Following the decree of the Bishops Conference of England and Wales given 1 September 2017 the Solemnly of the Ascension of the Lord has now been restored to its proper day on the Thursday following the 6th Sunday of Easter. As such we now celebrate the Ascension in line with the Biblical dating of the feast, the Scriptures telling us that Jesus ascended into heaven forty days after his Resurrection.

The Ascension of the Lord is a Holy Day of Obligation, celebrating the most sacred day on which Jesus ascended into heaven and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father. The great mystery of this day, and the reason it is of such importance, is that he ascended not only as God but as man – ascending in his physical human body. Our human nature has therefore been raised to the dignity of heaven, and this is a sign and a promise that we can follow where he has gone before us. There will be Masses offered in all four of our Churches to mark this feast, the Mass times are published below:

Mass times

 TimePlace
Wednesday 29 May (Vigil)7.00pmSt Philip Neri, Mansfield
7.30pmSt Teresa, Market Warsop
Thursday 30 May10.00amSt Bernadette, Bolsover
12.10pmSt Philip Neri, Mansfield
7.00pmSt Joseph, Shirebrook

Acts 1:6-11

So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”

He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”