Ascension Day- when did it start?
Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2017 4:57 am
I read that the 'tradition' was it started in 68 A.D.-
Question- is it important to bring it to focus? Why or why not? I never heard of it being a 'special day' until I was on the MAP (Mission to Amish People) Discussion Forum years ago and found out in Amish communities, they observe "Ascension Day". That was not a part of the Churches I came from- so many things I was learning sent me on a journey to learn more history of "The Church"-
However lately Ascension Day was brought up here as a negative- a man made tradition. Could God have inspired this, and if so why? Certainly, satan would not want any focus or attention on this- one reason why, is because of this passage:
Acts 1:9-12New King James Version (NKJV)
Jesus Ascends to Heaven
9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Think about this- satan hates the reminders that when Christ returns- his time is 'up'.
here is one article I read about it- in this article, it is said the Apostles taught it-
Feast of the Ascension
Help support New Advent and get the full contents of this website as an instant download. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more — all for only $19.99...
See also The Fact of the Ascension.
The fortieth day after Easter Sunday, commemorating the Ascension of Christ into heaven, according to Mark 16:19, Luke 24:51, and Acts 1:2.
In the Eastern Church this feast was known as analepsis, the taking up, and also as the episozomene, the salvation—denoting that by ascending into His glory, Christ completed the work of our redemption. The terms used in the West, ascensio and, occasionally, ascensa, signify that Christ was raised up by His own powers. Tradition designates Mount Olivet near Bethany as the place where Christ left the earth. The feast falls on Thursday. It is one of the Ecumenical feasts ranking with the feasts of the Passion, of Easter and of Pentecost among the most solemn in the calendar, has a vigil and, since the fifteenth century, an octave which is set apart for a novena of preparation for Pentecost, in accordance with the directions of Leo XIII.
History
The observance of this feast is of great antiquity. Although no documentary evidence of it exists prior to the beginning of the fifth century, St. Augustine says that it is of Apostolic origin, and he speaks of it in a way that shows it was the universal observance of the Church long before his time. Frequent mention of it is made in the writings of St. John Chrysostom, St. Gregory of Nyssa, and in the Constitution of the Apostles. The Pilgrimage of Sylvia (Peregrinatio Etheriae) speaks of the vigil of this feast and of the feast itself, as they were kept in the church built over the grotto in Bethlehem in which Christ was born (Duchesne, Christian Worship, 491-515). It may be that prior to the fifth century the fact narrated in the Gospels was commemorated in conjunction with the feast of Easter or Pentecost. Some believe that the much-disputed forty-third decree of the Council of Elvira (c. 300) condemning the practice of observing a feast on the fortieth day after Easter and neglecting to keep Pentecost on the fiftieth day, implies that the proper usage of the time was to commemorate the Ascension along with Pentecost. Representations of the mystery are found in diptychs and frescoes dating as early as the fifth century.
Whether anyone observes it or not- I could see why & how God would have inspired it, why apparently the Apostles taught it, and why satan and his kingdom, would hate it.
Question- is it important to bring it to focus? Why or why not? I never heard of it being a 'special day' until I was on the MAP (Mission to Amish People) Discussion Forum years ago and found out in Amish communities, they observe "Ascension Day". That was not a part of the Churches I came from- so many things I was learning sent me on a journey to learn more history of "The Church"-
However lately Ascension Day was brought up here as a negative- a man made tradition. Could God have inspired this, and if so why? Certainly, satan would not want any focus or attention on this- one reason why, is because of this passage:
Acts 1:9-12New King James Version (NKJV)
Jesus Ascends to Heaven
9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Think about this- satan hates the reminders that when Christ returns- his time is 'up'.
here is one article I read about it- in this article, it is said the Apostles taught it-
Feast of the Ascension
Help support New Advent and get the full contents of this website as an instant download. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more — all for only $19.99...
See also The Fact of the Ascension.
The fortieth day after Easter Sunday, commemorating the Ascension of Christ into heaven, according to Mark 16:19, Luke 24:51, and Acts 1:2.
In the Eastern Church this feast was known as analepsis, the taking up, and also as the episozomene, the salvation—denoting that by ascending into His glory, Christ completed the work of our redemption. The terms used in the West, ascensio and, occasionally, ascensa, signify that Christ was raised up by His own powers. Tradition designates Mount Olivet near Bethany as the place where Christ left the earth. The feast falls on Thursday. It is one of the Ecumenical feasts ranking with the feasts of the Passion, of Easter and of Pentecost among the most solemn in the calendar, has a vigil and, since the fifteenth century, an octave which is set apart for a novena of preparation for Pentecost, in accordance with the directions of Leo XIII.
History
The observance of this feast is of great antiquity. Although no documentary evidence of it exists prior to the beginning of the fifth century, St. Augustine says that it is of Apostolic origin, and he speaks of it in a way that shows it was the universal observance of the Church long before his time. Frequent mention of it is made in the writings of St. John Chrysostom, St. Gregory of Nyssa, and in the Constitution of the Apostles. The Pilgrimage of Sylvia (Peregrinatio Etheriae) speaks of the vigil of this feast and of the feast itself, as they were kept in the church built over the grotto in Bethlehem in which Christ was born (Duchesne, Christian Worship, 491-515). It may be that prior to the fifth century the fact narrated in the Gospels was commemorated in conjunction with the feast of Easter or Pentecost. Some believe that the much-disputed forty-third decree of the Council of Elvira (c. 300) condemning the practice of observing a feast on the fortieth day after Easter and neglecting to keep Pentecost on the fiftieth day, implies that the proper usage of the time was to commemorate the Ascension along with Pentecost. Representations of the mystery are found in diptychs and frescoes dating as early as the fifth century.
Whether anyone observes it or not- I could see why & how God would have inspired it, why apparently the Apostles taught it, and why satan and his kingdom, would hate it.