Why we should offer a two-fold prayer of thanks today. You like me may have encountered a wide diversity of opinions regarding the Mother of Jesus and even traditions. As we know, understandings of Mary and the Communion of Saints are some of those beliefs that divide Christians, and the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is certainly one of them. While it is true that the Dogma of the Assumption was officially promulgated by Pope Pius XII only in 1950, the mystery that inspires this celebration is firmly rooted in the ancient Tradition of the Church and has its foundations in the words of Scripture in the Book of Revelation. What may surprise many is that this celebration is shared with Orthodox Christians throughout the world, while many members of the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Church also honour Mary on this day. 

This Solemnity which celebrates the truth that, at the end of her earthly life, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was taken body and soul into heaven, evolved from a liturgical celebration of the “Day of Mary, Mother of God,” in Jerusalem in the 5th century. Although it was originally a more general celebration of Mary, it soon became a commemoration of Mary’s Natale, her “birthday” into heaven. Within 200 years, it was being celebrated in Rome. Under Pope Sergius I (d. 701), this day in honour of Mary came to be celebrated as a memorial of Mary’s passing from this life and included a midnight procession (during the night of August 14) from Rome’s church of St. Adrian to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. By the end of the century, it had come to be known as the “Assumption of Holy Mary.” 

The fact that there was a celebration of Mary’s entrance into Heaven tells us that early Christians believed that there was something special about the end of Mary’s time on earth (called her Dormition (“falling asleep” in Latin) and that they saw particular meaning in this mystery. 

Among the earliest set of prayers, we have for this Feast (from the 8th-century Gregorian Sacramentary), is a prayer that reads: “God, turning your gaze to the humility of the Virgin, you raised her to the sublime dignity of the Mother of your Son and crowned her with incomparable glory.” This theologically ripe sentence tells us what is at the heart of the celebration of Mary’s Assumption: Because of Mary’s humble and unique cooperation in the mysteries of salvation, she enjoys a privileged place in Heaven.

So, on this Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, let us take a moment to offer a two-fold prayer of thanks. First, for the gift we have received because of Mary’s obedience and faith which are at the heart of this celebration and, second, for the promise of new and eternal life that God has made to each of us, in Jesus, when we faithfully and lovingly respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, as did Mary. She followed Him from His birth to His death and resurrection. From this life to the life of heaven. Let’s continue to do the same and with her rejoice, adore and trust the love, which God bestows upon us day by day.

Fr David Jones OLW