The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Rev. 11:19a: 12:1-6a.10ab 1 Cor. 15:20-27 Luke 1:39-56
Theme: My soul glorifies the Lord
Today the church celebrates the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Our mother Mary was assumed body and soul into the heavenly glory. As a result of who she is to us as the mother of Christ, she did not experience death and bodily decay, like all other humans will do. Our believe is that God did not allow the body of the Virgin Mary to know decay because it was a place of dwelling for God. Today’s feast started a very long time ago but was only declared a Dogma in the church by Pope Pius X11 in the year 1950.
There is no better time to appreciate some of the wonderful attributes of our mother Mary for been a worthy instrument in the fulfilment of Gods plan for humanity. One of the wonderful attributes we see in the life of Mary is her high level of love and appreciation, as seen in the Magnificat in today’s gospel reading. In the Magnificat she is showing appreciation and thanking God for what he has done for her, without minding her unworthiness. This is one of her gifts that today’s feast is encouraging us to equally practice in our own lives. No matter the little the gift we receive, we must learn to always appreciate it and say thank you, just like our mother Mary is teaching us today from our gospel reading.
This is made possible because of the humility of our mother Mary. It takes a humble person to acknowledge the fact that he or she is not qualified for what she has received from God. This humility was seen in the life of our mother Mary from the very beginning, the visit of the Angel to her at the Annunciation. This is also another aspect of our mother Mary that should be promoted as we celebrate today’s feast. Lastly, another aspect of our mother Mary that I would also like to point out on this day is her level of selflessness, as seen in her visit to her cousin Elizabeth after the Angels message. Our prayer today is that where our mother Mary is, we may also be, in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit. Amen. Peace be with you.