Ascension Thursday

Last updated on: June 2, 2011 at 10:16 am by Dave Griffey

Ascension Thursday 2011-06-02T10:16:00-04:00 Dave Griffey

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

As a former Baptist, I sometimes forget the myriad holy days and special feast days that are peppered across the Catholic Church calendar. A bulwark of traditional, historical Christianity, the notion of so many days dedicated to this or that period in the life of Christ (let alone the saints), was largely forgotten in modern Evangelical practice.

Protestantism is a product of Western European post-Renaissance thinking. Most denominations, in fact, are products of American culture, flowing with the latest trends and fads. Sometimes resisting, sometimes conforming, often without realizing either. I know. I’m the first to notice that some of what the Catholic Church does seems to be more influenced by outside forces than revealed through the sacred Tradition passed down from the Apostles. But Protestantism, especially the non-liturgical brand that Baptist life found itself within, is particularly vulnerable to being caught upon the latest wave.

So for most Baptists, the main holidays were Christmas (with a Christmas eve service), and Easter. Some had Good Friday services, most would have something special on Palm Sunday. A growing number were rediscovering celebrations such as Maundy Thursday or Advent. But that was it. Other holidays, such as Mother’s Day, July 4th, Memorial Day, New Year’s and Thanksgiving would round out the average Church Year. In later years, Super Bowl Sunday was becoming a popular event.

So outside of the historic traditions of the Catholic/Orthodox, it’s easy to forget that Christmas does not end on the 25th, or Easter on the Monday following. Historically, Easter is just now coming to an end with Ascension Thursday and Pentecost. What does Ascension Thursday commemorate? Well, the name speaks for itself. It marks the the Ascension of Jesus, when the Paschal Candle that was lit at the Easter Vigil is taken away to mark the departure of Christ from the world. That’s a nice little reminder that this season – that’s right, season – is come to and end.

For most of Protestantism the uneasy dance done with our secular world, that only cared about such holidays as Christmas or Easter as far as toys and candy bunnies could take it, has run its course. Many are waking up to the fact that we can no longer mimic what goes on outside of the Church walls, because it is no longer concerned with what goes on inside the Church walls. Not that it ever was. But there was a day when the faith and devotion of the general public demanded at least lip service from Madison Avenue and Wall Street.

Today, with the rise of post-Christian and anti-Christian culture, those who only worship Mammon or Baal need no longer pay any service at all. They can throw the toys out sometime in September, then start tearing things down by about December 23 to make way for the next consumer spending frenzy. Likewise Easter is good from around late February until the day or two before Easter Weekend, when it’s time to set out the summer barbecue section in the store.

Just what Protestant and Evangelical denominations are doing to meet this shift is beyond my guessing. From the traits of post-doctrinal denominations, I fear the decisions are not always the best. Again, Protestantism is so intertwined with the Western Cultural Tradition that I’m afraid at least part of it must die with that tradition. But within the historic Faith, manifested in the Catholic/Orthodox traditions, it’s nice to be reminded that we celebrate as the Church has for centuries. Long before department stores. Long before the United States even existed. In some cases, long before Western Civilization itself existed. And when you think of it that way, while watching the Paschal Candle removed for the season, it’s not hard to agree with Chesterton when he said that the Catholic Faith is the only thing that frees a man from the degrading slavery of being a child of his age.

[Y]ou shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth.

And when he had said these things, while they looked on, he was raised up: and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

June 2, 2011

Carl Pope reflects on the Aspen Environment Forum

Next Post

June 2, 2011 Catholic Online asks a useless question

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion Atheism Awesome things Bigotry for the hip American Blogging Books Catholic Catholic Teaching Catholics on the Internet Christian Persecution Christian Unity Christianity and America Christianity in the Post-Modern World Christianity in the world Culture of Death Culture of Life Current Events Decline and Fall of the Christian West Defending Liberty Fun Stuff Global Warming Good Causes Good News Gun Control Health Care History Holidays Homeschool Humor Important things Inspiring Stories Interesting Insights Interesting Stories Islam and the West Liberal "Tolerance" Liberal observations Life in a post-Christian world Memorial Movies Musings News Other Blogs Our Big Politically Correct Bother Politics Popular Culture Post Modern Values Prayers Pro Life Promoting LGBT Protecting Liberty Racism in the world today Scientism Social Observations Sports Strange Stories The Boys The Catholic Church and the Left The Decline and Fall of the American Dream The end of liberty The Faith and the Left The Faith and the Right The Family The Greatness of God The Internet The Leftist Juggernaut The LGBT Question The Media The Pope The post-liberal Left The Power of Propaganda Tributes Twilight of the American Experiment Uncategorized Uneducating Postmoderns When the Church is wrong Why learn from history when we can repeat it instead Wisdom in the Post Modern Age World Events

Select a Month August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does "Shema" mean in Hebrew?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Obey Wait Hear Pray