8/15/2013 – Assumption of Mary – Luke 1:39-56

    The doctrine of the Assumption of Mary was declared dogma by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950.  In declaring this dogma, the Pope said that he did so partly because many bishops, priests and members of the lay faithful all over the world had petitioned him to do so.  Pope Pius was just confirming as dogma what the faithful of the Church already believed.

         If you think about what was going on in the world in 1950, the world was just starting to recover from World War II and was still trying to comprehend the suffering and death on such a large scale that resulted from that war.  Pope Pius XII hoped that the declaration of Mary’s Assumption into heaven would be a sign of encouragement to a world that was still very weary and wounded, as sign of hope that God would indeed raise us from the ashes once again. To those who believe, we know that one day we will share in the eternal reward that Our Blessed Mother already experiences.

         Mary as our Mother gives us so much hope in the midst of what we have to endure in life.  Yesterday was the feast day of Maximilian Kolbe, a Franciscan priest who died in the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland during WWII.  As a priest, Kolbe promoted that the faithful consecrate and entrust themselves to the protection and guidance of Mary.  And this was not idle or superficial advice.  During his time in the concentration camp, he would sing hymns to Mary to provide encouragement to himself and to others.  Today, Kolbe is seen as a patron saint to some of the most downtrodden and forgotten people in our society – to those who struggle with addictions, especially alcohol and drugs, and to prisoners.  As a child, Kolbe had a vision of Mary presenting him two crowns.  One of these crowns, a white crown, represented the purity through which he was to persevere in his faith.  The red crown she presented him represented the martyrdom that he would be asked to accept.  At Auschwitz, Kolbe and a group of men were locked in a room without food and water, left to die.  He led the other condemned men in song and prayer, encouraging them by telling them they would soon be with Mary in Heaven.  Kolbe was the only one of these men who remained alive after two weeks, so the guards killed him through a lethal injection.  Kolbe died on August 14, and on the day of the Assumption, his remains were cremated. 

         I mention St Kolbe today and the influence Mary had on him to remind us that even though Mary was assumed into heaven body and soul, she remains with us today with her prayers and intercessions to lead us and guide us to her son, to strengthen us in our faith. She helped Maximilian Kolbe maintain his faith and his courage in the face of a martyr’s death.  Mary helps us in our faith in so many ways as well.  Mary sang a song of joy, the Magnificat, in response to the joyful greeting she received from her cousin Elizabeth.  The liberation, the joy, and the hope that Mary expressed in the Magnificat accompanies us on this joyful solemnity today.  Mary, blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.  Amen.