Assumed into Heaven

~~~Assumption of the Blessed Mother, Mary ~~~

 

~~Revelation 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab ~~Psalm 45 ~~

~~1 Corinthians 15:20-27~~Luke 1:39-56~~

 

Today we commemorate the death of Mary the Mother of Jesus.

Today we not only remember her death,

but also our belief that she was assumed

 into heaven body and soul.

 

She was reunited with the Son she conceived, bore, and birthed.

She was reunited with the Word made flesh.

Her body and soul glorified and made holy by God.

 

The beautiful words of her Magnificat hymn clearly fill the heavens.

Her motherly compassion and joy grace heaven for all of eternity.

Her tenderness and unconditional love forever

shine as stars in heaven.

 

In 1950, Pope Pius XII declared the Assumption of Mary

 into heaven a dogma of faith.

 

 

Had Mary not been receptive to being chosen by God to conceive Jesus,

he could not be the 'first fruit' of our salvation.

 

It is fitting that God, Jesus, would assume Mary into heaven.

Her body became sacred and holy the moment she become pregnant

with Our Lord and Savior.

 

Her body became the tabernacle,

the special place for Jesus to reside until his human body was perfectly formed.

 

Her womb was the new temple.

It was within her holy body that Jesus begins to fulfill the law.

Only God would allow such a process to happen.

Who would ever have thought that God would take on our

total human existence.

 

Mary knew as is evidenced in the words of her Magnificat

that she was humbly filled with the Spirit.

 

From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his Name.

 

Mary was spared the corruption of her body after her death.

She did not have to wait until the end of time to be

reunited with her physical body.

 

In the Bible there is not much more recorded about Mary

after the wedding at Cana until the crucifixion.

Certainly she spent as much time as she could following her son.

Imagine how she must have been filled with joy at hearing

 of his preaching,

 teaching, and many miraculous cures.

 

Mary was a mother who loved her son and took pride

in his accomplishments.

Mary was your traditional Jewish mother;

her son was extremely important to her.

 

As with most things concerning God,

 we cannot begin to comprehend the Assumption of Mary into heaven.

Instead we are asked to accept her Assumption with our faith.

There is no need to try and figure out how 

this could have physically taken place.

 

Since her death Mary has made numerous appearances

to individuals here on earth...

each time she always appears to have her physical body.

The same body which gave birth to the Messiah in a stable.

 

Religious artists typically portray

Mary as young,

 but when she died she was no longer a young girl.

 

By the time Mary died she had witnessed our whole salvation story...

literally from supernatural conception through natural death

and finally to the Resurrection.

 

Today I invite you to be thankful for the motherhood of Mary.

She blesses us in many ways

 with her loving words...

do whatever he tells you.