Christ the High Priest: A Meditation on the Feast of the Ascension

Fr. Scott Haynes

I. Introduction: The Mystery of the Ascension

The feast of the Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ, traditionally celebrated forty days after Easter, marks a glorious culmination of the Paschal Mystery. It is a mystery not of departure, but of enthronement; not of absence, but of abiding presence; not of separation, but of exaltation. In ascending into Heaven, Christ completes His mission on earth, inaugurates His heavenly priesthood, and opens for humanity the gates of the eternal sanctuary. As the Catechism teaches,

"Jesus Christ, the head of the Church, precedes us into the Father's glorious kingdom so that we, the members of his Body, may live in the hope of one day being with him forever" (CCC 666).

The Ascension is also deeply rooted in the theological themes of the Old Testament—particularly in the worship of the Temple and the figure of the High Priest. Christ fulfills and transcends these types, becoming the Eternal High Priest who offers the perfect sacrifice—Himself—and enters into the true Holy of Holies not made with hands (cf. Heb. 9:11). Through this meditation, we shall explore how the Passion and Ascension of Christ fulfill the demands of the Law, satisfy the typology of Temple worship, and manifest the eternal priesthood as interpreted and expounded by the Church Fathers.

II. The Old Testament High Priest and Temple Worship

The worship of the Old Testament centered upon the Temple in Jerusalem, where sacrifices were offered daily and, more solemnly, on the Day of Atonement. The High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies once a year, carrying the blood of sacrificial animals to make atonement for the sins of Israel (cf. Lev. 16). These ceremonies were instituted by divine command but were ultimately provisional. They pointed forward to a greater reality—a better covenant and a more perfect High Priest.

St. Augustine writes:

“The Old Law is the shadow of good things to come; but the body is of Christ. All those sacrifices and rituals find their meaning in Him who is the end of the Law unto righteousness to every one that believeth” (Contra Faustum, 6.6).

The blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin (Heb. 10:4), but they prefigured the spotless Lamb of God whose blood speaks more eloquently than that of Abel (cf. Heb. 12:24). The high priesthood of Aaron was but a shadow of the eternal priesthood of Christ, “a priest forever according to the order of Melchisedec” (Ps. 109:4 [D-R]; cf. Heb. 5:6).

III. Christ’s Passion as the True Sacrifice

The Old Covenant sacrifices found their terminus in an act of divine love and justice: the Passion of Christ. In the fullness of time, Christ came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets—not to abolish them (cf. Matt. 5:17). His entire Passion must be understood as a priestly act. On the Cross, He is both priest and victim. As St. John Chrysostom eloquently states,

“When He offered Himself upon the Cross, He both sacrificed and was sacrificed, both offered and was offered. And this He did not in the temple made with hands, but in the temple of His own body” (Homilies on Hebrews, 17.3).

Hebrews 9 lays out this truth with stunning clarity:

"Christ being come an high priest of the good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hand, that is, not of this creation: Neither by the blood of goats, or of calves, but by his own blood, entered once into the holies, having obtained eternal redemption" (Heb. 9:11–12 [D-R]).

The veil of the Temple was torn at the moment of Christ’s death (Matt. 27:51), signifying that the barrier between God and man had been destroyed. Access to the true Holy of Holies—the heavenly sanctuary—was now open. This rending was not merely symbolic, but sacramental: through the flesh of Christ, the true veil, we have access to the Father (cf. Heb. 10:20).

IV. The Ascension: Entering the Heavenly Sanctuary

The Ascension is the High Priest's entrance into the true Holy of Holies. Just as the High Priest entered the sanctuary once a year with blood not his own, Christ enters Heaven once for all with His own blood to intercede eternally (Heb. 9:24–26). In this act, He fulfills the entirety of Temple worship, rendering obsolete the Levitical sacrifices.

St. Leo the Great preaches:

“That which was visible in our Redeemer has passed over into the sacraments. And although He ascended into Heaven, yet He has not departed from His adopted ones. For Christ is lifted up, that our hearts might ascend with Him” (Sermon 74).

Christ ascends not to leave us, but to represent us in the presence of the Father. His Ascension is the triumphal entry of humanity into the celestial court.

Origen likewise reflects: “He ascended into heaven to appear before the face of God for us and to reconcile God to man and man to God, having made peace through the blood of His Cross” (Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, 12).

Psalm 23 (24) is read with renewed significance: “Lift up your gates, O ye princes, and be ye lifted up, O eternal gates: and the King of Glory shall enter in” (Ps. 23:7 [D-R]). The Church Fathers understood this not merely as a poetic refrain, but as the angelic proclamation at the Ascension of Christ, the true King of Glory.

V. The Church Fathers on the Ascension and Priesthood

Having seen how the Ascension fulfills the Temple typology, we now turn to the Church Fathers, whose meditations on this mystery deepen our understanding of Christ’s eternal priesthood. The Fathers of the Church saw in the Ascension the fulfillment of the High Priestly office of Christ. St. Gregory the Great notes that

“Our Redeemer’s visible presence has passed into the sacraments, yet His invisible presence remains with us. He has ascended above the heavens, and yet is intimately near to those who love Him” (Homilies on the Gospels, 29).

St. Athanasius declares,

“He did not ascend for His own sake, but as the firstfruits of our nature. He has prepared for us a new and living way, opening the gates of heaven which had been shut since Adam's fall” (On the Incarnation, 54).

The Ascension thus fulfills the ancient hope of Israel for the coming of the Messiah who would restore the covenant and bring man into communion with God.

St. Augustine further remarks:

“He is our Priest forever, offering Himself daily on our altars through the sacrament of His Body and Blood, yet now seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for us as the Advocate with the Father” (Enarrationes in Psalmos, Ps. 109).

VI. Christ’s Ongoing Intercession

Christ’s priesthood did not cease with the Cross nor with the Resurrection. Rather, the Ascension inaugurates His eternal ministry of intercession. St. Paul writes:

“He ever liveth to make intercession for us” (Heb. 7:25).

He stands before the Father, bearing the wounds of His Passion as eternal testimony of mercy.

St. John Chrysostom comments:

“Think what honor it is to have an Advocate before the Father, not a mere man, nor an angel, nor archangel, but the very Lord of all things Himself” (Homilies on Hebrews, 14.6).

His priesthood continues in the Eucharist, where His sacrifice is made present under sacramental signs. Thus, the Mass is the earthly participation in the heavenly liturgy, the Church joining her voice to that of the glorified High Priest.

VII. Spiritual Application for the Faithful

What does the Ascension mean for us who remain on earth? First, it is a call to hope. Christ has gone to prepare a place for us (cf. John 14:2), and where He is, we too may follow. His Ascension is our ascension, for we are members of His Body.

St. Leo the Great exhorts:

“Let us exalt, dearly beloved, with all spiritual joy, and let us rejoice with devout thanksgiving. For today not only are we confirmed as possessors of paradise, but in Christ we have already penetrated the heights of heaven” (Sermon 73).

Second, it is a summons to holiness.

“Seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1).

Our true homeland is Heaven, and the Ascension bids us live as citizens of that Kingdom.

Finally, it is a mission. Just as the angels told the apostles, “Why stand you looking up to heaven?” (Acts 1:11), so the Church is sent forth to bear witness. The liturgy of the Ascension ends with the promise of the Holy Spirit and the command to evangelize. The High Priest has ascended; the royal priesthood must now go forth.

VIII. Conclusion: Christ, Our Eternal High Priest

The Ascension of Our Lord is the crowning of His earthly mission and the beginning of His eternal priestly ministry in Heaven. As the Eternal High Priest, He brings the perfect sacrifice—His very self—into the heavenly sanctuary, where He now intercedes unceasingly for us. In His glorified humanity, He bears the marks of His Passion before the throne of the Father, a perpetual testament to His love and mercy.

In Him, the types and shadows of the Old Law find their fulfillment, and the veil of separation is forever removed. The once-a-year entrance of the Levitical high priest into the Holy of Holies has been replaced by the once-for-all entrance of Christ into Heaven itself, where He reigns as Priest and King.

St. Ambrose beautifully summarizes this mystery:

“He ascended into heaven, not to leave us, but to be our Advocate in the presence of the Father. As man He ascended, that as man He might intercede for those who are of His nature” (Exposition of the Christian Faith, 4.5.57).

The Ascension thus fills us with hope, draws us to a deeper reverence for the sacred mysteries, and compels us to live as citizens of Heaven while on earth. It reminds us that the sacrifice of the Cross is not locked in the past but is eternally alive in the heavenly sanctuary, made present to us in every Mass.

Let us, then, with hearts lifted high, offer ourselves with Christ in every Eucharist, confident that where the Head has gone, the Body is called to follow. And as we await the glorious return of our High Priest, let us strive to live as a holy people, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Pet. 2:5).

To Christ, our Eternal High Priest, be glory and praise, now and forever. Amen.