The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reflection by Leah Johnson ’26

We come today to celebrate The Assumption of Mary. Our mother, Mary, is a significant figure mentioned throughout Scripture many times. After all, she is the mother of Jesus. But one thing that always amazes me about her is her Assumption. As Catholics, we believe that at the end of time, our body and soul will be united once again in Heaven. However, Mary’s reunion was quite different and extraordinary. It has been revealed that Mary was assumed both body and soul into heavenly glory. This means that Mary’s body was glorified immediately at the end of her earthly life. Now, this really opens my mind to the importance of that perfect unity Jesus wants with us. Mary’s Assumption was nothing short of beautiful. She carried the world’s savior and kept a strong and faithful relationship with Christ.

If anything, Mary’s Assumption serves as a reminder of what greatness is to come if we can continue being faithful to God. What makes it more significant is that, in Scripture, it says she was taken up body and soul. God specifically went down and carried Mary up to Heaven. Whereas Jesus ascended into Heaven. This goes to show just one of the many ways that God loves and treasures us. Just as Mary was faithful and carried out God’s mission and gave herself up to Him; we can imagine that He brought her to His grace with His bare hands. That marked Mary’s call being fulfilled as she was brought into God’s embrace. But the real question is will you answer your call? In our times of doubt or when we feel all is lost, will we still keep Him close to us? Just as the Blessed Mother was able to trust in the Lord and say, “Let it be done according to His word,” let us strive to follow in the Blessed Mother’s footsteps as we continue to grow throughout this new school year and grow in our faith. In Mass today, you’ll hear a story from the book of Revelation, Chapter 12, Verses 1-6. It is titled, The Woman and the Dragon.Now, this title makes me think of something from a Disney movie. Without even knowing the story, my mind began to wonder. Did the woman slay the dragon? Was she saved by a prince? Or was the dragon in need of a rescue? I highly doubt the last question. So, when I began to read the Scripture, the woman was described as, “clothed with the Sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars,” and she was with child. As I read this, I immediately thought of Mary with her baby, Jesus.

Next, the dragon was described as a “huge red dragon, with seven heads, and ten horns, and on its head were seven diadems.” Its tail swept a third of the stars in the sky, and the dragon stood before the woman ready to devour her child. But the woman fled to the desert where she had a place prepared by God and she was taken care of for twelve hundred and sixty days. This reading made me think about how much courage the woman had, to flee to the desert with her newborn baby. When I put myself in her shoes, I thought that I would be too much shock to move if a huge dragon stood before me.

Now, while I doubt any of us have ever faced a real dragon, there are moments in life that can feel like we are standing before one. But one thing you must remind yourself of, is that even when life seems too intense or too frightening, God is with you. And he will guide you to that safe haven. However, the road to get there will not necessarily be easy. In the story, the woman had to flee to safety in a desert. I thought to myself: why a desert out of all places? There is nothing in a desert that could possibly help a woman and a baby to survive. But God was in that desert waiting for them. This can serve as a reminder that when we are going through a really hard time in school or in our personal lives, we may feel that there is nothing that could possibly help us. But God being in that barren desert, tells us that God is with us even in the midst of what can seem like nothingness. So, back to answer those questions I had before, the woman was saved by something far greater than a prince and far more loving than any dragon because she had faith.