Faith Formation: Reflections on Art

Ascension of Christ by Andrea Mantegna 1506 Uffizi Gallery Florence Italy

Then Jesus led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple blessing God. Luke 24:50-52

Luke alone told the story of Christ's Ascension to the Father. Luke told it twice. The shorter version appears at the end of Luke's Gospel, while a longer, more detailed version introduces the Acts of the Apostles. Matthew closes the story with Jesus on mountain in Galilee where he blesses the disciples and sends them out. "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always to the end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20 Matthew seems to say that more than Jesus departing into heaven, the emphasis lies in promise to be with us. Jesus never left. Mark ends abruptly, with a sense of urgency to tell he disciples of the resurrection and to meet Jesus in Galilee. A later, longer, disputed ending to the Gospel includes the Ascension with key words taken up by the creeds of the church. "So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right had of God." John ends with Jesus' and Peter discussing the fate of the Beloved Disciple who appears to have written the Gospel.

Ascension Day is celebrated the Thursday before the last Sunday of Easter, which this year is May 29. The Church once offered Ascension Day services, though now they are rare, and sometimes transferred from Thursday to the following Sunday. Many countries in Europe still treat it as a public holiday. Both the Apostles and the Nicene Creed include the ascension in the confession of faith: "...he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, ..."

Ludovico Gonzaga commissioned Andrea Mantegna to paint The Ascension of Christ for the chapel of the St. George Castle. Originally it was a separate painting but sometime in the 1800's it was put together with two other paintings in a triptych that included the Visitation of the Magi to Bethlehem, and the Presentation of Christ in the Temple recorded in Luke 2. Mantegna painted other stories to go with this including The Death of the Virgin, the Resurrection of Christ and the Descent into Limbo.

The presence of Mary, directly below the ascending Christ, connects the gathering of these three into one piece, as Mary figures prominently in each. Luke did not include Mary in the accounts of the ascension. The church by the time of Mantegna simply assumed she was present as she was venerated highly, seen as a primary witness of Christ and worthy of devotion. Note that while the eleven remaining disciples stand on the ground, Mary is raised up on a pedestal. The disciples gaze up in wonder, hands folded, or across their chests and one on the left shielding his eyes. Mary alone raises both hands in a gesture of prayer and blessing. Most of the disciples have their backs to us, and they form a frame around Mary whose frontal presentation draws our attention. The background framing the disciples is primarily the cliff face and rock, while Mary is surrounded by a green, living bush. As Mary stands in the center of the painting it is her gaze that directs ours to look up to the ascending Christ.

The resurrected and ascending Christ stands in a field of blue surrounded by white clouds. As he ascends he stands on and is surrounded by grayish clouds, accompanied by eleven cherubs. Maybe they represent the eleven remaining disciples, which in turn connects the prominence of Mary below with the centrality of the vision of Christ above. The banner with a red cross appears in many paintings of the resurrection as a symbol of victory over the last enemy which is death. Christ's hand is raised in a gesture of benediction as he gazes back on his followers. Luke describes the scene in Acts: " ... as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, 'Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come again in the same way as you saw him go into heaven." Acts 1:9-11

Keep the faith. Say your prayers. Love like Jesus.

Pastor Tim Bauer