Feast of the Dormition

This month [today], Christians remember the Dormition—or falling asleep—of the Mother of God. Every day we celebrate those who have fallen asleep in the Lord because “the memory of the just is blessed” (Prov 10.7) and “precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Ps 116.15), and what is precious to God is, or at least ought to be, precious to us. But this celebration is different. The Dormition is one of the twelve Great Feasts of the Church because it shows us again a glimpse of our own salvation.

It has been said that what is true of Mary ought to be true of us. Like her, we are born into a world corrupted by sin and need the salvation of Christ. And when we imitate her life of humility, purity, holiness, obedience and love, we too can expect to join her Son in Glory.

Nearly every religion in the world believes in the afterlife, but only in Christianity do we “look for the resurrection of the dead.” The feast of the Dormition affirms this belief. It is a celebration of hope in the Resurrection. It is a reminder that we can trace our destiny through the life and actions of Mary.

Those Christians who have forgotten about Mary—and, sadly, there are a few who have done just that—would do well to remember how our lives ought to reflect her unconditional “Yes” to God. They that “hear the word of God and keep it” (Lk 11.28), who commit themselves to heavenly rather that earthly things, who respond to the Lord's call with “be it unto me according to thy word” as Mary did, will also “participate in the divine nature” (2Pet 1.2-4). They whose “soul magnifies the Lord,” can rest assured that “the Lord will exalt the humble” and “fill the hungry with good things” (Lk 1.46-55). The Feast of the Dormition reminds us of this awesome reality.

Grosse Pointe News, 20 Aug 2009