THE REALITY OF ASSUMPTION

On August 15, every year, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This post takes you into the Bible to discover the reality of the Assumption. In fact, it was not just an event that took place: it was, and still is, the path of our return from human nature to divine nature. Assumption is a divine route of escape to safety from the manipulations and attacks of Satan. So you have just celebrated the Assumption, but don't let it pass without leaving a lasting impact in your life. Follow me: “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (Jn 8:32) 

1. Meaning of Assumption

The word “assumption" has several meanings, and two of them tie with the reality of the Assumption. Oxford dictionary defines the word assumption as the action of taking on power or responsibility. In this sense it also means: taking up, entering on, hijacking etc. Thus the Assumption - as a spiritual reality - is the taking up and reception of the Virgin Mary body and soul into heaven. Assumption is also defined as a thing that is accepted as true or certain, without question or proof. So the celebration of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven is an act of faith. However, both the historical background and the biblical foundation of the Assumption of Mary prove that our belief is not baseless.  .

2. Historical Background  

On the basis of its biblical allusion and historical facts, the Assumption of Mary has been believed in the Catholic Church from the first century AD. This belief was passed down in the oral tradition of the Church and assimilated over the centuries. In fact archaeologists revealed two tombs of Mary : one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus - the two places where Mary had lived. But what was strange was that, unlike the tombs of saints and martyrs of faith, none of the two tombs attributed to Mary had any body or relics in them. It is also said that the early Apostles found only rose flowers in her tomb.. Now considering how much Mary was honored in heaven and venerated on earth, it is inexplicable - except for the fact of her Assumption - why no relic of her body has been found, as has been the bodies and relics of saints, which Christians sought with fervor..

3. Biblical Foundation

“Then she gave birth to a son, who will rule over all nations with an iron rod. But the child was snatched away and taken to God and his throne. The woman fled to the desert, to a place God had prepared for her, where she will be taken care of for 1,260 days. She was given the two wings of a large eagle in order to fly to her place in the desert, where she will be taken care of for three and a half years, safe from the dragon's attack.” (Rev 12:5-6,14) In this scripture “woman” stands for Virgin Mary, “son” stands for Jesus Christ, “desert” stands for heaven, “wings” stand for the Holy Spirit, and  “1260 days” stand for eternity (i.e 1 + 2 + 6 + 0 = 9  = all time).

4. Solemnity of Assumption 

The Assumption of the Virgin Mary was formally declared a doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church by Pope Pius XII in 1950.It is stated: "The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son's Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of his Body" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, No.974).

The feast in honor of the Assumption is a solemnity, celebrated on August 15. A solemnity, in the liturgical calendar of the Roman Rite, is a feast day of the highest rank celebrating a mystery of faith such as the Trinity, an event in the life of Jesus, his mother Mary, his earthly father Joseph, or other important saints. Unlike ordinary feast days the solemnities are the same as the Sunday celebrations of the Holy Mass. So they are holy days of obligations for all Catholics to attend holy Mass - on the same level as Sundays.

The difference between the Assumption of Mary and the Ascension of Jesus.is that Mary was “taken up” (assumed) into heaven by the Holy Spirit (in the company of the Angels), whereas Jesus “went up” (ascended) into heaven by himself. Although it is written, “he departed from them and was taken up into heaven” (Lk 24:51) we know that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one with the Father, as God.

5. The Four Battles

When the Virgin Mary - Queen of Heaven - conceived and was about to give birth to her Son, the Dragon (Devil) became furious and waged war against the Kingdom of God (Rev 12:1-4). This was because he knew that the Son of God was the Messiah who was coming to conquer him (Rev 12 10). In the first battle the Dragon rallied one third of the angels in heaven (now fallen angels) and enlisted them to fight against the Messiah. But they lost the battle because God carried his Son to safety immediately after his birth (Rev 12:3-5). The reality of this first battle is reflected in Herod’s plot against the child Jesus and Joseph’s flight with him to Egypt (Mt 2), as well as in the passion, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus into heaven. (Mt 26 to 28). Then came the second battle where the Dragon and the fallen angels attacked the heavenly powers, But the valorous and most faithful St Michael, the Archangel, led the heavenly angels to fight, defeat and cast them all out of Heaven onto the earth (Rev 12:7-9)

 

Having lost the second battle the Dragon then engaged in a third battle - against the Virgin Mary - the mother of the Messiah. But she was lifted up on the wings of the Holy Spirit and flown into Heaven - where the Dragon cannot reach. So the Dragon also lost the third battle. (Rev 12:13-14) This third battle is reflected in the sorrows of the Virgin Mary (Lk 2:35), the incorruptibility of her body after death, and her assumption into heaven This is the core of the mystery and reality of the Assumption. The Dragon lost all the three battles - but did not surrender. He went on to fight against the remaining offsprings of Mary - all those who believe and are baptized in Christ as children of God  (Rev 12:17-18). This fourth battle is ongoing and is the generator of all the adversities, hatred, injustices, corruption, decadence, perversities, and conflicts in the world today.   

6. Catapult of the Word

So confronted with the fourth draconic battle (Rev 12:17-18) the children of God in the world are called to arise and fight like King David. They have to proclaim and confess the Word of God as the Stone of Salvation (Jn 1:14; Act 4:11-12) and the Sword of the Spirit - to counter the attacks of the dragon and to overcome all his evils. As the scripture says: “He took his shepherd's stick and then picked up five smooth stones from the stream and put them in his bag. With his sling ready, he went out to meet Goliath. Goliath started walking toward David again, and David ran quickly toward the Philistine battle line to fight him. He reached into his bag and took out a stone, which he slung at Goliath. It hit him on the forehead and broke his skull, and Goliath fell face downward on the ground. And so, without a sword, David defeated and killed Goliath with a sling and a stone!” (1Sam 17: 40, 48-50). In this scripture, Goliath is the image of the Dragon, the stream is the image of the Holy Spirit, the stones are the images of the Word of God, the bag is the image of the Holy Bible, and the sling (catapult) is the image of the Virgin Mary. Through her the Word of God was made incarnate in Jesus Christ (Jn 1:14), to conquer the Devil (Col 2;15), 

7. Incarnation of God

The use of the Immaculate Heart of Mary as a spiritual catapult is the wisdom and the way of God (Is 55: 8-9) - a way which many believers ignore, For it is through the Virgin Mary (Lk 1:30-31)  that the Word became flesh  (Jn 1:1,14) in order to save the world from sin and satanic oppression. (Col 2:13-15). So the scripture says: “In the beginning the Word already existed; the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son. (Jn 1:1,14)

8. Victory of Salvation 

The victory of salvation was accomplished by Jesus Christ who carried our sins in his body onto the Cross, so that we may die to sin and live for righteousness (1 Pt 2:24).  And on that very Cross Jesus destroyed all the plans and works of Satan (1Jn 3:8). That is why it is written: “You were at one time spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were Gentiles without the Law. But God has now brought you to life with Christ. God forgave us all our sins; he canceled the unfavorable record of our debts with its binding rules and did away with it completely by nailing it to the cross. And on that cross Christ Christ stripped the spiritual rulers and authorities of their power; he made a public spectacle of them by leading them as captives in his victory procession.” (Col 2:13-15)

9. Disincarnation of Man

Disincarnation means disembodiment or freedom from the demands and desires of the body. This disincarnation is the believers' route of escape to safety from the temptations of sin and the manipulations and attacks of the Devil. For the Scripture says: “Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. It is by his wounds that you have been healed. You were like sheep that had lost their way, but now you have been brought back to follow the Shepherd and Keeper of your souls.” (1 Pt 2:24-25). For this reason another Scripture says: “You must put to death, then, the earthly desires at work in you, such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed (for greed is a form of idolatry). Because of such things God's anger will come upon those who do not obey him” (Col 3:5-6).

10. The Marian Interface

This process of disincarnation is realized through the interface of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. An interface is a point or framework where two systems or forces meet and interact to achieve a purpose. It is also defined as a device or program that enables a user to communicate with a computer. So as God became incarnate in human form by the interaction of the Word and the Holy Spirit In the Virgin Mary, so also human beings may become discarnate from the body - by the interaction of the Word and the Holy Spirit in the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

11. Power Transformer

The real world model of the spiritual interface of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is the electrical power transformer. A “step-down transformer” is used to step voltage down, while a “step-up transformer” is used to step voltage up. The voltage coming into the transformer from the power source is called the primary voltage and the voltage going out of the transformer is called the secondary voltage. This secondary voltage is suitable to the nature and the strength of the power destination.

12. Spiritual Application

The Word of God is the intangible cable that conducts and transmits the Holy Spirit from God to the believer in order to give life to the authority and the promise of the Word. So it is written: “What gives life is God's Spirit; human power is of no use at all. The words I have spoken to you bring God's life-giving Spirit.” (Jn 6:63) Thus the incarnation of the Word of God in humans in order to save and disincarnate them from their human nature to divine nature is accomplished through the Virgin Mary as the Divine Transformer of the Holy Spirit flowing through the living Word as its cable. 

The current of the Holy Spirit is released by God when, in prayer, the believer proclaims and claims the authority of the Word of God. So it is written:: “The angel said to her, “Don't be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious to you. You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. (Lk 1:30-31)  She claimed it with submission and faith: ““I am the Lord's servant,” said Mary; “may it happen to me as you have said.” And the angel left her”. (Lk 1:38). Thus, it happened as the angel had said (Lk 1:43-45). In the same way the disincarnation of the believer operates when they proclaim and claim the authority of the Scriptures through the Immaculate Heart of Mary. As it is written: “For when you were baptized, you were buried with Christ, and in baptism you were also raised with Christ through your faith in the active power of God, who raised him from death.” (Col 2:12).

13. Devotion to Mary

The material instrument or sacramental of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is the chaplet of the Holy Rosary. The whole Rosary is made up of four sets of mysteries of the life of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary. Each of the four sets of mysteries is divided into five decades. The mysteries of Joy proclaim the conception, birth and childhood of Jesus. The mysteries of Light proclaim the baptism of Jesus and the manifestation of his divine power. The mysteries of Sorrow proclaim his passion and sacrificial death on the Cross. And the mysteries of Glory proclaim the glorious manifestation of the power of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus, the Apostles and the Virgin Mary. The secret and the power of the Marian devotion is the daily meditation on the mysteries of the Rosary. It is for this reason that in her 1917 apparitions at Fatima the Virgin Mary insisted that we should pray the Rosary everyday, while meditating on the mysteries We pray the mysteries of Joy on Mondays and Saturdays, the mysteries of Sorrow on Tuesdays and Fridays, the mysteries of Light on Thursdays, and the mysteries of Glory on Wednesdays and Sundays. In this meditation we proclaim and claim the Word of God, which through the Immaculate of Mary is made incarnate in us by the Holy Spirit, in order to accomplish our salvation (Col 2:12-15) and our disincarnation into the divinity of Christ (Col 3:3-5).           

The Holy Rosary is a daily prayer and the meditation on the mysteries is more important than the main prayer request. That is why the chaplet ends with the prayer: “O God, whose only begotten Son, by his life, death and resurrection has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation; grant we beseech thee that by meditating on his mysteries in the most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may both imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise - through the same Christ our Lord, Amen”. As it is written: “For you have put off the old self with its habits and have put on the new self. This is the new being which God, its Creator, is constantly renewing in his own image, in order to bring you to a full knowledge of himself.” (Col 3:9-10).

14. Return to Divinity  

So what does the Assumption of Mary teach us? In a homily for the Assumption, Pope St. John Paul II said, “Taken up into Heaven, Mary shows us the way to God, the way to Heaven, the way to life. She shows it to her children baptized in Christ and to all people of good will.” So as the scripture says: “We, however, are citizens of heaven, and we eagerly wait for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven. He will change our weak mortal bodies and make them like his own glorious body, using that power by which he is able to bring all things under his rule.” (Phil 3:20-21)

Thus by proclaiming and claiming your citizenship of heaven in Christ you gradually obtain it - through the Immaculate Heart of Mary - as another scripture says: "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory!” (Col 3:3-4). And to conclude I ask you this question: If your life is hidden with Christ in God, can Satan still attack you? Can the Devil even see you?  Can any trial overcome you? We know the answer - it is no; for Christ has conquered all evil (Col 2:15). So may your application of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary turn around all things for good -  for you who love God (Rom 8:28); Amen.

Author: Aying Godman 

Catechist & Evangelist of the Roman Catholic Church  

Catholic Front Media  

BP 11268 Douala - Cameroon 

Tel / WhatsApp: +237 672 65 90 14

Email: ayinggodman@gmail.com