( This is a major feast of the Catholic Church which replaces even the usual Sunday in Ordinary Time. It has its own Vigil celebration, one of only six feasts in the Church which include a distinct Vigil liturgy.
( There is no account of Mary’s death in the New Testament. The New Testament writers were convinced that all believers would share in the Resurrection of Christ. Catholics, however, believe that the Bible is in part a record of traditions, (first among the Hebrews and then among the Christians) as well as the written word in Scripture. They hold fast to God’s guiding revelation through ‘Tradition’ as well as through the written word in ‘Scripture’.
( The Assumption of Mary into heaven is one of the oldest celebrations of Mary. The belief in the Assumption had its origin in the popular faith of the people. Some legends had also grown up describing the miraculous events surrounding her death, including how the remaining apostles, having been summoned to her deathbed and to perform her burial, found the tomb empty some days later.
( Popular devotion is easily traced back to the 5th century when many local churches were celebrating a feast in honour of Mary’s ‘falling asleep’ and some historians say it was celebrated as far back as the 3rd century. Christian piety from the fourth or fifth century imagined Mary as sharing in the fullness of the Resurrection of her Son. Christians could not believe that Mary’s body would disintegrate after the unique role she played in sacred history.
( Honouring Mary, however, had a late start in the life of the Catholic Church. In the first four centuries, there was no devotion to her and little reflection on her place in sacred history. At that time, the pressing question was the true identity of Jesus, finding an answer to complex questions surrounding the humanity and divinity of Jesus. Only after the divinity of Christ was proclaimed, did attention then turn to Mary.
( It was at the Council of Ephesus in 431 that the Church gave Mary one of the oldest titles ‘theotokos’, which means ‘God-bearing’, affirming that Mary bore the Son of God in her womb and gave birth to him like any mother. Although it was only proclaimed a dogma in 1950, the Assumption had been taught for centuries as a truth that emerged from the faith of the people, and the Catholic Church celebrated it as an official feast since about the tenth century.
( Pope Pius XII proclaimed as a solemn teaching on 1st November 1950 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.” But it wasn’t until Vatican II in 1964 that a Council of the Church referred to Mary as ‘Mother of God.’ This teaching says nothing about the manner of her death, but that as his mother, it is appropriate that she share in the victory of Jesus, her Son.
( Since there is no account of the Assumption in Scripture; the Church invites us to re-read some other texts in the light of this feast.
First Reading Book of the Apocalypse (Revelation) 11:19, 12:1-6, 10
Theme: The image of the Woman clothed with the Sun has often been applied to Mary, Mother of the Lord. Her Son will do battle with the forces of evil, which are here represented by the Great Dragon.
ʘ ‘Apocalypse’ is a Greek word meaning ‘revelation’, ‘unveiling’, ‘disclosure’. It is a difficult book to understand because it represents a superb example of a type of literature – apocalyptic literature – that has been out of use for many centuries and is no longer easily understood by modern readers.
ʘ Apocalyptic literature was quite a popular form of religious writing that prevailed in Judaism during the four hundred years surrounding the time of Christ from about 200BC to 200AD, and which came into early Christianity (see also Daniel, Ezekiel and Zechariah) Its author and readers were painfully conscious of the presence of evil in the world. As people of faith, they also believed that the power of God would eventually triumph.
ʘ The immediate audience of the Book of Revelations is Christians, who were being persecuted for their faith towards the end of the first century. Many churches of Asia (a Roman province in the south-west region of Turkey) were under threat. Rumour had it that the Roman authorities were soon to insist on full observance of ‘Emperor Worship’. All would have to cry ‘Caesar is Lord.’ The purpose of Revelation is to reassure the faithful of victory, despite the threat of martyrdom.
ʘ In order not to misunderstand or distort the message of Revelation, we must appreciate the imagery at its true value and do our best to translate the symbols back into the ideas which the author intended them to carry. The purpose of these images is to make as visible as possible the ugliness of sin and opposition to God. In the end, its powerful message is for all Christians who struggle to keep faith in a hostile world.
ʘ Evil was often depicted as a mythical beast – here a monstrous red dragon that can drag the stars from the sky with its tail. For the readers of Revelation, this dragon with immense power is probably seen most clearly as the Roman Empire, which threatened the early decades of Christianity and seemed bent on eradicating the Christian Church.
ʘ Today’s reading is rather complex. The scene described is very imposing. In a prophetic vision, John (the author) sees God’s temple in heaven thrown open and the Ark of the Covenant become visible to all. The original ‘Ark of the Covenant’ was a portable shrine that contained the Tables of the Law and reminded the people of Israel that their God travelled with them. On today’s feast, this image is applied to Mary, who bore Jesus, the maker of the New Covenant within herself. And so she is called in the Litany of our Lady, ‘Ark of the Covenant.’
“The sanctuary of God in heaven opened, and the Ark of the Covenant could be seen inside it.” (11:19)
ʘ Then comes an apocalyptic vision of two heavenly signs, a pregnant woman and a dragon, that exemplify the conflict between good and evil caused by the presence of the devil on earth. Two great signs appear in the sky.
(1) The First Sign: A Woman giving Birth:
ʘ The first is an image of a woman appearing from heaven. The identity of
the woman is not clear from the text. Originally, the ‘woman’ would
probably have been seen as representing the Jewish people, (both Israel of
the Old Testament and the Christian Church), the nation and people of Israel,
from among whom the Messiah was born. “Now a great sign appeared
in heaven a woman, adorned with the sun, standing on the moon, and with
the twelve stars on her head for a crown.” (12:1)
ʘ It was not until the fifth century that we find the first clear application of
this text to Mary. Many artists have represented her as bright as the sun,
with the moon under her feet and twelve stars (representing the twelve tribes
of Israel) on her head. But John is not thinking of Mary as he writes this text.
ʘ The woman is described as being pregnant, crying out in birth pangs and
in the agony of giving birth. The child being born is the Messiah.
“She was pregnant, and in labour, crying aloud in the pangs of childbirth.” (12:2)
(2) The Second Sign: A Huge Red Dragon:
ʘ There follows an apocalyptic description of a dragon, an ancient serpent (seen in Jewish tradition as the embodiment of evil, hostile to Christ, the enemy of God) threatening to devour the child as soon as it is born. It is a dreadfully strong, ferocious beast - capable of sweeping a third of the stars with his tail. Its tail sweeping the sky is an allusion to the fall of those angels who sided with Lucifer. Its strength is symbolised by the seven heads, ten horns and the coronet. The dragon represents the evil Roman Empire, the persecutor of the Christian Church. “Then a second sign appeared in the sky, a huge red dragon
which had seven heads and ten horns, and each of the seven heads crowned with a coronet.
Its tail dragged a third of the stars from the sky and dropped them to the earth.” (12:3)
ʘ The dragon stands before her (the woman) ready to devour the child as soon as she gives birth.
“The dragon stopped in front of the woman as she was having the child, so that he could eat it
as soon as it was born from its mother.” (12:4)
ʘ The dragon is in a hurry to get rid of the child because it knows that: “the child was to rule all the nations with an iron sceptre.” (v.5) Nevertheless, the child is born. The child clearly is the Christ, the promised Messiah, who is destined to rule all the nations.
ʘ However, though destructive forces are hurled against the child from the day of his birth, he cannot be assailed because the Father brings him into his glory. The woman’s child is described as immediately being snatched away and taken up to the throne of God, frustrating the evil dragon of its prey.
“… the child was taken straight up to God and to his throne.” 12:5)
ʘ For John, this verse (5) is not interpreted as something that happened at the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, but at the cross. Precisely by dying on the cross, Jesus defeated the dragon and was exalted to God’s right hand.
ʘ Meanwhile, the ‘woman’, the mother flees into the wilderness. In the historical experience of Israel, ‘desert ’is a place of refuge and protection for the persecuted. The woman (representing the people of Israel) seeking refuge in the desert is looked after by God as were the Hebrews in the desert. Though still in the world and exposed to hostilities, she need not worry.
“... the woman escaped into the desert, where God has made a place of safety ready.” (v.6)
ʘ The final verse is an invitation to hope. In spite of what may appear, even today, as the overwhelming power of evil, the dragon has been defeated and it cannot do any more harm to ‘the power of Christ’. “Victory, power and empire for ever have been won by our God and all authority for his Christ.” (v.10)
Reflection
This reading was meant to encourage the early Christians, who were undergoing suffering and persecution, by assuring them that God would finally triumph. The outcome is assured: victory for the good. We should be wrong ever to think that evil is more powerful than good.
Tradition sees in the ‘woman’ the earthly mother of the Saviour, mother of Jesus who, despite Satan’s power brought Christ into the world.
It should also encourage us. God will take special care of us too. He won’t save us from encountering evil, but will help us to overcome it.
May the prayers of this woman clothed with the sun bring Jesus to the waiting world,
and fill the void of incompletion with the presence of her child!
Second Reading 1 Corinthians 15: 20-26
Theme: St Paul calls the risen Christ the ‘first fruits.’ We will share in the harvest of eternal life which has already begun in Christ’s resurrection.
ʘ Death and dying are mentioned quite often in the New Testament since Christ’s victory over death is the fundamental truth of the Christian message. In today’s reading, we find the terms ‘death’ and ‘to die’ six times. In Corinth there were still some of Paul’s hearers who said that ‘there is no resurrection from the dead.’ For Paul, this is an absurdity, since the heart of his preaching has been that God has raised Jesus from the dead.
ʘ In this reading, Paul emphasises that Christ has risen from the dead and that fact is full of implications. His resurrection marks only the beginning of a vast harvest that will include us all. He is the first who arose and so he can now give life to all. In chapter 11, Paul is teaching about bodily resurrection; not merely immortality of the soul, both the resurrection of the whole person, an animated body, not a soul hidden in a body.
“Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (v.20)
ʘ He makes a contrast between the two great stories of Adam and Christ. Adam brought death to humankind and deep separation from God. Jesus Christ brought life, a life which means Resurrection from the dead, so those who are in Christ will live forever. Christ is the new Adam, the source of life forever for all tribes and nations.
“Just as all men die in Adam, so all men will be brought to life in Christ; but all of them in their proper order: Christ as the first fruits and then, after the coming of Christ, those who belong to him.” (vv.22-23)
ʘ Obviously this hasn’t happened yet for the rest of us. Though Paul looks to the future, he cannot describe this final moment when all those in Christ will be raised - at the end, at the moment of the Parousia, so he borrows from apocalyptic themes - like the final battle with the powers of evil, the last of which to be defeated will be death itself. “After that will come the end, when he hands over
the kingdom to God the Father, having done away with every sovereignty, authority and power.” (v.24)
ʘ Why is there an interval between the resurrection of Christ and of those who belong to him through faith and baptism? It is because the mission of Christ was not complete at his death. When the kingdom of Christ has been established and all the enemies of Christ subdued and overpowered, then Jesus will hand over his kingdom to the Father, his task complete. Then the everlasting kingdom of God will begin.
“For he must be king until he has put all his enemies under his feet and the last of the enemies to be destroyed is death, for everything is to be put under his feet.” (vv.25-26)
ʘ For us, please God, the resurrection is up ahead! In Mary’s case it was brought forward. Christ is first, but next in order surely comes his mother. Because she is Mother of God, because the only flesh Christ had was her flesh, because she had shared with Christ in the work of salvation, it was only fitting that she should share early on in the triumph of the Resurrection. She is the ‘first’ after her Son. He draws her after him in his retinue. She has already benefited from the ultimate triumph of the Messiah and already enjoys the fruits of the Resurrection. She goes ahead of us all and leads the way to full resurrection.
Reflections
Paul is telling the Corinthians, who denied resurrection from the dead, that Christ would progressively crush all the enemies of life and the last enemy he would defeat would be death. He is a beacon of hope for them because all those who live in Christ will live forever.
Christ’s victory over death means that at the end of our time on earth, he will introduce us through a new birth into the world of God where there will be life everlasting. He was the first to follow this route.
The resurrection of the dead, body and soul, teaches us that every aspect of our humanity is precious to God. Nothing that God created is useless or irrelevant. Somehow or other, it will all be taken into the life of Christ when the kingdom reaches fulfilment.
Gospel Luke 1:39-56
Theme: Elizabeth greets Mary as the mother of the Lord. Mary responds with a hymn of praise to God – the Magnificat.
ʘ The Gospel is the story of Mary’s visit to Elizabeth. Luke’s account of this visit brings together two mothers who have been promised birth through divine intervention by two annunciations. The humanly impossible has happened to each of them.
ʘ We see Mary setting out with haste from Nazareth to a small town in the hills of Judaea, not far from Jerusalem (where Zechariah served as a priest in the Temple) to visit her older cousin, Elizabeth, who was pregnant with the child we know as John the Baptist. Mary herself, of course, is carrying her own child, Jesus.
ʘ Mary has already received a revelation from Gabriel of what God has done for Elizabeth. She hurries to the home of her relative, Elizabeth, whom she greets. At the sound of her greeting, the babe in Elizabeth’s womb leaps for joy. The leaping of the child is a miraculous acknowledgement of the superiority if Jesus. The unborn prophet recognises the greatness of the unborn Lord.
“As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt for joy in her womb.” (v.41)
ʘ Elizabeth is given the perception, not only that Mary is with child, but that she has the enormous honour of being the physical mother of the Messiah. She excitedly bursts out into praise, greeting Mary’s motherhood with a blessing, or beatitude. Mary is indeed unique and blessed in being chosen as the mother of the Saviour. Elizabeth is deeply moved that it is Jesus and his Mother that have come to her.
“Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?” (v.42)
ʘ Filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth has a special word of praise – another beatitude – for Mary as a model believer, because as a faithful Israelite, she had readily obeyed the voice of God when it came to her with Gabriel’s message: an obedience which stands in sharp contrast to the disbelief of Elizabeth’s own husband when he heard the ‘good news.’
“Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled. (v.45)
ʘ Mary, however, passes on all the praise to God. No false humility here – just an acknowledgement of the truth. She does not list her own achievements but gives credit to the work of God in her. God is the author of every good in her life. She sings God’s praises in the lovely Canticle we call the Magnificat, which is recited every day in the church’s liturgy of Evening Prayer. Its subject throughout is the activity of God, first with regard to herself and then with the rest of humanity.
ʘ As is fitting in the mouth of a girl whose only knowledge of books was the Bible, Mary’s song is a combination of carefully chosen Old Testament passages and phrases. Its clearest links are with the Canticle of Hannah (1 Sam 2:1-10) who praised God for the gift of a son after many years of waiting.
ʘ Her canticle sums up God’s faithfulness to his promises and combines a wonderful sense of the holiness of God with gratitude for his gifts to this peasant girl which make her great in the eyes of God. Mary herself, the handmaid, the servant of the Lord, is a simple unmarried girl living in obscurity in a small town in an out-of-way Roman province. She knows herself to be lowly and yet God has chosen her. She stands empty but ready to receive the blessings God lavishes on her. Mary is shown praising God’s greatness, might, holiness and mercy. “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour; because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid. Yes,
from this day forward all generations will call me blessed, for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name. His mercy reaches from age to age to those who fear him.” (vv.46-50)
ʘ Mary’s joy is not limited to her own situation, to the graces and privileges which were showered on her. She reveals God’s activity in the world. The God of Israel is the God who saves and who is actively involved in liberating his people from the powers which oppress them. She turns her attention away from herself to the Almighty, the holy and merciful God – the Mighty One who keeps his promises and shares his power most of all in caring for the needy.
ʘ In her Magnificat, we see Mary as the radical woman, who hungers for a new justice on earth, one that reflects the justice of God. She is very clear about God’s attitude to those who are involved in oppression: they are ‘scattered’; the proud are ‘toppled’ from their pedestals; the mighty find themselves ‘unemployed’; the rich are solemnly awarded ‘nothing.’ No sympathy is given to those who live well because someone somewhere dies of neglect.
“He has shown the power of his arm, he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.” (vv.51-53)
ʘ Luke situates Mary at the place of conflict between good and evil. The Magnificat is like her Mission Statement. It is a revolutionary hymn of praise.
ʘ Her hymn closes with the memory of all of God’s greatness and goodness to her own people, Israel, from the time of Abraham onwards. God’s sending of the Messiah is the greatest act of his gracious treatment of Israel, the people with whom he had made a Covenant through Abraham. God has now fulfilled the promise made to the patriarchs. A promise made to a man is accomplished in a woman!
“He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy – according to the promise
he made to our ancestors – of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” (v.54-55)
ʘ After the conclusion of Mary’s canticle, Luke states that Mary stays with Elizabeth another three months. It is strange that he has Mary depart for home before the birth of John the Baptist. The scene is now clear for the two births of John and Jesus.
“Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.” (v.56)
Reflection
In today’s Gospel, two strong women meet, both of them blessed in a special way by God and both willing to carry out God’s unexpected plans. How do I react when my life takes unexpected turns?
The story and the song of Mary are both celebrating the work of God in her life. When have you been particularly grateful for what was happening in your life? How did you express and celebrate your thanks?
Mary is praised for believing that God’s promise to her would be fulfilled. How has your trust in God’s promise helped you in your life?
By responding positively to God’s will for her, Mary becomes the model believer, servant and disciple, responding wholeheartedly to God’s plan of salvation. Mary teaches us that the best thing to do is to put our trust in the Word of God. Do I ever model myself on Mary in my response to God’s call?
Our devotion to Jesus requires our devotion to his close friends of whom his mother would be prime. On this feast we are praying with our belief in Mary as the Mother of Jesus and the Mother of God. Everything else we say about Mary depends on her being the Mother of Jesus and the Mother of God. We do not adore her, but we admire her. We believe that Jesus can refuse his mother nothing, because their wills are so entwined. And so, we thank God for so holy and so gracious an intercessor.
It is good to remember that this feast does not only celebrate a privilege of Mary alone but also points to our own future in God’s presence, to what we believe God will do for us – that we, too, will be raised to a new existence in the peace of God. What happened to Mary is the other side of death – the light side, the bright side. Mary assumed into heaven is a great figure of hope. What has happened to her will happen to us. Mary today! The rest of us tomorrow! Mary is there and we will follow.
One ship has rounded the headland. We are the little ships following her home.
The promise is that all Christians will share in her Son’s Resurrection. This is what the dogmatic definition tells us as it expresses the hope ‘that faith in the bodily assumption of Mary into heaven may make our faith in our resurrection both stronger and more active’’
God started in Mary what he means to continue in us.
Where the mother has gone, the children can hope to follow.
Mary’s importance is not limited to giving us hope about the afterlife; she gives every Christian hope in the struggles of everyday life. Mary voices God’s opposition to tyranny and his determination to pull down the powers that brutalise their subjects. In that, Mary is no passive, silent woman. For the poor and oppressed, she is not alive in statues and pictures but in the real and powerful change that can be brought about in the world when God’s preferences and God’s choices are taken seriously. She is the mother of all who are oppressed, overlooked and scorned.
Because Mary was the first tabernacle of Jesus, ‘Ark of the Covenant’ is one of the titles applied to her, which is familiar to generations of Catholics in the Litany of Loreto. Each one of us and each community of ours is called to be like Mary an ‘Ark of the Covenant’; we are entrusted with the task of carrying Jesus the Lord to all peoples.
As we celebrate the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, we too share in the joy of the two mothers-to-be rejoicing together at the mighty deeds of God unfolding in their lives. We can pray our own Magnificat, thanking God for blessings, for good times, for bad times through which God protected us, and for the ways in which we have grown up – in good times and bad. Have you ever tried to write your own Magnificat – your prayer or song of thanks to God for all he has done for you?
Perhaps you can start today. Begin prayerfully with ‘Thanks’ as your title; think back over the day, the week, the year, the past and the present; your personal gifts and all that good friends and others give you in life. The grateful heart is a heart open to love and to God.
You might also consider how you can reach out to offer encouragement and support. We need to visit each other often, to offer each other a safe place to celebrate our freedom and our gifts.
Prayer
O God, our Father,
faithful to your promise, you have lifted up the lowly,
clothing with heavenly splendour the woman
who bore Christ, our life and resurrection.
We thank you for the sign of hope you give us
in this feast of the Assumption of the Mother of your Son.
With the prayer of this good Mother to help us,
we pray for hearts of courage to accept your will as she did;
for hearts of wisdom that we may listen to the Word of God
and respond to it in our lives;
for hearts of love that we may live out our lives
in a spirit of love and service; and
for hearts of discipleship
that we may be led always in God’s ways.
Grant that the Church, prefigured in Mary, may bear Christ
to the world and come to share his triumph.
We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen. Amen.
Oh, Mary assumed into heaven, inspire us
as we journey on our way!
ARK OF THE COVENANT,
PRAY FOR US!
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