On the 1st of November, 1950, the Catholic Church, together with then pope Venerable Pius XII, took a significant leap in its catholic doctrines, and with that, the entire humanity was elevated or raised to a level that no created being had ever achieved before.
And that is what we celebrate today.
Today, we celebrate the assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the feast of Mary taken into heaven with her entire body and soul following the end of her life on earth.
This is our feast. This is the pride of humanity. It is because, this human woman, who lived a flesh and blood life like any one of us on earth, was given that highest honor which is second to nobody but Christ, the son of God, the new Adam, who was taken up to heaven with his entire body and soul after his death and resurrection.
We go to celebrate with Mary because, humanity, which has been created after the image and likeness of God, yet fallen due to its own pride, was forgiven and restored back to its original state through this human woman, this new Eve, whose name was Mary, a Canaanite woman, who was raised up like any other girl-child in Judea, who went about attending to the daily chores perhaps with her bear feet, who fetched water like any other woman at a common well, who was faithful to her promise or ‘yes’ to the Lord come what may, and as a result who was so chosen by God to mother and nurture his own son, the savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.
On this feast day, as we hail Mama Mary for living a life so dignified, so exemplary, so chosen, so wanted, and so honored as a creature by the creator, we got to as a few questions:
What is it that God saw in her so much that he was so bent on choosing her in his economy or plan of salvation?
Despite all the qualities and attributes, names, praises, and honor that we could ever give to Mary our Mother, if we fail to realize that one thing that God was so attracted in her, I think we are going to miss the point here.
It is nothing but her lowliness. And she sings it well in the Magnificat as follows:
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant….
He has mercy for those who fear him in every generation…
He has scattered the proud in their conceit, he has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly….
When it comes to Mary, while she gives all glory, pride, honor, and greatness to God, her greatness was found in her humility…her humble faithfulness to the Lord…
You see my dear sisters and brothers, while it is pride that was the reason for the fall of, not only humanity but also the angels as it is believed in the tradition of Christianity, it is lowliness/humility which is the point of salvation…
This applies to us today as well…In my personal life, in my life with the family, in my marital vows, how humble and how faithful I am to God, to myself, to one another…Or has my pride taken over that I am given in to conceit, lies, deceit, false image and likeness, and putting up an altered self or ego before me and before others, finally leading into sin, pain, disharmony, and destruction with myself, with one another, and with the entire creation?
If God is to choose one of us today, how humble and how lowly would he find me today that he would not be able to pass me by without choosing me just as he chose Mama Mary?
