HOMILY FOR THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

 HOMILY FOR 15 AUGUST 2023 SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Revelation 11: 19a, 12: 1-6a, 10ab; Psalm 45:10,11,12,16;  1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56

I AM CELEBRATING BECAUSE I AM REDEEMED

I pray for you: May you realize all that God has done in your life and may you continue to give glory and praise to God both in word and by the way you live your life! And may you continue to strive to pray and live the response of Mama Maria:  Let it be done to me according to Your will, O God. AMEN

Today, we celebrate the Assumption of Mama Maria into heaven. Mama Maria, as the mother of Jesus Christ and the person who is blessed among women (and men), shares in the graces Jesus Christ gave us through His ministry, life, death, and resurrection. The key role of Mama Maria in the earthly life of her Son, Jesus Christ, demonstrates her desire to do what God asks of her. It is fitting that she be the first to experience, in both her soul and her body, the fullness of the heavenly Realm where her Son reigns forever.

Who is a Redeemed? A Redeemed is someone who is saved from sin, error or evil. A redeemed is also someone who has gained possession of something in exchange for payment or clearing of debt. The Greek word for redemption is APOLUTROSIS. It refers to the deliverance [of Christians] from sin and evil. Paul uses the concept of redemption primarily to speak of the saving significance of the Paschal event, that is, the death of Christ. In the New Testament, the word REDEMPTION is used to refer both to the deliverance from sin and freedom from captivity. 

The benefits of redemption include eternal life (Revelation 5:9-10), forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7), righteousness (Romans 5:17), freedom from the laws curse (Galatian 3:13), adoption into Gods family (Galatians 4:5), deliverance from sins bondage (Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 1:14-18), peace with God (Colossians 1:18-20), and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19-20). To be redeemed then is to be forgiven, holy, justified, free, adopted, and reconciled (cf. Psalm 130:7-8; Luke 2:38; Acts 20:28).

Related to the Christian concept of redemption is the word RANSOM. Jesus paid the price for our release from sin and its punishment (Matthew 20:28; 1 Timothy 2:6). His death was in exchange for our life. In fact, Scripture is quite clear that redemption is only possible through His blood, that is, by His death (Colossians 1:14). Jesus paid the price to redeem us, resulting in our freedom from slavery to sin and our rescue from the eternal consequences of that sin.

Almighty God has done great things for us, both individually and communally. We sometimes fail to realize all that God has done, all that God is doing, and all that God will continue to do. Through the Christ event (life, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, the Son of God), we have been reconciled to God the Father, and are invited to share in the eternal reign of God in heaven. All we need do is to say, as Mama Maria said, Fiat Voluntas Tua  Let Your Will Be Done. 

Today we celebrate that Mama Maria responded to the call of God and received all the blessings that her Son brought to humanity by His incarnation and salvific actions. She rightfully takes her place in the Reign of Heaven because she allowed God to work mightily in her life and she gave the glory back to God in her living out the will of God.

Today we celebrate the Assumption of Mama Maria into heaven; assumption of Mama Maria is the 4th Glorious mystery. The solemnity of today celebrates the tradition held since apostolic times that Mama Maria at her Dormition (sleeping) is placed in a tomb in Jerusalem. When some of the faithful went to the tomb after a few days of mourning, the tomb was empty. The tomb was empty, not because the corpse of Mama Maria was stolen, but because God sent angels who carried her body and soul to heaven. So that she will be where her son, Jesus Christ is. 

The First Reading speaks about the woman who gives birth to a Son through whom salvation and power come into the world. We also hear that God has prepared a place for the woman. The account from the Book of Revelation has linked Mama Maria to the woman giving birth to the One who comes as Savior. Both the woman and the child faced opposition from the dragon (symbol of demonic evil and wicked political rulers of this world). A special place is prepared by God for the woman. Some people believe that this in some way relates to the privilege of Mama Maria of having her body taken to heaven without decay. 

The Responsorial psalm focuses on a woman, a queen, who is to take her rightful and glorious place beside the king. Mama Maria is also associated with the Queen mentioned in the psalm today. Just as the Queen takes her place beside the king in majesty and splendor, so Mama Maria is taken to heaven to share in the glory of her Son, Jesus. Just as the king in the psalm desires the presence of the Queen at his side, so Jesus wants His mother, Mama Maria, to be with Him, body and soul, in the glory of heaven.

Paul in his First Letter to the Corinthians relates the order of things in heaven. There, Jesus comes into the presence of His Father, and takes His position in splendor. After Jesus, comes all those who belong to Him. As Paul writes to the people of Corinth, he inspires them with the words about the glories of heaven. He mentions that Christ has gone as the first fruit of God. Jesus has taken His place in the glory of heaven. After Him, comes all those who belong to Christ. Obviously, Mama Maria, His mother, is on the top of the list of those who belong to Jesus. It is fitting that she should be the first, after her Son, to share the joys of heaven with her human body, as all the faithful will at the end of time.

The Gospel of today shares with us the account of the visit of Mama Maria to her cousin Elizabeth while both women were pregnant: Elizabeth with John the Baptist and Mama Maria with Jesus. Although the Gospels never speak about the events of the Assumption of Mama Maria, instead the Gospel account of today concerning the visitation of Mama Maria and her cousin Elizabeth give us a glimpse of the specialness of Mama Maria. Because she has said her Fiat (Let it be), the child within her womb is the Son of God. Elizabeth recognized the presence of holiness in Mama Maria and the child in her womb, even though Mama Maria is only at the very beginning of her first trimester. Even the child within the womb of Elizabeth jumps for joy as he senses the touching hand of God in the lives of these holy women as they meet. Mama Maria responds to the greeting of Elizabeth by praising God and the action of God in her life in the beautiful canticle of the Magnificat: My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior . . .

This doctrine of the Assumption of Mama Maria was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950, in the apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus. The Assumption of Mama Maria had been celebrated since apostolic times. In Jerusalem there is a church known as Dormition Abbey. It is believed to be one of the places where Mama Maria lived after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. In the first half of August, an icon (painting) of Mama Maria is taken from the church of the Dormition Abbey and the icon is taken through the streets of Jerusalem in a procession. The word Dormition means Falling Asleep. The image of Mama Maria is taken to a graveyard, cemetery across town where it is place in a tomb. A few days later (on August 15), the people come out to the tomb of Mama Maria and joyously carry the icon back through the city of Jerusalem in a procession which is greeted by citizens of Jerusalem, be they Christian, Jewish, or Muslim. They celebrate that the body of Mama Maria has not experienced decay but joyously has been assumed into heaven to be with her Son. Remember, the three Abrahamic religions observe this procession and veneration. Then, how can these Protestants be making noise that there is nothing like Assumption!!! I want to inform you and remind some of us that Mama Maria happens to be the only woman Quran devoted a BOOK to. In the Christian Bible, we do not talk about Mama Maria much, but Quran did. 

Hear it now!!! Mama Maria is held in high esteem by many Jerusalemites. She is considered a Jerusalem girl who has done well for herself because she gave birth to Jesus, the great prophet. Many Jews and Muslims in Jerusalem respect Jesus as a prophet, and Mama Maria is mentioned in the Muslim Koran. Catholic Christians and members of some other denominations believe that the position Mama Maria as the mother of Jesus Christ gives her the privilege of being the first to share fully, that is, body and soul, in the glory of the reign of God with Jesus, her Son. 

Dearly beloved in Christ Jesus, this solemnity should be a positive reminder for all of us who call ourselves the disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. We, too, will share in the glory of heaven with Jesus our Savior, if we strive, as Paul says, to be those who belong to Christ. We shall one day experience the fullness of heaven with our re-created bodies and joyously celebrate with Him who has put all of His enemies under His feet. This is our destiny if we follow the Lord Jesus and say, Fiat - Let it be to what God asks of us, just as Mama Maria did.  

MEDITATION How can I more fully respond to the call of God to work for the furthering of the Gospel by saying my own Fiat to the will of God? How do I react to the promise that, if I respond faithfully to the plan of God, that I will share in the fullness of the reign of God in heaven forever?  

PRAYER Lord God, may we look forward to the joys of heaven and being forever in Your presence and the presence of Your Son, Jesus. Through the overpowering of the Holy Spirit, help us to respond affirmatively to Your will. Through Christ Our Lord.   Amen.

O DIVINE WORD WHO TOOK FLESH FOR HUMAN SAKE, REDEEM US IN OUR SITUATION

© Rev Fr Utazi Prince Marie Benignus Zereuwa