Today's Feast (August 15): Assumption of the BVM

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Although this feast day has been celebrated in the Eastern churches since the end of the 6th century and in the West since the 7th century, there is no historical or scriptural basis for the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.

However, this does not mean that it could not have occurred, and what is important to meditate on is that Mary said "Yes" to God in accepting her calling - to bear the Christ child. For God to have selected her to bear this responsibility and privilege, she had to be a very holy woman.

With this in mind, it is not difficult to fathom that she, like Ezekiel and Elijah before her, was assumed up into Heaven.

The Church truly does thank God for the Blessed Virgin Mary, who "brought forth for man the light eternal, even Jesus Christ our Lord." (Preface for the day, page B47, The People's Anglican Missal.)

Propers for the vigil
The day's propers
Catholic Encyclopedia article

Books Worth Considering

Mary and the Fathers of the Church: The Blessed Virgin Mary in Patristic Thought
Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church
The Oxford Dictionary of Saints (Oxford Paperback Reference)
The Penguin Dictionary of Saints: Third Edition (Dictionary, Penguin)

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