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This Sunday, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As a solemnity, it holds a higher rank and so replaces the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mary’s Assumption holds special meaning and promise for all of us. A simple but very special human, Mary enjoys eternity in Heaven. We too are promised eternal life if we follow Mary’s path of saying yes to God’s will and being a Christ-bearer to others. Pope Francis tells us that “The wondrous reality of the Assumption of Mary reveals and confirms the unity of the human person and reminds us that we are called to serve and glorify God with our whole being, soul and body” (Angelus message, August 15, 2018). Just as Mary’s body and soul are united in Heaven, our bodies will be reunited with our souls in Heaven at the Final Judgment.
While this event isn’t found in Sacred Scripture, it has been part of the Church’s tradition from very early on. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “The most blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven” (974). Note that there is a difference between how Mary and Jesus got to Heaven. Jesus ascended by his own power as God. Mary was assumed—taken up by God’s power, not her own.
May our souls magnify the Lord for the great things he does in our lives and the promise of life eternal won through the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Image credit: USCCB.org and Getty Images
