taken july 30 2006

 

taken july 30 2006

 

aug 14 2006

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
1 Chr 15:3-4, 15-16; 16:1-2 David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring the ark of the LORD to the place which he had prepared for it.David also called together the sons of Aaron and the Levites. The Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders with poles, as Moses had ordained according to the word of the LORD. David commanded the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their kinsmen as chanters,to play on musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals,to make a loud sound of rejoicing. They brought in the ark of God and set it within the tent which David had pitched for it. Then they offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings to God.When David had finished offering up the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD.

Ps 132:6-7, 9-10, 13-1
R. (8) Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness. Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;we found it in the fields of Jaar.Let us enter his dwelling,let us worship at his footstool.R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.May your priests be clothed with justice;let your faithful ones shout merrily for joy.For the sake of David your servant,reject not the plea of your anointed.R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.For the LORD has chosen Zion;he prefers her for her dwelling.“Zion is my resting place forever;in her will I dwell, for I prefer her.”R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.

1 Cor 15:54b-57 Brothers and sisters:When that which is mortal clothes itself with immortality,then the word that is written shall come about:Death is swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.But thanks be to God who gives us the victorythrough our Lord Jesus Christ.

Lk 11:27-28 While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him,“Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied,“Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

I have a special devotion to the Assumption. The readings that I have done indicate that the Early Church did not celebrate this day. It is a recognition of the Holiness of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is a description of a most peaceful and ideal death. To die and be assumed into heaven immediately is a goal of many Christians.

There is a peace of Mary and an acceptance of the will of God and the path of the divine in her life and death. She is in a sense the ark of the covenant, the bearer of the human and divine Son of God. She is the vehicle of our salvation. Her sainthood is a quiet one of acceptance and perserverance and openness to the Spirit and the will of God. When she hears she is to bear a child, she says how can this be but believes the word of the angel and accepts it.

I pray this morning to have the patient acceptance of the Blessed Virgin Mary and her continued faith in God wherever the path following God's will may lead. I pray for the purity of faith of Mary.