Sunday After Ascension 2004

Every day, morning and evening, we recite in the Apostles' Creed, "He rose again from the dead." It is often correctly observed by Christians that the Resurrection is that which makes our religion unique. The Resurrection is certainly of central importance, as St. Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 15, "But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain … But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." The Resurrection is certainly of central importance, but it is not the only thing that makes Christianity unique.

Every day, morning and evening, we recite in the Apostles' Creed, "He was born of the Virgin Mary". The Virgin Birth - another distinctive aspect of our religion.

Every day, morning and evening, we recite in the Apostles' Creed, "He ascended into heaven". Again, a uniquely Christian belief.

All three of these contemplate aspects of the Incarnation - the enfleshment of God in the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Twice daily, in the Creed, we are called to consider their uniqueness. In the course of the Church year, these three events constitute three of our four traditional "holy days of obligation" - Christmas, Easter and the Ascension. The fourth is next Sunday - Pentecost. I'm not exactly certain when we developed a slightly different practice than that of our Roman Catholic brethren as regards the list of holy days of obligation. Perhaps it is that our list is largely drawn from what are more properly called "Ecclesiastical Feasts," which they too observe. In their list of feasts of obligation, they only include the Ascension from the aforementioned four - not including Christmas, Easter or Pentecost, perhaps because essential aspects of those feasts are so well encapsulated in the prayers of the Liturgy each time the Eucharist is celebrated, and everyone is expected to be at Mass at least every Sunday anyway, and, perhaps because they are already Ecclesiastical Feasts, and as such hold a proper position of prominence already.

In passing, some may be interested to know what other feasts the Roman calendar now includes as days of obligation (except, curiously in many Canadian Dioceses, where there are only two in total): the Epiphany (a very ancient observation, also centred about our Lord's life); Corpus Christi; January 1, which they now commemorate as Holy Mary, Mother of God, the Octave Day of Christmas - which we still keep as the Feast of the Circumcision of our Lord and the Octave Day of Christmas; the Immaculate Conception of Mary (Dec. 8); Her Assumption (Aug. 15); St. Joseph (March 19); Ss. Peter and Paul (June 29); and, All Saints (Nov. 1).

Aside from these additional days of obligation, and acknowledging the importance that every Sunday in the Church year holds, our Anglican tradition is not so very different.

**********

The Creeds remind us that the Birth, Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord are unique. Therefore the Apostles' Creed reminds us daily that Jesus Christ is what makes Christianity unique.

With our Lord's Ascension, we come, approximately, to the half-way point in the Church year. Up to the Ascension, all of our focus has been on Jesus: the anticipation of His Birth and His Second Coming, His manifestation to the Gentile world, His Baptism, Fasting and Temptation, His Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection - and now, the very short Church season - Ascensiontide. Knowing that next Sunday is Pentecost, when we commemorate the coming of the Holy Spirit on the disciples in Jerusalem, do we now shift our focus away from Jesus?

One place we might certainly look is to the disciples in Jerusalem, just after their amazing experience of flames of fire, speaking in tongues - of the coming of the Holy Spirit on them. Happily, in our Bible Study group, we have just begun to consider the Acts of the Holy Apostles, near the beginning of which this episode is recorded. Now, let us try to imagine ourselves in this situation, having just had an astonishing encounter with the Holy Spirit. After this incredible experience, did the Apostles go out and start to preach about the Holy Spirit? No, immediately, upon being accused by witnesses of being drunk, Peter preaches what has been called the first Christian sermon - and his topic? Jesus Christ. Subsequent sermons in the next chapters - Jesus Christ. Clearly, even though our Lord had ascended, and the disciples had experienced what surely must have been an overwhelming encounter with the Holy Spirit, they were inspired to preach about what makes our religion unique - Jesus Christ - especially focussing on His Resurrection and Ascension.

If we consider the New Testament as a whole, we must surely acknowledge that its primary focus is God breaking into space and time in the Person of Jesus Christ. And when we stack Him up against other great religious leaders we must also acknowledge that it is not only His manner of entry into and exit from this world that make Him unique - but also that the focus, both in the Gospels, and especially in the Epistles, is about Jesus Christ Himself, moreso than is the case with other great religious leaders.

When a great teacher or prophet becomes the founder of a new religion, it is always their master's teaching which their disciples go forth to proclaim and to spread. Christianity is markedly different, for the message of the first apostolic preaching was not the teachings of Jesus at all - important as these may be - but Jesus Christ Himself. And, as mentioned, the New Testament, outside of the Gospels, contains rather few references to the things which Jesus taught; whereas it is concerned throughout with the living and eternal Jesus Christ Himself, Who is offered to men as their personal Saviour. Even the Gospels themselves are not primarily about Jesus' teachings, but about Jesus Himself. The central message of the New Testament is not, "Thus did Jesus teach" - though many today seem bent on focussing on only His teachings, and at that only some of His teachings, ignoring to a large extent, sometimes even completely, the substantial teachings of Jesus about Himself, and focussing only on what we might call the social gospel; the danger there being that one ends up with Rotary Club Christianity - be nice to one's neighbour. Now being nice to one's neighbour is indeed an obvious part of the Christian message, but it is nonetheless, secondary. Christianity is Christ. Rather, the central and primary message of the New Testament, which comes before, "Thus did Jesus teach", or, being nice to one's neighbour, is "Sursum Corda" - "lift up your hearts to the living Lord" - "love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind and strength". This must come first; and when God moves us to lift our hearts to Him, to love Him so, then love of our neighbours becomes a natural consequence. It is in this focus on Jesus Himself, and in the conviction about the reality of His living Presence and of His power to save, that the position held by Jesus in religious history differs from that of all prophets, religious leaders, mystics and reformers.

As we pause, ever so briefly here in Ascensiontide, to consider that unique event in human history; and, as we look forward to Pentecost and Trinitytide, it is not my intention to minimize the importance of the teachings of Jesus Christ, nor is it my desire to shove the presence of God the Holy Spirit into the background. Without the former, we would be lacking many guideposts in our daily lives and in our dealings with others. Without the presence, comfort and counsel of the latter we would be adrift without spiritual guidance.

It is definitely my intention to remind us of the source of both. Jesus' teachings point to Himself, and He is the desire of all who would follow Him, not His teachings. God the Holy Spirit, as Jesus Himself tells us in today's Gospel reading is sent by Jesus from the God the Father; and, He, God the Holy Spirit, just like the apostles in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, testifies of Jesus.

"He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father … Whose kingdom shall have no end," to whom with the same God the Father, and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.

THE ANNUNCIATION OTTAWA 2004 CLRK