Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed
Virgin Mary
Mass during the Day
Lectionary: 622
Reading I
God’s temple in heaven was opened,
and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in the sky;
it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,
and on its heads were seven diadems.
Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky
and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth,
to devour her child when she gave birth.
She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.
The woman herself fled into the desert
where she had a place prepared by God.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the Kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed One.”
Responsorial Psalm
R. (10bc) The queen stands at your right
hand, arrayed in gold.
The queen takes her place at your right hand in gold of Ophir.
R. The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in
gold.
Hear, O daughter, and see; turn your ear,
forget your people and your father’s house.
R. The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in
gold.
So shall the king desire your beauty;
for he is your lord.
R. The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in
gold.
They are borne in with gladness and joy;
they enter the palace of the king.
R. The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in
gold.
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through man,
the resurrection of the dead came also through man.
For just as in Adam all die,
so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,
but each one in proper order:
Christ the firstfruits;
then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ;
then comes the end,
when he hands over the Kingdom to his God and Father,
when he has destroyed every sovereignty
and every authority and power.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death,
for “he subjected everything under his feet.”
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Mary is taken up to heaven;
a chorus of angels exults.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Mary set out
and traveled to the hill country in haste
to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me,
that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed
that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.”
And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly
servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
and has scattered the proud in their
conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of
mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever.”
Mary remained with her about three months
and then returned to her home.
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
How we experience God is based on our relationship with Him. As Sacred Scripture says, “To know God is to love God.” If we do not love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and body then we are truly lacking in a deep, meaningful relationship with Him. We are constantly invited into the Trinitarian relationship and are offered all of the benefits that come from it. These can come in the form of The Fruit of The Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) and The Seven Gifts of The Holy Spirit (wisdom, knowledge, understanding, piety, good counsel, fortitude, and fear of The Lord). It is also good to study the relationships of Jesus with those whom He was closest to so as to strive to enter into these relationships also with the same devotion and love. Being created in His image means that we are afforded the opportunity to feel what He feels and experience things the way He experiences them. Jesus’ relationship with His mother is an intimacy between a mother and son that surpasses our understanding but is also one that we can benefit from and experience for we are His children and Mary extends the love they share to all of us.
Mary, among other titles, is known as “The Theotokos.” This is a Greek word meaning, “God Vessel.” She is recognized as such because she gave birth to Jesus Christ. Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth, proclaimed this through Divine Revelation. Moved to words by The Holy Spirit she said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” It is through The Gospel of Luke that we are given instruction on how to approach Mary and what reverence we should bestow upon her. It is through Mary that the Love of God can be realized all the more and how the tenderness of a mother’s love can be witnessed in its perfection.
From Mary’s conception we are witnesses to the perfectness of God. The Church teaches us and Sacred Scripture proclaim that Mary was born without Original Sin: unblemished and undefiled. She had to be since she was the one bearing the infant Jesus into the world. Through God everything is made perfect. Even us in our imperfections brought upon by our thoughts and actions cannot counter the work of God within us once we let Him in. The Angel Gabriel said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” Being with God is an indication that the relationship she has with Him is perfect just as it was with Enoch and Elijah before. Being greeted with reverence and respect raises the receiver to a position above the greeter. One of a higher class does not extend such a greeting to a person of a lower class. Thus Mary, in her position, is raised up higher than the angels. As Elizabeth did to Mary, moved by The Holy Spirit, we are expected to do the same. When this is done we become benefactors of one who has a unique relationship with The Son of God and can intercede on our behalf to Him. The more prayers the better and who would refuse the prayers of the Mother of God; one who Jesus himself could not deny her request:
“They have no wine.”
And Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.”
His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you…”
I think we all know the rest of the story. The Fourth Commandment rings true: Honor Your Mother and Father.
Today we celebrate The Assumption of Mary. Mary, being without Original Sin and in a perfect relationship with God was assumed, full body and soul, into heaven upon her death. It is there where she remains with her Son, Jesus Christ, and is given a special place within The Spiritual Realm and also in all of God’s creation. Our lives and the lives of all in the universe are intertwined as witnessed by The Apostle John in his vision:
“A great sign
appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.”
“… She gave
birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.”
Clothed with the sun and the moon at her feet; bedecked with twelve stars to represent The Twelve Tribes of Israel, The Apostles, The Seraphim, The Twelve Favors, amongst other things giving us a clear way of how we should approach and interact with Mary. The fact that she was taken up by God in the manner of Enoch and Elijah solidifies her place in our dogma and our faith-life. She can be our comforter, consoler, and greatest intercessor. She is part of our salvation story and adds another way that we can enter into a relationship with God. Jesus had a mother and, as all mothers do, Mary had and continues to have an impact on her son.
God used a comparison of His love for us as to the love a mother has for her child:
“Can a mother forget her infant,
Be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even if she should forget,
I will never forget you.”
Compare that to the love between Mary and Jesus. By extension, compare that to the love Mary has for us being God’s Children. God will never forget us. Jesus will never forget us. Mary will never forget us. The love that God has for us is revealed through His love for His Son and the love Mary has for us all. There is no greater power and force when this love is realized and celebrated.
Deacon Tom
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