The Ascension of Prophet Jesus; Viewpoints, Challenges, and new Approaches to this Issue

The Holy Qur’ān has brought up the issue of the death and ascension of Jesus (A.S.) in five āyas. The application of the word tawaffā (recompense) to death and sleep in the Qur’ān has caused the interpreters to differ in explanation of the death of Jesus (A.S.) and its quality. After compiling and systematizing the viewpoints of all Shī‘a and Sunnī interpreters in this respect, the present article has analyzed and critiqued the interpreters’ arguments with the content analysis (descriptive-analytical) method and has finally concluded that the expediency of reconciling among the āyas of the Qur’ān reveals that Prophet Jesus (A.S.) has been ascended to heaven and recompensed alive together with his soul and body; and other viewpoints, including the possibility of the natural death of the Prophet Jesus (A.S.) before the ascension of his body to heaven, which is brought up along with other possibilities among the viewpoints of the two great contemporary Shī‘a interpreters (Allama Tabataba’i and Ayatollah Jawadi Amuli), are unacceptable.