Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose, Saturday, August 15 is the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This celebrates the teaching of the Church that Mary, at the end of her life, was taken body and soul into Heaven. Just as through her Immaculate Conception she shared in the redemption of Christ before His sacrifice on the Cross, so now she shares in the resurrection of the body before the final judgment. This is normally a Holy Day of Obligation, but because it takes place on Saturday, there is no obligation to attend Mass. It is still considered a Holy Day and we will have Mass at 9am at Mary Immaculate. This is an ancient belief of the Church, that Mary was assumed into Heaven, but it has only recently been defined. In 1950, Pope Pius XII infallibly defined the doctrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is one of the few teaching of the Church exercising papal infallibility. There are still come things surrounding the teaching of the Assumption of Mary that have not quite been made clear. For example, there is no clear teaching regarding the death of Mary. The Orthodox Church calls this the Feast of the Dormition, or falling asleep, of Mary. In the Catholic Church there are conflicting views about whether Mary died or not. Death is a punishment for the sin of Adam and Eve. Since Mary was conceived without sin, would she have to suffer death? Jesus was also conceived without sin and He shared in our death, so it follows that Mary would also share in a death life this. Death is a part of the human condition. The other thing that we do not know for sure is where the Assumption occurred. There are two sites that both claim that they are the place where Mary was assumed into Heaven. The first is Jerusalem. This is where the Orthodox Church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary is located. This seems to make sense as Mary was from Nazareth and could have moved to Jerusalem to be near the holy places. We know that she was in Jerusalem at the time of the crucifixion of Jesus. But on the cross, Jesus gave Mary into the care of Saint John the Apostle. After the Resurrection, John went to Ephesus to teach and preach. Near Ephesus is where the House of Mary is located. This is the other site that claims to be the location for the Assumption. Whatever the details are, the important thing is that Mary was assumed body and soul into the Heavenly Kingdom. She is the first and model Christian. Her Assumption reminds us of our belief in the resurrection of the body at the end of time. The Blessed Virgin Mary gives us the example to keep our eyes fixed on Heaven and to live a life worthy of Christ here on earth.