On Friday, August 15, the Church celebrates the Assumption of Mary as a holy day of obligation. Although this event is not recorded in the Bible, it has a long history in the tradition of the Church. It was commonly taught and believed that Mary held a unique role in the eyes of God, and so the belief in Mary’s Assumption naturally followed. However, it was not until much later in history that this belief was defined as dogma in the Catholic Church. On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII defined the Assumption of Mary as a dogma of faith: “We pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul to heavenly glory.” Everything we know and hold to be true about Mary comes from our belief and understanding of who Jesus Christ is. The dogma of the Assumption follows from the teaching of her Immaculate Conception, and both are rooted in the recognition of her status as the Mother of God. Mary, who was born without sin, is thus preserved from corruption and received into heaven both in body and spirit. She shares in her Son’s glory from the beginning of her life to the very end.

The Assumption also tells us something about ourselves—and about heaven. Assumed into heaven, Mary reveals our own destiny in the glorification of our bodies, united to the love and glory of God. In Mary, we get a glimpse of the mystery that awaits us. We see the fulfillment of God’s promise and the culmination of a loving relationship with Him. Deepening our love for Mary always draws us closer to God. The more we grow in love with Mary, the more we will desire the kingdom of heaven. We are all meant for heaven, as we are all called to holiness. Just as we are created in the image and likeness of God, so too does God call us back to Himself.

Pope Benedict XVI wrote, “Precisely because Mary is with God and in God, she is very close to each one of us…Being in God, who is actually within all of us, Mary shares in this closeness of God.” She knows the depths of our hearts, she hears our prayers, and she helps us along our journey as only a mother can. The Assumption calls us to meditate upon the example of Mary, who dedicated her life to serving God. She offers us a model of faith so that we can align our hearts more closely with God and desire heaven. Her Magnificat, her “yes” to God, should echo in our hearts every time we pray the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."