Our Lady – Her
Assumption and
Coronation
Objection: “The belief in the assumption of Mary is just another
medieval Catholic invention. Mary died like everyone else. And in any
case, there is no mention of it in the Bible.”
Another aspect of the Virgin Mary’s uniqueness and exceptional holiness is
her assumption. The meaning of this doctrine is as follows: that by a special
and singular privilege bestowed by God, the Virgin Mary was taken up
body and soul into heavenly glory and re-united with Jesus Christ to live
and reign with Him in His kingdom for all eternity.
Belief in the Virgin Mary’s Assumption can be traced back to the earliest
days of the Church. In the ancient Church an account circulated that the
Apostles had been divinely warned of the Virgin Mary’s impending death.
All, except St. Thomas, managed to return in time for her death and
funeral. For three days the Apostles and other faithful kept up a vigil
outside her tomb, where they heard at times the distinct sound of heavenly
music. When St. Thomas finally arrived, he requested to see the Virgin
Mary’s body. To everyone’s surprise, when the tomb was opened her body
was not there, only flowers and her burial shroud being left in the
sepulcher.
As early as the fifth century, Catholics were celebrating a “memorial of
Mary.” This primitive celebration eventually evolved into the Feast of the
Dormition (falling asleep) of the Virgin, and during the sixth century,
homilies on the Assumption appeared. In the sixth century also the
following prayer was written for August 15:
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