“Ascendit Deus”
Acts 1:1-11
Ephesians
1:15-23
Introduction. “William H. Willimon
(once told) of being in New Haven, Connecticut as a student at Yale in l970
during the famous Black Panther Trial.” It was a turbulent time of
“strife, discord and agony.” During the week that the crisis at New Haven
reached its peak, Willimon attended a choral mass at a nearby Catholic
Parish.” There, he listened to a boy's choir singing, “Ascendit Deus,”
meaning “God Has Gone Up.” “Willimon mused, 'Just as I thought. God
Has Gone Up. And isn't that typical? Gone up, up away from New Haven
and the angry shouts of the mob and the gunfire of the cops and the
revolutionaries.' In other words, Willimon was saying to himself, 'God has
abandoned us.' As he continued to listen, however, the idea struck him
that the choir did not sing, ('Abscondit Deus,')” but rather “Ascendit Deus,”
God has gone up. (William Willimon, On a Wild and Windy Mountain;
as found in King Duncan, sermon, “God Has Gone Up,” http://www.sermons.com/)
Move 1. Sometimes, with all the pain
and suffering in the world, it feels like Jesus did abandon us, though.
And even if it is not the case that Jesus abandoned us, but simply ascended,
what does that mean? At least once per year on Ascension Sunday, the
rising of Jesus to heaven gives us a chance to consider the event.
To me, it is a rather surprising and unsettling
event. It brings up several questions, the first of which is “Why?”
Did the ascension of Jesus have to happen? Wouldn't it have been nice for
Jesus to have stuck around. His actual, physical presence on earth today
certainly is needed more than ever. Wasn't his victory over death and his
emergence from the tomb good enough? Why the ascension?
The event brings up a related question, and that is
a “where” question. The ascension of Jesus puts him where? The
presence of Jesus is something I personally treasure. I love the poem
“Footprints,” which talks about Jesus carrying us in our most difficult times of
life. The presence of Jesus is something I have felt. And yet, the
ascension of Jesus is emphasized today, seemingly in a way that leads us to
believe that he left the earth almost 2,000 years ago, to return at some later
date. The locale of Jesus, the “where” question, is raised.
The ascension of Jesus also brings up the question
of “how.” How did it happen? “The idea that Jesus ascended, like a
rocket launched into outer space,… and… sits… in a chair at the right hand of
God, is just too fantastic for us to believe. A crucifixion is
believable. A resurrection is unusual, but not unbelievable….
However, a tale about a man floating upward into the clouds sounds more like the
levitation of a magic show than it does a revelation from God.” (Carl
Hoefler, sermon, “The Same New Jesus,” www.sermons.com)
The ascension raises
questions--why? what? how?
Move 2. The disciples may
have had some of the same questions as they watched Jesus ascend, or do whatever
it is he did. But just before the ascension, they had another question--
“Is this the time when you will restore the power of Israel?” In other
words, “Jesus, after all you've been through, suffering and dying, and now
resurrected--can we finally get on with the business of overthrowing the Romans
who are controlling us? And if so, when?” They want some special
knowledge from Jesus.
Like the disciples, people today are fascinated with the idea that some special knowledge of Jesus exists, over and above what can be fairly plainly known. Many people have read books like Left Behind and The DaVinci Code, fascinated with their premises. Many who have read Left Behind are fascinated with the idea that with a proper reading of the Bible, humans can accurately read the signs of the times, knowing when and how the end of the world will unfold. In the book, packed with action, they are led through the Bible, as hidden meanings and special knowledge of biblical words and numbers are revealed.
Though lots of people understand that
The DaVinci Code, like Left Behind, is a work of fiction, many are
nevertheless interested in its descriptions of secret societies, of hidden
aspects of famous art and architecture, and of suppressed gospels. Many
wonder--what is true, and what is not? They wonder--could Jesus have
been married? Was he merely a human, not divine at all, but only declared
divine by powerful men hundreds of years after the fact in order to maintain the
power of the church and support its male-dominated control? Many who have
read the book find a compelling and exciting story, full of secret knowledge
being revealed.
Many are also interested in the recent release of
information regarding a gospel purportedly written by Judas, the disciple who
betrayed Jesus. People are coming to realize that there are many gospels
not included in the Bible, and some are wondering--why are they not
included? Do they contain secrets that the church hierarchy wanted and
continues to want suppressed?
Human beings have been given the gift of
intellectual curiosity. The disciples, even though uneducated men, had
very legitimate questions. People today likewise have
questions.
Move 3. Certainly, we cannot in a short
time address all of these questions with the attention they deserve. Allow
me, then, to share a few thoughts and suggestions, with this premise: that we
already are in possession of the best source we have on Jesus, and that is the
Bible as it stands.
First, I suggest this to you--read and study.
I have read The DaVinci Code--and do intend to see the movie--as well as
Left Behind, and have done some study on both books. So many people
in our community have done the same, and this makes for a great opportunity that
we don't often get to talk about faith matters of importance. I am not at
all in favor of boycotting the The DaVanci Code movie, as some are
calling for, but am in favor of using the film as an occasion for
dialogue. In fact, I invite you to some upcoming occasions for
dialogue. This Wednesday from 10:30-11:30, at Border's Bookstore, we'll be
discussing The DaVinci Code, and all are invited. Also, you are
invited to St. John's Episcopal Church, on 3 Wednesday evenings starting on June
7th, for dinner and discussion; you are requested to call St. John's
and make reservations if you plan to attend. Read and
study.
Second, as you may already know, we have in the
Bible the four gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John--that not only are the
earliest written, not only are likely written by, or based on accounts from,
eyewitnesses, but also that emphasize Jesus' respect for women and men
alike. In reading The DaVinci Code, you might come away with the
conclusion that the gospels not included in the Bible glorify the sacred nature
of women, and that the ones included denigrate women. I believe that's a
pretty difficult case to make, when you consider that the women in the four
well-known, biblical gospels are portrayed with courage and faith, very unlike
the male disciples; and when you consider texts, such as this one from the
unincluded “Gospel of Thomas,” in which Peter says to Jesus, “'Let Mary leave
us, because women are not worthy of the Life,'” to which Jesus responds, “'Look,
I shall guide her so that I will make her male, in order that she also may
become a living spirit, being like you males. For every woman who makes
herself male will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.'” (David R. Cartlidge,
Documents for the Study of the Gospels, 1980, p. 35) I don't know
about you, but I don't believe Jesus actually said this, and I really don't care
to have that particular passage in the Bible.
Third, also as you may know, the four gospels we
have in the Bible strike an important balance between the humanity and divinity
of Jesus. In reading The DaVinci Code, you might conclude that the
suppressed gospels have the true picture of Jesus when they deny his
divinity. In reality, many of these gospels (again, all written
later than the four we have in our Bible) disparage the created world and the
flesh. The Gospel of Philip, for example, says that “The world came into
being through an error. For he who created it intended to create it
imperishable and immortal. He failed to attain his hope.”
(Cartlidge, p. 77) The four biblical gospels celebrate the humanity and
divinity of Jesus.
As I read other sources, other than those that are
in the Bible, I find them interesting, even worth reading; but they are not the
earliest, and do not seem the most authentic characterizations of Jesus
Christ.
Move 4. And so, back to the
ascension. If we believe that the Bible is our most reliable source on
Jesus and the early Christian movement, then the ascension is something with
which we need to come to grips.
Language always intends to be descriptive, but often
falls short of reality. Take for example the phrase, “the rising
sun.” This scientifically inaccurate phrase came about before our
understanding that it really is not that the sun is rising, but rather that the
earth is turning; and yet it continues to be used. Sometimes, language is
used in a way that we know what it means, even though it falsely or only
partially describes a particular occurrence.
The ascension of Jesus, however it happened,
revealed “to the (disciples)… that Jesus was moving up to a new mode of
existence and activity. He was not only raised from death; he was raised
up from this space-bound, time-bound life to reign eternally in glory. This
profound revelation” had to be communicated somehow, using imperfect language,
and it could not “be communicated without the…imagery of a movement
upward…upward to a (new) level of life - a life that was higher than the
tangible, material, localized, and limited life that we know.” (Hoefler)
And whatever happened, it became “the immeasurable greatness of his power to
those who believed,” according to Ephesians. It prompted the disciples to
lose their fear and to begin boldly proclaiming Christ risen even when they were
threatened with death, and ultimately killed, for this
belief.
The ascension energized not only the
disciples. It continues to energize Christians all over the world to be
Christ's witnesses. It continues to propel people to boldly proclaim a
radical message of love, forgiveness, and salvation. Christ risen
continues to be for people in dangerous places reason enough even to be killed
rather than renounce it, just as the disciples did so long ago.
Though the ascension is not easily grasped, it is
difficult to deny its importance to the disciples, and its importance to the
Christian faith.
Conclusion. And even though he is
ascended, we do have Jesus walking with us today. Barbara Brown Taylor
likens this “both/and” situation to her husband's great love for hawks.
“Many times Barbara feared for her life as her husband veered off the road to
catch a better look at (hawks) circling overhead…. (She) used to be irritated by
her husband's fascination with the birds. But recently she and her husband
were apart for two months. During that time, Barbara found herself
noticing hawks all over the place. Every time she went for a drive, she saw a
hawk. Without even thinking about it, she began to notice all the little details
her husband had taught her to notice. Suddenly, Barbara realized that she was
seeing the hawks through her husband's eyes.” She felt his spirit “in her
in such a way that she saw the birds in the same way he did.” (Barbara
Brown Taylor, “The Day We Were Left Behind,” Christianity Today, May 18,
1998, p. 48; as found in King Duncan, sermon, “Building a Faith,” http://www.sermons.com/)
“Ascendit Deus.” God has gone up. And,
God is with us. God wants our very hearts and lives to be energized to see
the world as God sees it, and to act, accordingly, in love.
May 28, 2006
Rev. Dave Hedgepeth
First Presbyterian Church
Logan, Utah