What is the Assumption of Mary?
Celebration of Mary being taken up to Heaven
MARYHOLIDAYS/HOLY DAYS OF OBLIGATION
8/15/20261 min read
There are two ways someone can be saved from a pit. One is for someone to reach in and pull them out. The other is someone stopping them from ever reaching the pit. From her birth, God prevented Mary from the stain of original sin and through His grace she remained uncorrupted. In celebrating the Assumption of Mary, Catholics are celebrating her victory over death and glorification in Heaven.
With assumption coming from the Latin assūmptiō, meaning “taking up”, the Assumption of Mary is celebrating her completing her earthly mission and her Son taking her to Heaven. (1) The Church has not formally defined if she died first. The Eastern and Orthodox Churches believe she was alive when she was assumed.
In scripture Enoch (2) and Elijah (3) were assumed into Heaven alive while Moses (4) was assumed after death. These three men were all especially holy and faithful to God. Mary was preserved from original sin, lived a sinless life and fully submitted to the will of God. This makes it very fitting for God to keep her body free from corruption, even after death. (5)
Citations: (1) ccc 966, (2) Genesis 5:24, (3) 2 Kings 2:11, (4) Deuteronomy 34:5-6, (5) Munificentissimus Deus; Nov 1, 1950
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