Assumption of Mary

Assumption Of Mary

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven, informally known as The Assumption, according to the Christian beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of Anglicanism, was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her earthly life.

The Roman Catholic Church teaches as dogma that the Virgin Mary "having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory." This doctrine was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950, in his Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus by exercising papal infallibility. While the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church believe in the Dormition of the Theotokos, which is the same as the Assumption,, the death of Mary has not been dogmatically defined. In the churches which observe it, the Assumption is a major feast day, commonly celebrated on August 15. In many Catholic countries, the feast is also marked as a Holy Day of Obligation.

In his August 15, 2004, homily given at Lourdes, Pope John Paul II quoted John 14:3 as one of the scriptural bases for understanding the dogma of the Assumption of Mary. In this verse, Jesus tells his disciples at the Last Supper, "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also." According to Catholic theology, Mary is the pledge of the fulfillment of Christ's promise.

The feast of the Assumption on August 15 is a public holiday in many countries, including Austria, Belgium, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Ecuador, France, Germany (Bavaria and Saarland only), Greece, Lebanon, Lithuania, Italy, Malta, Mauritius, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland (8 cantons only) and Vanuatu. In Eastern Orthodox churches following the Julian Calendar, the feast day of Assumption of Mary falls on August 28.