Resurrection (35:0)

Some Christians believe that the Resurrection and Ascent of Jesus are simply different aspects of the same truth; Jesus was resurrected from physical death and ascended to His Father at the time of His crucifixion. The appearances Jesus made to His disciples, including His ascent, were as described in Harper's Bible Dictionary: "From 1 Cor. 15:3-8 we learn that faith in the resurrection was based not on the empty tomb, which Paul does not mention, but on the appearances of the Lord. The word used for 'appeared' is the same Greek word used elsewhere for visionary experiences. We may today characterize these experiences as revelatory disclosures from the transcendent realm. No distinction was drawn between the resurrection and ascension. The appearances are manifestations of the resurrected and already ascended Christ from heaven." [-ed] (35:1) see

Paul had said: "All flesh is not the same.. There are celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial.. So (it is with) the resurrection of the dead.. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body" (1co 15:39-44).."flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" (1co 15:50). (35:2) see

So how do we reconcile what Paul said with the generally accepted Christian view of the resurrection of Jesus' physical body? After all, Jesus had said unto them, "The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again.." (mat 17:22-23) - (for a list of resurrection events read note 'Re'). Still, the Bible is very emphatic about physical bodies not going to heaven!! [-ed] (35:3) Re see

Some might say that conditions would be unique for Jesus, the Son of God - who at this very moment sits at God's right hand (eph 1:20). But if this were the case, why would Jesus have the only physical body in heaven? According to Paul there are no other physical bodies there (1co 15:50), and God is a Spirit (joh 4:24). [-ed] (35:4) Ri see

Other Views: For a scholarly view, click Audio (Joel Smith 47 min) (35:5)

Often the disciples failed to immediately recognize Jesus' body when He appeared (joh 20:15-17), and other persons present at the event did not always see Him, as in the appearance to Paul (act 9:3-7). This seems extraordinary, as does His body suddenly appearing and disappearing. One popular view is that the appearances were Heavenly Visions of His celestial body, similar to Heavenly Visions related elsewhere in the Bible. [-ed] (35:6) see

Other Heavenly Visions:
Moses and Elias appeared with Jesus during His transfiguration on Mt. Tabor and Peter asked Jesus if they should build a shelter for them to stay in (mat 17:4). Then going down the mountain later, Jesus said that it was a Vision: "Tell the vision to no man" (mat 17:9).

Bahá'í Quote: "This occurrence was perceived by the disciples with their inner eye.. and was a spiritual discovery of theirs.." (sab 162:3) [-ed] (35:7) see

Also, when Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, Paul later said to King Agrippa that it was a "heavenly vision": "I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision" (act 26:13-19) (35:8) see

In the Bible, Heavenly Visions are demonstrated to be completely indistinguishable from physical reality. Observers would naturally have considered them to be physical, especially if they saw bodies interacting with physical objects (eating physical food, etc.). [-ed] (35:9) 76

Even today, most literally-minded Christians believe that the appearances of Christ were of His physical body - but others are beginning to support the concept of Heavenly Visions - as described in Harper's Bible Dictionary (click 'see').[-ed] (35:10) see

It is also becoming increasingly well known that the findings and theories of Modern Christian Bible Scholars often differ markedly from what is taught in Churches. Many of these scholars have concluded that the Biblical accounts of resurrection were simply fashioned to demonstrate spiritual truths and/or to fulfill Old Testament promises - but many others are becoming ever-more closely aligned with Bahá'í understandings (see Notes 'Sp' for an example). [-ed] (35:11) Sp

From the Bahá'í perspective: "The resurrections of the Divine Manifestations are not of the body. All Their states, Their conditions, Their acts, the things They have established, Their teachings, Their expressions, Their parables and Their instructions have a spiritual and divine signification, and have no connection with material things.." (saq 103:2), as the Bible likewise confirms: "we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught us by the Spirit.." (1co 2:13-14 niv). But regardless of the perspective, all seem to agree that when Christ left this earthly existence, He went to sit at the right hand of God in His Spiritual Realm. [-ed] (35:12) see

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