Spiritual Ascension (Rafa) of Jesus Christ

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على خاتم النبيين

In explanation of the two Ayats in the holy Quran:

اِذۡ قَالَ اللّٰہُ یٰعِیۡسٰۤی اِنِّیۡ مُتَوَفِّیۡکَ وَرَافِعُکَ اِلَیَّ

When Allah said: “O Jesus, indeed I will cause you to die and raise you to Myself”

(Sura 3:55)

بَلۡ رَّفَعَہُ اللّٰہُ اِلَیۡہِ

Rather, Allah raised him [Jesus] to Himself

(Sura 4:158)

we can determine the correct interpretation of the ascension or raising up of Jesus Christ to God from the Hadith of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم

‌وَمَا ‌تَوَاضَعَ ‌أَحَدٌ ‌لِلَّهِ ‌إِلَّا ‌رَفَعَهُ ‌اللهُ

No one humbles himself for Allah except that Allah raises him

(Sahih Muslim)

In another version it is mentioned:

‌فَإِذَا ‌تَوَاضَعَ ‌رَفَعَهُ ‌اللَّهُ ‌إِلَى ‌السَّمَاءِ ‌السَّابِعَةِ

So if he humbles himself, Allah raises him to the Seventh Heaven

(Masawi al-Akhlaq lil-Khara’iti, p.259 #588)

In this version it is obvious that ascension to the Seventh Heaven means a spiritual ascension and not a corporal one. However, the Hadith with this wording is weak due to the narrator Zam’a bin Salih. Nevertheless, these narrations clearly indicate that the ascension of Jesus Christ to Heaven or to the presence of God was not a bodily, corporal elevation.