In ascensionem Sermo 2

On the Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Second Sermon. Blessed is God. It is timely today for all of us to cry out that prophetic saying, and to hymn together the Master of us all, and to say: Who will speak of the mighty deeds of the Lord, who will make all his praises heard? For today our firstfruits have ascended into heaven, and he who took up flesh from us has occupied the paternal throne, in order to effect reconciliation with his servants, and to remove the ancient enmity, and to bestow the peace of the higher powers upon earthly men. For today our victory celebrations against the devil are common, the prizes are common, the rewards are common, the crowns are common, and the glory is common. Therefore let us all leap for joy, seeing our firstfruits seated above, and our nature occupying the throne at the right hand of God. For if the wonderful prophet counts as blessed those who have offspring from Zion and relatives in Jerusalem, much more must we rejoice and exult, seeing our firstfruits having ascended to the very summit of heaven and having taken hold of the royal throne.

Consider, beloved, how great is the goodness of our God and the ineffable economy that has taken place concerning our race, which had fallen from paradise through the deceit of the devil and had been condemned to so great a curse all at once, and to what height he has raised it. And how we, who proved unworthy of the earth, have today been raised to heaven, and our nature, which was formerly deemed unworthy even of paradise. For this nature has assumed the presidency of heaven, and that which was once the plaything of demons is today worshipped by angels and the powers above. O blessed envy! O fair conspiracy! O envy of good things, procurer of countless blessings for us, you have given birth to a covenant of immortality. For that wicked demon, having envied our nature when it had its abode on earth, now sees it worshipped in heaven; and having stolen, as he thought, great and incomparable things, he now sees us enjoying greater and more splendid ones. Therefore I leap and rejoice today, and I invite you to join me in the dance. For we, who were not worthy even of earthly rule, have ascended to the highest kingdom, have surpassed the heavens, have laid hold of the royal throne, and the nature, on account of which the Cherubim guarded paradise, is now borne aloft, worshipped. Be amazed, then, beloved, at the resourcefulness of your Master, and glorify him who has granted you such great things. For the generosity of the gift has surpassed the magnitude of the loss. For see: we had fallen from paradise, and we have been raised to heaven itself; we were condemned to death, and immortality has been granted to us.

We had been offensive and cast off, and He deemed us worthy to be called sons, and not only sons, but also heirs, and not only heirs, but also co-heirs of Christ. See how the gifts given to us by the Lord are greater than what was taken away. But when you hear that He went up and was taken up, do not suppose a local descent in the case of God; for the Godhead fills all things, is present everywhere, and is absent nowhere, as overseer of all and creator of all. But the body consubstantial with us, which He deigned to take up and be seen on earth, like us in all respects, it is this that is taken up on our behalf. And for this reason let us all together today cry out that prophetic saying: God went up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet, and let us celebrate this brilliant and splendid festival, since we have all in common enjoyed the gift from Him. Just as a benevolent master, loving his own servant, does not refuse to put on his garment because of his affection for him, so also our Master Christ, loving our nature and seeing it brought down into the depth of evil, having no hope of salvation and needing much condescension, deigned to take up our body. And for this reason, having appeared to the world, He freed all men from error and led them back to the truth; and He cries out in the Gospel, saying: I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.

What He wished, He accomplished: He raised up the human nature lying low somewhere below, and displayed such great love for humanity that the account of what happened cannot be contained by human reasoning. For how, tell me, did we, who had offended, who proved unworthy of the earth, and fell from the rule from below, suddenly be raised to such a height? How was the war ended? How was the anger removed? For this is the marvelous thing, full of great astonishment: that not we ran to Him, but He who was justly indignant with us interceded on our behalf, and thus peace was made. And Paul cries out, saying: "We intercede for Christ, as God entreats through us." Do you see the resourceful wisdom? Do you see the unspeakable love of the Master? Do you see the surpassing care? Now the sting of death has been dissolved; now the victory of Hades has been shattered; now the dominion of death has been abolished; now the enmity has been dissolved; now the long-standing war has been extinguished. Men then were likened to angels; men were mingled with angels, and a great bond of this common name has been established. For the common Master ascended, having reconciled His own Father with the human race. And that He ascended for this reason, hear Him saying: "It is beneficial for you that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Paraclete will not come to you." And He promises to give us the coming of the Paraclete as a sign of the reconciliation. For see how precisely He added the following: "And He Himself," He says, "will lead you into all truth.

clearly wandering, and being led here and there, and the Holy Spirit, sent down, will guide us all to the truth. For since He Himself was angry, and we, even so, were turning away from the philanthropic Master, our Master Christ, placing Himself in the middle, accomplished the reconciliation. For He truly broke down the partition wall of the fence. Hence we now have good hopes, looking to the Lord of our firstfruits. For whatever you might say from now on, I no longer fear; whether you say worm, or dust, or fire, or punishment, or gnashing of teeth, or ashes, or whatever you might say to me, all things are contemptible to me as I look upon my firstfruits seated above, and all but speaking to all men and crying out: "Abandon laziness from now on, and recognize your own nobility, having considered the measure of the gifts of which you are soon to receive a share." For, while dwelling with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to await the promise of the Father. Observe in this also the care of the Master; for, seeing the weakness of human nature, and that it needs much assistance, He granted the help of the Holy Spirit, so that man might become invincible against the machinations of the devil. And it has become the same as if some excellent general, seeing the soldiers arrayed under him not enduring the threats of the enemy, but being struck with terror by the struggle, were to strengthen them all, having surrounded them on all sides with breastplate, shield, helmet, and the rest

in full armor. So also our Lord Jesus Christ, seeing that the dominion of the opposing powers was great, and that for this reason human nature needed much assistance, bestowed the grace of the Holy Spirit, so that he who formerly feared the phalanxes of demons might now appear terrible to them, and strike them with terror, and by his mere appearance drive away the treacherous serpent. For such is the grace of the Holy Spirit: wherever it appears, it causes the phalanxes of demons and all opposing powers to flee. For you will receive power, he says, when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. And what was this power? That which he also said to them before: Heal the sick, cleanse lepers, cast out demons, and all such things; for there will be no disease so strong, he says, that it will not yield to the power of the Holy Spirit. So many good things has this day caused for us. For today the angels received what they had long desired, seeing our nature shining from the royal throne. And that you may learn the difference between servant and master: when Elijah was taken up, he endured this in a fiery chariot; but when our Master was taken up with his flesh, a cloud served for the ascent. For while they were watching, it says, he was lifted up, and the cloud received him from their eyes. And that one ascended as if into heaven, for he was a servant; but this one ascended into heaven itself, for he was the Master.

Behold two men in white clothing, and they say to them: This is Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven; he will come in the manner in which you have seen him. And when it was necessary to summon the servant, a chariot was sent down; but when it was the Son, a royal throne, and not merely a throne, but the paternal throne itself. For listen to Isaiah the great-voiced speaking concerning the Father: Behold, the Lord sits upon a light cloud. For this reason he also sent down the cloud for the Son. And Elijah, having ascended, left his sheepskin to Elisha, but Jesus, having ascended, left gifts to the disciples, not making one prophet, but countless Elishas, indeed much greater and more brilliant than that one. Considering all these things, beloved, let us also requite our Master through the best way of life, so that just as he glorified us through his own gifts, so also we, through our good deeds and the best way of life, may render God propitious. Let us therefore glorify our Master, and let us despise the contempt of present things. For this is especially the best teaching, capable of leading unbelievers to the truth. For they do not attend so much to what is said by us as to what is done by us. For this reason Christ also said: Blessed is the one who does and teaches, showing that teaching through deeds is more precise than teaching through words, and more capable of leading the ungrateful to conviction.

Let us therefore be well-pleasing to God, and regulate our own life with precision, so that we may draw down the grace of the Spirit, and have greater ease in the achievement of virtue, being assisted by the power of the Spirit. For wherever grace sees a soul that is sober, there it alights abundantly. Let us therefore prepare ourselves, I exhort you, so that, strengthened by the energy of the Spirit, we may complete the present life without grief, and attain the future goods, and be deemed worthy of the kingdom of heaven. May it be that we all attain these things by the grace and loving-kindness of Him who ransomed us with the precious blood of His life-giving side, and delivered us from error and from slavery, Jesus Christ our Lord; with whom it is fitting that honor and power, all glory and magnificence be to the Father and to the holy and life-giving Spirit, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.