Assumption of the BVM August 15, 2022
Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
“The woman herself fled into the desert where she had a place prepared by God.” That cuts to the heart of what we’re celebrating in this solemn feast. Mary had a place prepared for her by God and, in order to show us what’s in store, God raised her up body and soul to go to that place. It makes sense that the very body which carried the son of God should be spared from corruption. Many traditions agree that, whether she died first or was assumed alive, Mary’s body did not decay.
Why not? Because decay is an aspect of death and Jesus Christ conquered death. That’s what St. Paul is focused on in that second reading: Christ’s victory over death. He too did not decay, but rose from the dead in only three days to manifest his victory. Both Mary and Jesus were free from sin, so both were spared some of the effects of Original Sin as a sign to us that such a thing is possible.
So what? We were not preserved from original sin. We do die and we will decay before we are raised up in new, glorified bodies. What does this Assumption of Mary mean for us? A sign and a promise. Jesus is God, so his rising from the dead and ascending into heaven in a sense comes from himself as God. He has power over death. But Mary is only human. She does not raise herself from death. She does not bring herself to heaven. She is brought up by God. That’s the difference between Ascension and Assumption: the source of the power to go to heaven.
So, Mary’s assumption is a sign to us, a prefiguration of what God will eventually do for us. It is there to strengthen our faith that human beings truly will share in eternal life body and soul. Still, what about Mary made this unique gift possible? Obviously, God’s plan and providence. There is always a mystery in why God chooses to give certain gifts to some people and not to others. Salvation is offered to all, but incorruptibility is not offered to all, the Assumption is not offered to all. Yet, it’s not all a puppet show. There is a real cooperation in those to whom God gives his gifts. We can still merit a reward by God’s grace.
Mary’s assumption is not just about reminding us that we can go to heaven; it’s not just proof that God has prepared a place for us; it’s also an inspiration we can act upon, an example to follow. No one should be surprised at what that example is: Mary’s faith. Elizabeth cries out in joy, “blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” While we cannot imitate Mary’s assumption directly, we can imitate her faith.
And it starts with hearing what is spoken to us by the Lord. The Lord spoke to Mary through an angel. The Lord speaks to us too through angels, through scripture, through the teachings of the Church, and through the examples of the saints. The Lord speaks to us through Mary. By raising her to heaven, he is saying to us “I have a place for you too.” We defined this dogma of the Assumption not out of intellectual pride, but as a way of saying “you really should hear what the Lord says through this great even.” So believe what he says to you!
Imitating Mary’s faith, we should then imitate her other great virtue: her love and desire. Mary not only believed what the Lord said, she desired it. Hearing the truth, she actively sought it out. She believed her cousin was pregnant. She did not travel to test God’s word, but to delight in it, to experience what she already believed was true. How often do we do otherwise! We want proof of what God says or we believe it but don’t want to deal with the implications. We drag our feet to respond to some newly discovered truth of the faith because we dread the challenge of living it out.
But this is dragging our feet to get to heaven! Some theologians speak of the Assumption as if Mary’s love of God was so great that it pulled her body into heaven. Every so often we see a saint do something similar: St. Therese of Lisieux may have suffered from Tuberculosis, but those who witnessed her death say she died not of the disease but of love, as if her soul leapt out of her body at the sight of God. Blessed Imelda likewise died of love immediately after receiving her first holy communion. By God’s grace and design, Mary’s faith and desire must have been so great that even her body followed, enabled to do so because it never knew sin.
So must our faith and desire be. Believe God has prepared a place for you. He has indeed! Desire that place. Long for it. Reflect often on the mysteries of eternal life revealed to us, thinking of Mary’s own joy. Stir up your desire often by prayer, meditation, study, and exposure to holy and beautiful things. Let that desire pull you away from sin, pull you towards grace. If you believe, if you do not give up, one day your soul shall fly to God and in the end, even your body will join you.
O wonderful mother of so great a son, may your faithful example draw us after you. May we too die of love so that we may live it forever!