Ship of Fools: Ascension: the shy solemn feast

Thread: Ascension: the shy solemn feast Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Martin L (# 11804) on :

It has long been a bugbear of mine when churches simply disregard Ascension of our Lord altogether. My own denom* has it appointed for the usual Thursday, but one would be hard-pressed to find a church that even acknowledges it by a mention in the parish calendar, let alone by a service. Our most recent book of worship allows its transferral to Easter 7 (today), but once again one will be hard-pressed to find that happening. [I am of mixed emotions about transfer, but sometimes a compromise must be struck.] Unfortunately, that same book of worship eliminated the concept of a special "Ascension" section of hymns, and instead just tucked them within the "Easter" section, further downplaying the feast.

What really gets my goat is when the small liturgical nods to Ascension that rightly belong on Easter 7 (Ascension hymns, Ascension preface) are likewise ignored. I attended a Lutheran service this morning at a church other than my own, with nary a whiff of Ascension. Furthermore, their Eastertide vigor had pretty much waned.

To be honest, I expected this, and so I did not get my hopes up at all. My own congregation, itself observing Easter 7 (the pre-printed bulletins we purchase having already made the choice for us...), nevertheless did have several subtle nods to Ascension, courtesy of yours truly, who actually knows and pays attention to such things.

It is not as if Ascension Day has no standing in Lutheran churches. On the contrary, it is a Big Deal in Scandinavia, and it was a Big Deal amongst the Scandinavian immigrants to here. It has simply fizzled out in recent times.

I know that some of you (many Catholics in particular) have permanently transferred Ascension to Easter 7, while others duly keep the feast on the 40th day of Easter.

What I am wondering is: how does your church handle this issue? If you keep Easter 7 as Easter 7, do you give any nods toward Ascensiontide anyway?

*The ELCA--Mainline Lutherans in the United States

Posted by seasick (# 48) on :

In an ideal world, we'd have kept it on Thursday but we've been doing Ascension today (with a commemoration of Aldersgate Sunday). I don't particularly like to move it to Sunday but I'd sooner do that than lose it all together. Even if we had kept Ascension on Thursday, I'd say Easter VII (or the Sunday in Ascensiontide as our Worship Book has it) should still have a clearly Ascension feel in hymns and preaching.

Posted by shamwari (# 15556) on :

I belong to the same Trade Union as Seasick and used today's service for Ascension. Complete with Ascension hymns and a chance to give "And didst thou love the race that loved not thee" a run-out.

What better lines can you have than

"O God, O Kinsman loved, but not enough,

O Man with eyes majestic after death,

Whose feet have trod along our pathways rough,

Whose lips drawn human breath"

" By that one likeness which is ours and thine

By that one nature which doth hold us kin; ........."

[ 20. May 2012, 16:40: Message edited by: shamwari ]

Posted by Angloid (# 159) on :

I celebrated two masses in a (temporarily) priestless parish this morning: presumably for that reason they didn't keep Ascension Thursday but today were constrained by the Redemptorist bulletin which provided Easter 7 (Anglican edition of course, I suppose the Catholic one was Ascension today). Added to which the organist's idiosyncratic choice of hymns, none of which obviously related to either celebration.

I rather like the post-Ascension theme of the coming of the Holy Spirit, but it doesn't really work if you haven't kept the feast already. Even in parishes which observe Ascension Day, a large proportion of the Sunday congregation are likely to have missed it, so clearly some compromise is necessary.

Posted by Anglican_Brat (# 12349) on :

Every Ascensiontide, it seems some so-called "rationalist" makes a sniveling comment about stupid Christians believing in a flying Jesus.

Last year, the collect for Ascensiontide was used as the station collect for Reign of Christ Sunday. Since then I have pondered about looking at Ascension as "Reign of Christ Sunday in Easter." Never mind arguments about "how did Jesus fly through the sky?", the spiritual meaning of the feast to me is about God exalting Christ as Lord of the entire creation.

Posted by Michael Astley (# 5638) on :

At my parish we celebrate it on the day. Our circumstances preclude the Liturgy but we'll serve Great Vespers on this coming Wednesday evening. It wouldn't occur to us to transfer it to the Sunday after. Besides, Ascension has an Afterfeast of seven days so the Sunday after Ascension always has something of a flavour of the feast about it anyway.

Posted by leo (# 1458) on :

We had a 'cluster* eucharist' on the day itself. The turnout was a pathetic 39 people.

Thew last time we had our own Solemn Eucharist we had more people than that.

I was taught that Ascension Day ranks equal with Christmas Day.

Do people need more 'teaching' or are they embarrassed by a literal understanding of the event?

* in this diocese, churches are grouped together for staffing purposes. Our cluster compromises 7 churches - 1 conevo. 1 open evangelical, 2 liberal catholic and 3 MOTR

Posted by uffda (# 14310) on :

We have a regular service every Wednesday evening, so we celebrated Ascension Day on the evening before, but a very mediocre attendance to be sure. This morning, we began the liturgy with a reading of Acts 1 followed by a litany and Ascension prayer. This led to our opening hymn "Alleluia! Sing to Jesus" and the prayer of the day for Easter 7. All the rest was Easter 7
including the Ascension preface.

I agree it's always a compromise. And I would hate to lose the propers for Easter 7 and Jesus' High Priestly Prayer. But when you can barely manage 20 people at a mid-week celebration, the
magnitude of the feast seems to demand something more.

Posted by Michael Astley (# 5638) on :

quote:
Originally posted by leo:
We had a 'cluster* eucharist' on the day itself. The turnout was a pathetic 39 people.

Thew last time we had our own Solemn Eucharist we had more people than that.

I was taught that Ascension Day ranks equal with Christmas Day.

Do people need more 'teaching' or are they embarrassed by a literal understanding of the event?

Probably a bit of both but some more teaching certainly wouldn't go amiss. In a Purgatory thread some years ago, we were discussing deification as the purpose of the Christian life, and some people - Christians - reacted as though this was some sort of bizarre, novel idea. When I asked what they thought the Ascension was all about, one person said it was about Christ going ahead to prepare a place for us. I know that's what He Himself said but the way it was put in the thread made it sound as though He'd run ahead to do the hoovering and make the beds. There are many mansions, after all.

Posted by dj_ordinaire (# 4643) on :

Okay, I will probably have my Eccles Host Stars stripped from me for admitting this, but in my private devotions I contrived to keep the Ascension a week early [Eek!]

As I was at a work conference at the time I didn't try to attend Mass - and as the conference was in the Czech Republic, I didn't really follow what was going on enough to notice on the surrounding Sundays (although I did find a celebration in Latin so was able to join in the chanting of the Ordinary and the Regina Coeli, as well as venerating both the Holy Infant AND Good King Wenceslas.... but that might be for another thread).

Getting back on topic, we kept the Sunday after Ascension today - although the CofI lectionary appoints the choosing of Matthias as the Acts reading - does anyone else get this... again? - although I don't *think* we celebrated the Ascension itself. I have to say that for once I'm rather looking forward to getting back to Ordinary Time!

Posted by Michael Astley (# 5638) on :

quote:
Originally posted by dj_ordinaire:
Okay, I will probably have my Eccles Host Stars stripped from me for admitting this, but in my private devotions I contrived to keep the Ascension a week early

I thought most "western" Christians were doing that this year anyway. [Smile]

Posted by uffda (# 14310) on :

quote:
Originally posted by dj_ordinaire:
we kept the Sunday after Ascension today - although the CofI lectionary appoints the choosing of Matthias as the Acts reading - does anyone else get this... again? Time!

This was also our first reading for Easter 7. I preached on this text. The boldness of the Acts 1 Church moving forward even before the Spirit descended. Put it in the context of Jesus' prayer for the church's unity and protection.

Posted by kingsfold (# 1726) on :

Ascension? Shy?

Not at our shack! Stanford Coelos Ascendit & Vierne Messe Solenelle on Thursday with the organist playing Messiaen's L'Ascension after the service.

And Ascensiontide theme at Mass this morning, Finzi God is gone up and Coelos Ascendit (again) at choral evensong...

[ 20. May 2012, 21:16: Message edited by: kingsfold ]

Posted by Martin L (# 11804) on :

I am thinking about utilizing the option to transfer Ascension to Easter 7 every second year. It would be shame to miss out on the powerful Easter 7 readings, but likewise it would be a shame to never keep the Ascension. If it were done every other year, then we would eventually still cycle through the 3 years' worth of propers:

2013 - Ascension (Same readings in all years of cycle)
2014 - Easter 7 Year C
2015 - Ascension
2016 - Easter 7 Year B
2017 - Ascension
2018 - Easter 7 Year A
2019 - Ascension
etc.

Once again, not a perfect solution, but a realistic compromise.

[ 20. May 2012, 21:28: Message edited by: Martin L ]

Posted by Anglican_Brat (# 12349) on :

IMHO, the liturgical problem with Ascension Day is that it is really a poor version of Easter. Biblically, the only gospel writer who separates Ascension and Resurrection is Luke. The others do not distinguish between the two events because the primary meaning is exaltation. God exalted Christ as Lord on Easter. It makes Ascension Day an after-thought.

In this line of thinking, I agree with the RCL changing today from the old Prayerbook title "Sunday after Ascension" to "The Seventh Sunday of Easter." Easter is the Queen of Feasts and ranks ahead of Ascension.

[ 21. May 2012, 04:33: Message edited by: Anglican_Brat ]

Posted by Michael Astley (# 5638) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Anglican_Brat:
IMHO, the liturgical problem with Ascension Day is that it is really a poor version of Easter. Biblically, the only gospel writer who separates Ascension and Resurrection is Luke. The others do not distinguish between the two events because the primary meaning is exaltation. God exalted Christ as Lord on Easter. It makes Ascension Day an after-thought.

The effect of the Ascension of Christ and thus the significance of our liturgical celebration of it, are actually quite different from those of Easter, and the one certainly isn't a poor relation equivalent of the other. They are both parts of the same work of salvation but they are distinct parts. One could just as easily say that Christ's humanity was shown forth at his Nativity so the Crucifixion is an afterthought.

Posted by venbede (# 16669) on :

In one sense, every Sunday is a poor relation of Easter, an opportunity to reflect and draw out the wonders of the mystery.

I notice my church had already moved the Paschal Candle back to the font yesterday. Clergy need educating as much as laity.

I have severe doubts about "it's only worth doing if we get bums on seats" argument.

Posted by Comper's Child (# 10580) on :

We do a solemn mass with choir on the Ascension (as well as two earlier low masses). The Sunday following is "of Easter" with references to the Ascension as well.

Posted by Bishops Finger (# 5430) on :

We kept Ascension on the Day - a Low Mass with 3 hymns (and incense) - though we expected (and got) a Low attendance. It was actually a bit lower than might have been the case, had not some of our weekday faithful been off sick or on holiday! Never mind......and we shall do the same again for Corpus Christi on 7th June.

We used the readings etc. for Easter 7 yesterday, as per Common Worship, but with Ascension-tide hymns.

Ian J.

Posted by Mamacita (# 3659) on :

I enjoyed an Ascension Day eucharist at St. James Cathedral in Chicago, as part of an event featuring Giles Fraser as a speaker (who was absolutely splendid).

For her homily, the Dean of the Cathedral started out by admitting that very few churches did a proper Ascension Day any more, "with the exception of a certain parish on LaSalle Street." *

*A shout-out to Oblatus. [Big Grin]

Posted by Vulpior (# 12744) on :

I was one seven or eight at a 6pm Ascension Day service. We even sang hymns!

Posted by PD (# 12436) on :

We managed twenty between the two Masses on Ascension Day - i.e. Thursday - which is about half our ASA. However, the cunning buggers turned up for the morning Low celebration rather than the evening High celebration! Consequently the latter was a bit limp.

The Sunday after turned out to be rather well attended at my place. My assistant was rather pleased with himself afterwards. I was away bishopping (and getting cooked) in Tucson. I just hope that Whitsunday goes as well.

PD

Posted by Ceremoniar (# 13596) on :

We did Ascension Thursday with a Low Mass in the morning, and High Mass in the evening. Nearly two hundred were present at the High Mass, partially because following the Mass, there was a surprise celebration IHO of the parish's permanent deacon, who was celebrating his 25th anniversary as a deacon. [Angel]

Posted by Bos Loquax (# 16602) on :

My new parish had Ascension, including a choral service (which I attended) that evening. It was better-attended than I was expecting, just about as well-attended as a regular Sunday, but then again this was also someone's last day at the parish.

My old parish no longer has a special Ascension service; in previous years, there have been such evening services, though they were never as well-attended as a regular Sunday service. At the same time (I consistently attended them after I started going there), they were never too poorly attended, either. I can't think of any very obvious reason for the current lack, and my best guess is a number of "practical" reasons. (Over time, the same sort of thing happened to a few other feast days that tend to fall on weekdays: I can think of at least three examples.)

I do think, though, that on the Sunday after, at least there was a nod to Ascension in the sermon or something like that. (I don't know about my new parish because I was in a different area that day, but I'd suppose that there was a mention there too.)

As far as I know, we Episcopalians haven't had a provision to transfer Ascension to the Sunday--or at least not a relatively old and relatively well-advertised provision.

Posted by Anselmina (# 3032) on :

Apart from Good Friday evening (for some reason) our lot seem to struggle with the idea of a church service outside of Sunday morning. But, nevertheless, we have Ascension Day Communion on the day itself, in the evening. Said communion with a very brief homily of sorts. Pitiful attendance, lucky to get into double figures.

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