Assumption: the fulfilment of the Hope

Solemnity of the Assumption of our Blessed Mother

Ap 11:19, 12:16-10; 1 Cor 15: 20-26; Lk 1: 39-56

The crossing of the red sea and the Exile were the watershed for the God experience of the people of Israel. It was their walk from slavery to freedom that gave an identity to the people of the Old Testament. In the New Testament too it was a similar experience that proved to be the watershed...the passing from death to life; the event of life giving Hope! The hope that Jesus' resurrection brought to humakind reaches its fulfilment, when Mary shares the fruits of it as the first one to do so, in union with her Son and Lord Jesus Christ.

Mary was instrumental in bringing in the light of the world. She remained faithful to the One who had called her and thus wins favour in God's eyes. Hence it is that many a saint spoke of her as the lady of the Apocalypse, bringing forth the Son and fighting the dragon. She is given these honours due to the humility with which she went about doing the will of the One who had called her.

It was this humility and docility that make her so grateful and recognizant of God's mighty presence with her on a constant basis. This recognition makes her a strong person: so free and so responsible. When she sings that hymn of glory to the Lord it was not merely a wishful prayer but also an expression of commitment towards the Reign of God, the reign of equality and justice to all.

May the feast of Assumption bring us to a humble recognition of the ways in which God wants to use us here and now, that we too may one day experience the fulfilment of our Hope in the Lord.