death \u2013
\n\u201cPray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death \u2026 \u201d.<\/p>\n

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Peeling Back The Depth Of A Word\u00a0Words\u2019 deeper meanings can be masked by casual over usage. Christians use distinctive words to describe a person leaving this world. We hear phrases such as \u2013 \u2018dying\u2019, \u2018going to God\u2019, and \u2018passing\u2019. When … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archdiocese-of-liverpool"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7716"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7717,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7716\/revisions\/7717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/stbedesclaytongreen.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}