Fr. Eric Nicolai preached this meditation at Lyncroft Centre on Ascension Sunday, May 21 2023.

Ascension is traditionally celebrated 40 days after after Easter Sunday. So he was with them for 40 days, in and out, instructing. That’s why it falls on Thursday after the 7th Sunday of Easter. Early Fathers of the church celebrated it on Thursday. It was know to be a great feast.

This now is the hour that the lord spoke about. All four Gospels, presuppose that the period of the risen Lord’s appearances was limited. Paul was conscious of being the last to whom an encounter with the risen Christ was granted. In 1 Cor 15 we have these endearing words of our Lord’s appearances. "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles,  and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

Music: Waltz Op 121 No 1 Ferdinando Carulli Played by Cristian Garcia.

Thumbnail: The Ascension, in Passion Book by Albrecht Dürer ca. 1510, Metropolitan Museum, NY.