cur deus homo: ascension and pentecost

ascension day has been down-graded in the western church since vatican ii. caught up in the great-history-of-religion-only understanding of christianity that seems to prevail in so many seminaries and popular "theologians," the gargamel of the "early church's" celebration of the great fifty days has taken all. i first noticed this when i first began to enter the great church, but i didn't know it. the rector at my parish was old-school, and blew out the paschal candle on ascension day. i, having read all the lastest stuff, was of course horrified. (and of course octaves have been "suppressed," so not much mention was made of ascension in the days following, a situation that has become more true with the new common lectionary.)

but there is, i have found, wisdom in the older understanding of the importantce of the ascension, which was brought home to me yesterday in a wonderfully non-western-arrogant way. a friend, who is vicar of a near-by episcopal church, was having tea with me, and said that in that church she held an ascension day service, to which only two other people came. one was an elderly chinese woman, whose father had been a priest in china. indeed he seems to have been a priest in the old nestorian succession, which still exists in china and which has continued to maintain its lineage even though the government denies its existence. he had taught her that the feast of the ascension is the most important feast of the year, even more important than christmas.

if god became man so that man might become god, as anselm of canterbury and many other theologians have suggested, then then ascension of christ is the moment, if there is only one moment, when our humanity is taken into the kingdom of heaven. god the son takes on our humanity, and takes it to the right hand of the father.

this is not the only moment this happens, of course. it happens each time we celebrate the liturgy. we who represent the cherubim, leave beside all earthly cares. only after our nature has been purified by the "life creating trinity" can we receive the gift of the holy spririt.