Saturday August 15, 2020.
Readings: First Reading: Revelation 11: 19; 12: 1 – 6, 10. Second Reading 1 Corinthians 15: 20 – 26. Gospel Luke 1:39 – 56.
The Solemnity we celebrate today, that of her Assumption into Heaven, points to God’s acknowledgement of her greatness. God did not allow her to taste death or any consequences of sin. She was Immaculate, perfect in every way, from the moment of her conception to the moment she was taken body and soul into Heaven to reign as Queen for all eternity.
On this day, a Holy Day of Obligation, we recall Our Lady’s assumption into Heaven and her crowning as Queen of Heaven and Earth. Though the Church has always believed in the Assumption of Mary, the dogma was only formally defined by Pope Pius XII on 1 November 1950 in his Bull Munificentissimus Deus. Mary was assumed into Heaven – taken up by the power of God, like Eias and Enoch while Christ ascended into Heaven under His own power.
The Immaculate nature of our Blessed Mother may be hard for some to comprehend. That’s because her life is one of the greatest mysteries of our faith. Very little was said of her in the Scriptures, but much will be said of her for all eternity as her humility is unmasked and her greatness shines forth for all to see.
Our Blessed Mother was Immaculate, meaning without sin, for two reasons. First, God preserved her from original sin at the moment of her conception by a special grace. We call this a “preservative grace.” Like Adam and Eve, she was conceived without sin. But unlike Adam and Eve, she was conceived in the order of grace. She was conceived as one who was already saved by grace, by her Son whom she would one day bring into the world. The grace that her Son would one day pour on the world transcended time and covered her at the moment of her conception.
The second reason our Blessed Mother is Immaculate is because, unlike Adam and Eve, she never chose to sin throughout her life. Therefore, she became the new Eve, the new Mother of all the Living, the new Mother of all who live in the grace of her Son. As a result of this Immaculate nature and her continuous free choice to live in grace, God brought her body and soul into Heaven upon the completion of her earthly life. It is this glorious and solemn fact that we celebrate today.
Reflect, today, upon your understanding of our Blessed Mother. Do you know her, understand her role in your life and continually seek her motherly care? She is your mother if you choose to live in the grace of her Son. Embrace that fact more deeply today and choose to make her an even more important part of your life. Jesus will be grateful you do!
On this feast day, we celebrate Mary’s ultimate journey – her Assumption into heaven. The woman who spent so much of her life in motion – setting out in haste, searching, fleeting – finally is given a place of rest, a place “prepared by God”, as Revelation puts in. This day, we honour that, God has “looked with favour on his lowly servant.”
Wish you happy feast. God Bless you.