Mama Mary's Assumption

In many parts of the world, The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated today, August 15.

Is it clear to us all what we are celebrating today?

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her earthly life is a defined dogma of the Catholic Church.

On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII, exercising papal infallibility, declared in “Munificentissimus Deus” that it is a dogma of the Church “that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.” (http://mercifulmother.yolasite.com/the-assumption-of-mary.php).

As Pope Pius XII says in Munificentissimus Deus: “what is commemorated in this feast is not simply the total absence of corruption from the dead body of the Blessed Virgin Mary but also her triumph over death and her glorification in heaven, after the pattern set by her only Son, Jesus Christ.”

From the same internet source, it is written that originally celebrated in the East, the feast was known as the Feast of Dormition (meaning “the falling asleep”). It is said that the earliest printed reference to the belief that Mary's body was assumed into Heaven dates from the fourth century, in a document entitled “The Falling Asleep of the Holy Mother of God.” The document recounts, in the words of the Apostle John, to whom Christ on the Cross had entrusted the care of His mother, the death, laying in the tomb, and assumption of the Blessed Virgin.

Though it was almost universally believed for more than a thousand years, the Bible contains no mention of the assumption of Mary into heaven. Debates continue about whether our Mama Mary died a natural death or not and whether her assumption took place before or after her natural death.

What is essential to celebrate today, however, is the message of her assumption: which is the “perfect victory over sin and death”- that when her “mortal body has clothed itself in immortality, then will be fulfilled the word of Scripture: Death is swallowed up in victory.”

As Pope Benedict XVI shared at Castel Gandolfo on August 16, 2006, “by contemplating Mary in heavenly glory, we understand that the earth is not the definitive homeland for us  either, and that if we live with our gaze fixed on eternal goods we will one day share in this same glory and the earth will become more beautiful. Consequently, we must not lose our serenity and peace even amid the thousands of daily difficulties. The luminous sign of Our Lady taken up into Heaven shines out even more brightly when sad shadows of suffering and violence seem to loom on the horizon.”

He continued, “We may be sure of it: from on high, Mary follows our footsteps with gentle concern, dispels the gloom in moments of darkness and distress, reassures us with her motherly hand. Supported by awareness of this, let us continue confidently on our path of Christian commitment wherever Providence may lead us. Let us forge ahead in our lives under Mary's guidance.”

Today, we are also reminded about the difference between our Lord's Ascension and His mother, Mama Mary's Assumption. “To ascend is to rise up under one's own power while to be assumed means something that is done to one. Jesus, being the Second Person of the Trinity, had no need of assistance; whereas Mary did not have this power.”

Mama Mary's perfect obedience, her self-sacrificing love, her complete love was rewarded with her assumption and her coronation in heaven. Best of all, she was  rewarded with the best gift of all- the everlasting reunion with the Holy Trinity, with God the Father, God the Son, her Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, in heaven, everyone's final home and dwelling place , beyond this earth.

Today we celebrate our most blessed Mama Mary, “she who trusted that the Lord's words to her would be fulfilled.” Today, “may we see heaven as our goal and come to share her glory.”

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