Back to the calendar
Easter
Ascension Day / Ascension of Our Lord
Also called: Ascensiontide, Feast of the Ascension, Jesu Himmelfahrt (German), Wniebowstąpienie (Polish)
14 May 2026
All Christians
Forty days after Easter, Christians remember Jesus ascending into heaven — seen by his disciples on a hill outside Jerusalem before he disappeared into the clouds. Catholic churches traditionally mark it on a Thursday; many UK churches now celebrate on the following Sunday.
Orthodox Christians process around church buildings. The feast bridges Easter and Pentecost, pointing forward to the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Eden lists Holy Land tours that include the Mount of Olives.
At a glance
- Type
- solemnity
- Date type
- Moveable (changes with Easter)
- Regions
- Global
- Themes
- Ascension, Life of Christ
- Liturgical colour
- White
Common questions
Ascension Day is observed on 14 May 2026. Moveable feasts shift each year; fixed feasts stay on the same calendar date.
The feast commemorating Jesus Christ's ascension into heaven 40 days after his resurrection, as described in Acts 1:9–11 and Luke 24:50–51. In Catholic tradition it remains on Thursday and is a Holy Day of Obligation in some countries; many dioceses have transferred it to the following Sunday. In Eastern Orthodox tradition it is one of the Twelve Great Feasts and is calculated as the 40th day afte
It is associated with All Christians. It falls in the Easter, Ascension season of the liturgical year.