Assumption

“We offer Thee, O Lord Jesus, this fourteenth decade in honor of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of Thy holy and Blessed Mother, body and soul, into Heaven, and we ask of Thee through these two mysteries and through her intercession, the gift of true devotion to her to help us live and die holily.”

Traditionally this fourth glorious mystery is only dedicated to the Assumption. But since we seek to develop a deeper devotion to Mary through this mystery, St. Louis de Montfort suggests we also meditate on Mary’s Immaculate Conception when we pray. This helps us to better understand God’s plan for Mary and how she proves His great love for us all. He created her with the utmost care and precision, not only because she was to become the Mother of God, but in a smaller way, because she was also to become our mother as well.

A mother is an indispensable element in propagating the human race and providing for her child’s earthly needs. Her body has the ability to help bring new life into the world and physically sustain that new life. But far greater than tending to the needs of the body is a mother’s vital relationship with her child as she brings her child’s soul closer to God. The mother’s natural instinct to love and protect her child, and through the child’s instinct to imitate his mother as he learns about the world around him, are only a few proofs of God’s will for mothers to bring their children to Him.

God chooses for each of us an earthly mother best suited to help us get to Heaven. For many, she may be a quiet, virtuous woman who inspires a great love of God. For others she may be an energetic evangelist, teaching to live a life for God and win souls for Him. And for some, she may be an adoptive mother mirroring God’s love of His own adopted children brought to Him through baptism. Even the worst of mothers have some quality about her that could ultimately draw her children to God.

But all earthly mothers, no matter who they may be, are limited in what they can give to a soul. Thankfully, in His great wisdom, the Immaculate Conception fills this void. Wherever your own mother might have fallen short, Our Blessed Mother excels. In areas where your mother may have been strong, Our Blessed Mother is even stronger. And no matter how much your mother loves you, Our Blessed Mother loves you even more. She can comfort you and encourage you in ways no human mother can. She can shower you with graces to strengthen your soul, leading you to her Son. And she is always the perfect example of who we are to become. How much God must love each of us to give us such a mother!

Through the Immaculate Conception He created a perfect vessel, flawless in both beauty and virtue, a living miracle completely free of original sin and worthy to be called Mother of God. She was also given all these graces so that she could be our mother as well. Those who accept her as their mother look to her for guidance. Her life of love and sacrifice for the sake of our souls and her protective instinct to shield us from the attacks of Satan endear herself to our grateful hearts. And it is through this love and devotion that we can then appreciate the second part of the mystery: the Assumption.

We are not certain whether Mary’s Assumption occurred right before or after she died but we know she was taken bodily into Heaven. The Assumption demonstrates God’s great love for her. And if God so loved Our Lady that He spared her from the corruptions of death, should we not also love Our Lady? If you do not already have a great love for the Blessed Mother, pray to her for this grace. Ponder the fact that she was intended to be your mother, too. Then ask her to obtain for you the graces you need to follow in all of her ways, that you may imitate her holiness all your life and one day follow her into Heaven.

“Grace of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of Mary, come down into my soul and make me truly devoted to her.”