The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
By Fr. George El-Andari
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The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is understood by the whole Church as the term for which the Blessed Virgin soon after her death, was taken up body and soul to heaven to be forever throned above the angels and Saints. The word assumption derives from the Latin word “assūmptiō,” meaning taking up. She was lifted up by God to the degree of glory for which she had been predestined. The Assumption of Mary is the fourth dogma of the Marian Dogmas of the Catholic Church. It is also known as one of the two Modern Marian Dogmas that the Catholic Church has declared in modern times besides the Immaculate Conception dogma. They are called the Modern Marian dogmas to distinguish them from the old dogmas (Divine Motherhood and Perpetual Virginity) because these two are specific to the Catholic Church and are not binding on the Orthodox Church or other Churches. The dogma of the Assumption was declared by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950, which states that: “Mary immaculate Mother of God ever Virgin, after finishing the course of her life on earth, was taken up in body and soul to heavenly glory.”
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The history of the dogma of the Assumption:
Starting from the end of the fifth century AD or the beginning of the sixth century AD, the earliest traditions say that Mary’s life ended in Jerusalem. The Church practiced an ancient piety based on the pilgrimage to the place known in Jerusalem as the tomb of Mary. Another narrative of a more recent tradition says that the assumption have taken place in Ephesus, in the house of the Virgin Mary. As we know that the Holy Scripture does not mention anything about the end of Mary’s life and interpreters explain that is due to the absence of the Holy Spirit’s inspiration to the writers of the Gospels about where she died, at what age, how she died and where she was buried. It is as the inspired writers wanted to say: Her presence in the heart of the Church is her permanent place and therefore it is not necessary to mention anything about her death in the scripture.
The veneration of the Virgin became popular at the end of the second century and the beginning of the third century. Therefore, believers began to ask questions about the beginning of Mary’s life before the Annunciation and the end of her life after Pentecost. Her veneration became so popular with the prayer “Under Your Protection,” and the Marian piety emerged and developed more after the Council of Ephesus in 431 and that drew attention to what happened to the Body of the Mother who gave birth to the Son of God, the Savior. At the Council of Chalcedon in 451, when bishops from throughout the Mediterranean world gathered in Constantinople, Emperor Marcian asked the Patriarch of Jerusalem to bring the relics of Mary to Constantinople to be enshrined in the capital. The patriarch explained to the emperor that there were no relics of Mary in Jerusalem, that "Mary had died in the presence of the apostles; but her tomb, when opened later . . . was found empty and so the apostles concluded that the body was taken up into heaven." Thus this veneration arose, which took its official form in the sixth century with the establishment of the feast of Dormition, which we call today the Feast of the Assumption of Mary. The Feast of the Assumption took on a liturgical Character and became one of the main feasts in the liturgical year and it is one of four liturgical feasts for the Virgin Mary: the Nativity of the Virgin, her presentation to the temple, the Annunciation and the Assumption. These liturgical feasts in the Maronite Church are preceded by days of preparation, 3 days of fasting and abstinence, and special liturgical prayers and with the western influence we have the novena or nine days. The liturgical feast of the Assumption is distinguished by its ancient tradition in the Church that date back before the sixth century in the tradition of the Church. It is also distinguished by having prayers specific to the Church prayer, i.e. an evening prayer and a morning prayer in addition to a special Mass celebration.
The special death of the Virgin Mary:
In the Catholic mind, speaking of the death of the Virgin Mary, it is more in the form of sleep that is the word Dormition was used. According to the apocryphal books and specifically The Dormition of the Lady a detailed description was given about the special death of Mary for three reasons:
1- The apostles gathered around her when they came from the land of the Annunciation and gathered to honor this Mother.
2- Mary died and was placed in a tomb and when they came the next day to honor her body, according to Jewish custom, they did not find her body, because her body had risen.
3- The third reason is that this death marked the beginning of honoring Mary in a special way in the heart of the Church or in the heart of the liturgical year.
History of the feast of the Assumption:
Starting from the eighth century, a group of sermons became popular in the east, known as the Byzantine sermons. Those sermons were delivered by some famous Saints like John of Damascus and Germanus of Constantinople, especially on the occasion of the feast of the Assumption. In them we find the theological interpretation of the Dormition or Assumption of the Virgin. The focus of these sermons was the close relationship between Mary and her Son, starting from the first moment of his conception in her womb until his death on the cross. The Word, Jesus Christ in the womb of Mary did not only dwell, but His presence in her womb was an active presence, as He consecrated her body and He sanctified it. that explains that the connection between Mary and her Son was not only a biological connection, yet it is also a salvific connection that benefited Mary from the fruits of salvation. Therefore, that explains that Mary had not ended her life in a very ordinary way, but she was saved as Saint John of Damascus says: “how is it possible that the body that gave life would be corrupted in a disintegrated or decomposed corpse in a grave? She was transferred at the moment of her death.” So it is wise and just that she be transferred in her death more than after her death. Her death is a transition not an end. This theological interpretation lived liturgically and remained for almost 14 centuries, from the sixth century to the twentieth century. It remained a faith truth that is lived, prayed for and celebrated.
Until the twentieth century and in 1950, a jubilee year, Pope Pius XII wanted to take advantage of this jubilee year to define this faith truth that has existed since the sixth century and give it a binding character in the form of a dogma. To do this, the Pope, for the first time in the history of the Church, sent letters to the bishops of the Catholic Church all over the world, asking for their opinion on this doctrine. This is what the Second Vatican Council called the sense of faith of the faithful, meaning the spontaneous, intimate sign of faith that enables the faithful to know their faith and to judge the contents of their faith with a correct judgment, to know and say that their faith is correct... The simple relationship of faith enables the faithful to have a vision of faith with a correct judgment on the content of their faith. This is what is called the sense of faith. The Pope wanted to hear the sense of faith of the faithful regarding this doctrine. Should we preserve its lived liturgical character or should we transfer it to a more formal level so that it becomes a doctrine of faith with which we crown the Virgin or add this pearl to her crown?
On 300 letters sent, more than 280 to 290 responded in the affirmative, it is a proper duty to define this Marian doctrine. Of course, the Pope responded to this sense of faith and defined this doctrine as a doctrine of faith in 1950.
Pope Pius XII proclaimed the Assumption of Mary a dogma of the Catholic Church in these words: "The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven." With that, an ancient belief became Catholic doctrine and the Assumption was declared a truth revealed by God.
May her prayer be with us!
Starting from the end of the fifth century AD or the beginning of the sixth century AD, the earliest traditions say that Mary’s life ended in Jerusalem. The Church practiced an ancient piety based on the pilgrimage to the place known in Jerusalem as the tomb of Mary. Another narrative of a more recent tradition says that the assumption have taken place in Ephesus, in the house of the Virgin Mary. As we know that the Holy Scripture does not mention anything about the end of Mary’s life and interpreters explain that is due to the absence of the Holy Spirit’s inspiration to the writers of the Gospels about where she died, at what age, how she died and where she was buried. It is as the inspired writers wanted to say: Her presence in the heart of the Church is her permanent place and therefore it is not necessary to mention anything about her death in the scripture.
The veneration of the Virgin became popular at the end of the second century and the beginning of the third century. Therefore, believers began to ask questions about the beginning of Mary’s life before the Annunciation and the end of her life after Pentecost. Her veneration became so popular with the prayer “Under Your Protection,” and the Marian piety emerged and developed more after the Council of Ephesus in 431 and that drew attention to what happened to the Body of the Mother who gave birth to the Son of God, the Savior. At the Council of Chalcedon in 451, when bishops from throughout the Mediterranean world gathered in Constantinople, Emperor Marcian asked the Patriarch of Jerusalem to bring the relics of Mary to Constantinople to be enshrined in the capital. The patriarch explained to the emperor that there were no relics of Mary in Jerusalem, that "Mary had died in the presence of the apostles; but her tomb, when opened later . . . was found empty and so the apostles concluded that the body was taken up into heaven." Thus this veneration arose, which took its official form in the sixth century with the establishment of the feast of Dormition, which we call today the Feast of the Assumption of Mary. The Feast of the Assumption took on a liturgical Character and became one of the main feasts in the liturgical year and it is one of four liturgical feasts for the Virgin Mary: the Nativity of the Virgin, her presentation to the temple, the Annunciation and the Assumption. These liturgical feasts in the Maronite Church are preceded by days of preparation, 3 days of fasting and abstinence, and special liturgical prayers and with the western influence we have the novena or nine days. The liturgical feast of the Assumption is distinguished by its ancient tradition in the Church that date back before the sixth century in the tradition of the Church. It is also distinguished by having prayers specific to the Church prayer, i.e. an evening prayer and a morning prayer in addition to a special Mass celebration.
The special death of the Virgin Mary:
In the Catholic mind, speaking of the death of the Virgin Mary, it is more in the form of sleep that is the word Dormition was used. According to the apocryphal books and specifically The Dormition of the Lady a detailed description was given about the special death of Mary for three reasons:
1- The apostles gathered around her when they came from the land of the Annunciation and gathered to honor this Mother.
2- Mary died and was placed in a tomb and when they came the next day to honor her body, according to Jewish custom, they did not find her body, because her body had risen.
3- The third reason is that this death marked the beginning of honoring Mary in a special way in the heart of the Church or in the heart of the liturgical year.
History of the feast of the Assumption:
Starting from the eighth century, a group of sermons became popular in the east, known as the Byzantine sermons. Those sermons were delivered by some famous Saints like John of Damascus and Germanus of Constantinople, especially on the occasion of the feast of the Assumption. In them we find the theological interpretation of the Dormition or Assumption of the Virgin. The focus of these sermons was the close relationship between Mary and her Son, starting from the first moment of his conception in her womb until his death on the cross. The Word, Jesus Christ in the womb of Mary did not only dwell, but His presence in her womb was an active presence, as He consecrated her body and He sanctified it. that explains that the connection between Mary and her Son was not only a biological connection, yet it is also a salvific connection that benefited Mary from the fruits of salvation. Therefore, that explains that Mary had not ended her life in a very ordinary way, but she was saved as Saint John of Damascus says: “how is it possible that the body that gave life would be corrupted in a disintegrated or decomposed corpse in a grave? She was transferred at the moment of her death.” So it is wise and just that she be transferred in her death more than after her death. Her death is a transition not an end. This theological interpretation lived liturgically and remained for almost 14 centuries, from the sixth century to the twentieth century. It remained a faith truth that is lived, prayed for and celebrated.
Until the twentieth century and in 1950, a jubilee year, Pope Pius XII wanted to take advantage of this jubilee year to define this faith truth that has existed since the sixth century and give it a binding character in the form of a dogma. To do this, the Pope, for the first time in the history of the Church, sent letters to the bishops of the Catholic Church all over the world, asking for their opinion on this doctrine. This is what the Second Vatican Council called the sense of faith of the faithful, meaning the spontaneous, intimate sign of faith that enables the faithful to know their faith and to judge the contents of their faith with a correct judgment, to know and say that their faith is correct... The simple relationship of faith enables the faithful to have a vision of faith with a correct judgment on the content of their faith. This is what is called the sense of faith. The Pope wanted to hear the sense of faith of the faithful regarding this doctrine. Should we preserve its lived liturgical character or should we transfer it to a more formal level so that it becomes a doctrine of faith with which we crown the Virgin or add this pearl to her crown?
On 300 letters sent, more than 280 to 290 responded in the affirmative, it is a proper duty to define this Marian doctrine. Of course, the Pope responded to this sense of faith and defined this doctrine as a doctrine of faith in 1950.
Pope Pius XII proclaimed the Assumption of Mary a dogma of the Catholic Church in these words: "The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven." With that, an ancient belief became Catholic doctrine and the Assumption was declared a truth revealed by God.
May her prayer be with us!
