Ascension Thursday

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.