{"id":9971,"date":"2026-05-12T12:59:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T10:59:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nederlandsetempeliers.nl\/ascension-day\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T12:58:40","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T10:58:40","slug":"ascension-day","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/nederlandsetempeliers.nl\/en\/ascension-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Ascension Day"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Ascension\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Ascension Day<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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~Ascension Day, or \u201cThe Ascension of the Lord,\u201d in Latin: Ascensio Domini, is part of the entire Easter celebration.

After Easter, everyone is in a kind of shock. What has happened here? What does this all mean? There is still sorrow over the death on the Cross, there is confusion \u2014 all of this is unknown and unfamiliar, and therefore there is also fear of the unknown.
The period leading up to Ascension is a preparation toward this moment: \u201cNow you (and therefore we) must continue.\u201d That is why Jesus appears several more times after the encounter with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

There is the meeting with His disciples in a closed room. The disciples are still afraid and confused. Then Jesus suddenly stands among them and says: \u201cPeace be with you.\u201d
That is not just a simple phrase or an ordinary \u201cgood day everyone.\u201d The Biblical meaning of peace is much deeper: wholeness, restoration, reconciliation, safety \u2014 but also: BEING UNITED WITH GOD AND WITH ONE ANOTHER.
So the very first thing Jesus does after betrayal, fear, fleeing, and crucifixion is not: \u201cWhere were you?\u201d or \u201cYou abandoned Me.\u201d He comes with peace. Precisely that continues to live on through the Eucharist.
That is why the priest says: \u201cThe peace of the Lord be with you always.\u201d And afterward: \u201cLet us offer each other a sign of peace.\u201d This refers directly to this moment. The exchange of peace in the Mass is therefore not merely a friendly social interruption. It points directly toward:
\u2022 the risen Christ,
\u2022 reconciliation,
\u2022 communion,
\u2022 and the gathering of people back to God.

The sign of peace during Mass is therefore much more than a kind gesture. It reminds us that fear, division, and sorrow do not have the final word. First comes peace. First comes reconciliation. Only afterward follows the shared meal of the Eucharist. After saying: \u201cPeace be with you,\u201d Jesus shows His wounds. Because Thomas was not present and did not believe (from this comes the expression \u201cDoubting Thomas\u201d \ud83d\udca1), Jesus appears once more \u2014 especially for him. \ud83d\udc49\ud83c\udffb Here fear slowly changes into faith. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Thomas\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Another encounter takes place at the Sea of Tiberias.
Another encounter takes place at the Sea of Tiberias. Several disciples return to fishing. But there are no fish in their nets; they catch nothing. Then, at sunrise, a man stands on the shore, though they do not recognize Him. Suddenly their nets are filled with fish. Afterward they share bread and fish together beside a fire. Then comes the famous moment in which Jesus asks Peter three times:
\u201cPeter, do you love Me?\u201d This is important because Peter had earlier denied Jesus three times beside the fire on the night of Good Friday. \ud83d\udc49\ud83c\udffb Here Peter is not humiliated \u2026 but restored.

After each answer Jesus says: \u201cFeed My sheep.\u201d Love for Christ therefore remains not merely a feeling or a promise. It becomes connected to caring for others, faithfulness, and responsibility.
After this, Jesus speaks about the path Peter will still walk. Not an easy road, but a life in which he will ultimately remain faithful until the end. And then He says once more: \u201cFollow Me.\u201d The very same words with which everything once began. <\/p>

When Peter then looks at another disciple and asks: \u201cAnd what about him?\u201d Jesus essentially answers: \u201cThat is not your path to carry. You \u2014 follow Me.\u201d Do not compare yourself with others.

Do not live from fear or control. But remain faithful, step by step, to the path before you.

Jesus then begins preparing them for their task. Soon they must continue without Him physically present on earth. He explains the Scriptures to them, opens their understanding, and gives them the mission to teach, baptize, and spread the Gospel. \ud83d\udc49\ud83c\udffb not remaining hidden away, but going out into the world.

Later, Jesus gathers His disciples together once more. Together they leave Jerusalem and climb a mountain east of the city \u2014 the Mount of Olives. This is the day of the Ascension \u2014 the fortieth day.
There Jesus speaks to them one final time. He tells them that His task on earth has now been completed. Now they must proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the world. (Acts 1:4\u20138) He also tells them that the Holy Spirit will help the apostles build the Church and proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth. <\/p>

After these words they saw Jesus being lifted up. A cloud took Him from their sight. (Acts 1:9)

\u2026 stunned and confused, the disciples continue staring upward \u2026 Then angels say: \u201cWhy do you stand looking into heaven? As you have seen Him ascend into Heaven, so He will return.\u201d
This almost literally means: Continue onward. It is only beginning now.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Jesus is taken up upon a cloud and returns to the Father to take His place at His right hand. From this moment onward we may truly call Him King. <\/p>

His work on earth is now complete. He restored the connection between Heaven and earth \u2014 and that work is fulfilled. We are once again connected with Heaven.
For the disciples this feels not only like joy, but also like letting go. Yet Christ does not remain absent.

The priest celebrates this by saying: \u201cAlmighty God, let us rejoice and be glad in thanksgiving, because the Ascension of Christ, Your Son, is also our exaltation. His glory with You is our hope, for we form one body with Him who is our Head: Jesus Christ our Lord.\u201d <\/p>

The first known celebration of Ascension Day dates from the 4th century. Described by church historian Eusebius. Later it became a regular holiday. Ascension Day always falls on a Thursday, thirty-nine days after Easter (the fortieth day of Easter) and ten days before Pentecost. <\/p>

Especially during the Middle Ages this was experienced in a highly visible and sensory way. In monastic life \u2014 within commanderies, monasteries, and chapels \u2014 Ascension was celebrated with special Masses, the Divine Office, solemn feasts, and fasting periods.
Here our spirituality becomes visible: Christ as the exalted King \u2014 not worldly, but with eyes directed upward. Journeying onward, living between Heaven and earth.

Often something remarkable happened in churches during the liturgy:
\u2022 images of Christ were lifted upward toward the vault or tower,
\u2022 sometimes through an opening in the ceiling,
\u2022 accompanied by incense, bells, and singing,
\u2022 while flower petals or white cloths fell downward as symbols of blessing or the presence of angels.

Ascension was therefore not merely \u201ctold\u201d \u2014 people attempted to make it almost tangible.
Processions were also very common:
\u2022 outdoors through the fields,
\u2022 alongside farmland,
\u2022 with prayers for protection and fertility. <\/p>

The Paschal Candle continues burning at every celebration until Pentecost. This strengthens the unity with Easter \u2014 the feast of the Resurrection, the feast of Light. Ascension is not a feast of Jesus\u2019 absence. It is a feast of His continuing presence among us as the glorified Lord.
We also remember that in 1891 Pope Leo XIII issued the papal encyclical on social justice, Rerum Novarum. On this day abbey pilgrimages were traditionally walked. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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 Dew walking in the previous century \u2014 source: photograph from the Historical Society of Ootmarsum \ud83d\udc46\ud83c\udffb <\/pre>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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An old tradition that still survives today is the custom of \u201cdew walking\u201d on Ascension Day. In earlier times, people likely rose as early as three o\u2019clock in the morning on Ascension Day to sing and dance barefoot upon the grass. The term \u201cdew walking\u201d is believed to originate from this tradition. The dew upon the grass was thought to possess a purifying power. This was done to celebrate the May feast or the rebirth of nature.    <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ascension Day ~Ascension Day, or \u201cThe Ascension of the Lord,\u201d in Latin: Ascensio Domini, is part of the entire Easter celebration. After Easter, everyone is in a kind of shock. 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