Text: Luke 1: 46-55
By Revd Chrys M Tremththanmor
Today we celebrate Mary, mother of Jesus, one day early. August 15 is set aside as one of her feast days in many churches. But what exactly are we celebrating?
Church lectionaries can be rather coy. Often 15 August is merely listed as ‘Mary, Mother of our Lord.’ You have to look at Catholic sources to be told that today is, traditionally, the day on which Mary died and her body was taken physically into heaven.
Of course, the bodily assumption of Mary into heaven is not to be found in the Bible. This idea came up probably in the 4th or 5th century. In 451 AD the bishop of Jerusalem let the emperor know that the emperor could not possess the body of the Virgin. She had died in the presence of the apostles, but when they had later opened her tomb, they had found it empty. It was their conclusion that our Lord would not have wished the body which gave him birth to decay, but that he wished her body and soul to join him in God’s presence. On 1 November 1950 Pope Pius XII issued a papal decree proclaiming the assumption as doctrine.
I have to admit that I personally have had some reservations about this doctrine. Perhaps that comes from my discomfort at what could be misunderstood as worship of Mary. My step father is one of many Catholics who prays to Mary, not to Jesus. As my step father puts it, ‘Jesus is the judge, but Mary is merciful. And as a good Jewish boy, Jesus will do what his mother tells him to do.’
I’m certain I’m not the only one here today who feels that this can detract from the worship of our one true Lord, Jesus Christ. As important as Mary is to our salvation story, she is, after all, only human. And I am uneasy about giving too much importance to a human, no matter how special that person is.
But perhaps I’m losing sight of the bigger picture. What does it mean to celebrate Mary on this day?
It is traditional to celebrate saints on the day of their death. The day of their death on earth is the day which marks their birth into God’s presence, what we often call ‘heaven’. So tomorrow is marked as Mary’s heavenly birthday.
To believe that she was taken, body and soul, into the presence of God, is like a promise to us all. Mary is often referred to as the first Christian. She was the first person to carry Christ, until the time of his birth. She remained faithful to him, and was one of the few to stand at the foot of his cross. We know from the Acts of the Apostles that, after our Lord’s ascension, she was with the apostles in Jerusalem.
The idea that Mary’s body was not permitted to decay, but was instead renewed in Christ’s love, is a promise to all of us. In the Bible God promises us ‘a new heavens and a new earth.’ And in that new place we will too have new bodies, ones which are imperishable, the way which God had always planned for them to be.
So even as Mary was faithful until her death, and was then taken body and soul, Jesus extends to us the same promise. What happened to Mary will happen to us. If we too are faithful to him until our own deaths, we too will enjoy a bodily resurrection. We too will be with our Lord, and our death on this world will mark our birth into our renewed life with him.
So it is right to celebrate Mary, this day and every day. The first Christ bearer is an example and an encourager for us all. Let us use this service to renew our covenant with Jesus, Mary’s son, and the saviour of the world. Amen.