Cookies

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. By continuing to browse this repository, you give consent for essential cookies to be used. You can read more about our Privacy and Cookie Policy.


Durham e-Theses
You are in:

The Ascension of Jesus Christ:
A Critical and Exegetical Study of the Ascension in Luke-Acts and in the Jewish and Christian Contexts

MIHOC, JUSTIN,ALEXANDRU (2010) The Ascension of Jesus Christ:
A Critical and Exegetical Study of the Ascension in Luke-Acts and in the Jewish and Christian Contexts.
Masters thesis, Durham University.

[img]PDF
1246Kb

Abstract

The aim of the present dissertation is to analyse and interpret the Ascension of Jesus as described in Luke-Acts, and to examine both the Jewish rapture traditions and the early Christian reception and interpretation of the Lukan accounts. In my research, I tried to explain how the Ascension event was shaped by Luke and the impact it had within the Christian Church of the first centuries.
The first chapter tackles the history of research on the Ascension and the proposed methodology. Following this, the second section of the thesis analyses the Jewish assumption (rapture) traditions found in both canonical and pseudepigraphal writings. The common elements between these traditions and the Ascension of Christ are observed in order to establish a certain dependence of the Ascension narrative on Jewish rapture accounts.
In the third chapter, I examine the two Ascension accounts in Luke-Acts (Lk 24:50-53; Acts 1:9-11) and aim to explain the apparent inconsistencies between them. Certain aspects, such as redundancy and variations, are discussed in detail in the third section of this chapter.
The fourth chapter focuses on the reception and interpretation of the Lukan Ascension narratives within the early Christian Church (the pre-Nicene period). Finally, a summary of the entire thesis and some final remarks are drawn in the conclusion of the present study.
Two excursuses relevant to this research are included in the appendices: the first on the Jewish Hekhalot literature and Merkabah mysticism; and the second examining the Ascension in the Gospels according to Mark (16:19-20 of the ‘longer ending’) and John (20:17).

Item Type:Thesis (Masters)
Award:Master of Arts
Keywords:Ascension, Luke-Acts, rapture traditions, Jesus Christ, Acts of the Apostles, Patristic reception
Faculty and Department:Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Theology and Religion, Department of
Thesis Date:2010
Copyright:Copyright of this thesis is held by the author
Deposited On:17 Feb 2011 15:42

Social bookmarking: del.icio.usConnoteaBibSonomyCiteULikeFacebookTwitter