The icon "The Ascension of the Lord" - the anthem of the conjunction of man with God

One of the most famous icons in Orthodoxy is the "Ascension of the Lord" in its plot, the most important event of the New Testament. Jesus Christ, combining in himself the Divine essence with human nature, performs in His Person the ascension and deification of the human being, formerly damaged by original sin and doomed death. This icon bears in itself a clear promise to all the righteous to stand at the Throne of God and inherit eternal life.

The New Testament Connection with Jewish Law

The event, in memory of which the icon "Ascension of the Lord" is written, is celebrated in the Christian world on the fortieth day after Easter. This corresponds to the Biblical narrative, since, according to the testimony of the apostles, it was the forty days that the Lord stayed with them after His Resurrection, before ascending to the Throne of His Father.

It should be noted that the number of days is forty, it is not accidental. It follows from the Jewish tradition. According to the Law of Moses, every child after forty days from birth was to be brought to the temple to the Lord. Since the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead personifies the birth to a new life, in full accordance with the Law it is on the fortieth day that He enters the Heavenly Temple of His Father.

Meaning of the holiday

What is especially valuable to us is the icon "The Ascension of the Lord"? Its significance is primarily due to the fact that it is dedicated to the holiday, which can be fully described as the "holiday of Heaven". But not of the material, but of the spiritual Heaven - the Kingdom of God, which was shut out from us by the fall of our ancestors - Adam and Eve. Since then, the gravity of sin has prevailed over all people, condemning them to earthly life with its sufferings, perishability and death. The icon "Ascension of the Lord" represents the opening to the people of Heaven as once the lost and newly found Eternal House.

Ancient establishment of the holiday

A holiday dedicated to this most important event was established in the period of early Christianity. This is known, in the first place, from the apostolic decrees prescribing to celebrate it on the fortieth day after Easter. In addition, very important in this regard are the testimonies of outstanding church fathers, such as John Chrysostom and Blessed Augustine.

The authors of the sacred texts to the services of this day were such revered in all the centuries of Christianity authorities as John Damascene and Joseph Pesnopets. One can not help recalling well-known diaries of the West-European pilgrimage of Egeria, who visited the Holy Land at the end of the 4th century and left a detailed account of the celebration of the Ascension Day. The only distinguishing feature was that in those years this holiday was celebrated simultaneously with the feast of Pentecost.

The Ascension in Art

The theme of this holiday was widely reflected in the fine arts. It should be noted that the iconography of the image is currently presented in two versions. The first one is easel iconography, which took shape at the very dawn of Christianity and was first developed in the works of Byzantine masters, and later Russian icon painters. The second option is a monumental temple painting. The Ascension of the Lord is often the main subject of the dome painting. The most striking examples of it belong to the XI-XIV centuries.

In order to clearly imagine how the plot-composition principle was formed on the basis of which almost every well-known icon "Ascension of the Lord" is written, one should turn to the earliest images that have come down to us. Among them, first of all, mention should be made of the carved composition on the wooden doors of the Roman church of Santa Sabina.

The earliest known images of the Ascension

The composition represents the ascending Savior, depicted in a round medallion, surrounded by the four symbols of the evangelists. Below is a celestial vault with lights, and beneath it are figures of two apostles holding a cross over the head of a woman, in which the Holy Mother of God can easily be guessed.

Another early image of this plot is presented on one of the vessels of the 6th-7th centuries from the treasury of the cathedral in Monza. On it, the figure of Christ at the moment of ascension is represented in the mandrel (vertical oval), and the composition itself is supplemented with images of angels, twelve apostles and Our Lady of Oranta (figure with prayerfully raised hands). Such an interpretation and formed the basis for subsequent compositions.

The Lord in His Glory

On all existing icons "Ascension", the Savior is depicted in the halo of glory and triumph and is the image of Him of the Judge, who according to the promise will return "to each according to his works." This iconographic type of the image of Jesus Christ is called the Pantecrator, that is, the Almighty. The power of the King of Heaven, leading all his faithful in the world of the mountains, is the main feeling that the icon "Ascension of the Lord" gives birth.

From the amber and bronze, from silver and elephant bone, the masters performed objects of church utensils depicting this scene. Among them there are original works of art. Their samples can be seen in the largest museums in the world. And this is no coincidence, because you can hardly find in Christian art a more famous and recognizable plot than the icon "Ascension of the Lord." Chromolithography, from the time when folk prints were used to replicate it on the basis of its technology, allowed these images to enter the home of every Orthodox family, regardless of its wealth, which undoubtedly served to further popularize the plot.