Assumption

On Monday, August 15, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Because it falls on a Monday this year, the solemnity is not a holy day of obligation; but it remains an important celebration. We celebrate the fact that, at the end of her earthly life, the Blessed Virgin Mary was taken, body and soul, into heaven. As the Preface for this day states, “Rightly you would not allow her to see the corruption of the tomb, since from her own body she marvelously brought forth your incarnate Son, the Author of all life.”

The Preface also calls the Assumption of Mary “a sign of sure hope and comfort to your pilgrim people.” The Assumption is a sign of hope because it foreshadows the destiny towards which we are striving: to share in the glory of the Lord’s Resurrection.The Assumption is a call for us to renew in our hearts the virtue of hope. The secret of being hopeful is found in the Collect of the Mass for this day: “Grant, we pray, that, always attentive to the things that are above, we may merit to be sharers of her glory.”

Let’s always be “attentive to the things that are above,” so that we never lose our focus on what is most important in this life. It’s so easy to be distracted by lesser things, but we were created for something much greater than the things around us.With eternal glory as our goal, why should we settle for anything less?

Gratefully yours,