THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY

On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII defined the Assumption of Mary to be a dogma of
faith: “We pronounce, declare and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma that the
immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her
earthly life, was assumed body and soul to heavenly glory.”

The Assumption is a major feast day celebrated on August 15 th.

(differentiate dogma vs. doctrine)

Dogma is an official system of principles or doctrines of religion such as Roman

Catholicism, to be incontrovertibly true. While doctrine refers to teachings that
established and agreed upon, but not necessarily rigid and unchanging.

The pope justified the Assumption not on biblical authority but largely on the universal
consensus of the Church, and the theological suitability of the doctrine.

The "universal consensus of the Church" means that what the Church as a whole
teaches and believes must be treated as a revealed and thus indisputable truth. The
Church can only reach such a consensus through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and
the guidance of the Holy Spirit cannot be wrong. Once the real truth is established, the
"universal consensus" of the Church then confirms it as an eternal truth.

Theological suitability
The Assumption was also clearly in harmony with other Catholic ideas about Mary:

 Her immaculate conception

 Her perpetual virginity
 Being the mother of God
Theologians argued that the Mother of God could not be separated from God, and so
must have been taken up to be with him in heaven.

Scripture does not give an account of Mary’s Assumption into heaven. Nevertheless,
Revelation 12 speaks of a woman who is caught up in the battle between good and evil.
Many see this woman as God’s people. Since Mary best embodies the people of both
Old and New Testaments, her Assumption can be seen as an exemplification of the
woman’s victory. Furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 15:20, Paul speaks of Christ’s
resurrection as the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

St. Juvenal, who was Bishop of Jerusalem told the emperor “that Mary died in the
presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened upon the request of St.
Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the apostles concluded that the body was taken
up to heaven”.
Since Mary is closely associated with all the mysteries of Jesus’ life, it is not surprising
that the Holy Spirit has led the Church to believe in Mary’s share in his glorification. So
close was she to Jesus on earth, she must be with him body and soul in heaven
Human beings have to wait until the end of time for their bodily resurrection, but Mary's
body was able to go straight to heaven because her soul hadn't been tainted by original
sin.
In her glory she proclaims the greatness of the Lord and finds joy in God her savior.
God has done marvels to her and she leads others to recognize God’s holiness. She is
the lowly handmaid who deeply reverenced her God and has been raised to the heights.
From her position of strength, she will help the lowly and the poor find justice on earth,
and she will challenge the rich and powerful to distrust wealth and power as a source of
happiness.