Good morning, good people,
May the Lord give you peace and health in the Holy Spirit.
Today is 15th August 2025. We celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and also give thanks for India’s Independence Day.
We reflect on Revelation 11:19; 12:1–6, 10; 1 Corinthians 15:20–26; and the Gospel of Luke 1:39–56.
A catechist asked, “If I’m kind, give to the poor, and pray every day, will that get me into heaven?” The children said, “No!” A little girl added, “You have to let Jesus take you there. You can’t sneak in on your own.”
The Assumption of Mary is a dogma of the Church, solemnly defined by Pope Pius XII in 1950: “The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.” Whether she died first remains a mystery, but the Church teaches that her body was preserved from corruption, sharing fully in her Son’s victory over death.
Tradition offers two possible places for her final days — Jerusalem or Ephesus — yet the important truth is this: Mary’s earthly journey ended in the glory of heaven, where she continues her mission as our advocate beside Christ. She is the Star of Hope guiding us toward our eternal home.
St. John Vianney said: “The heart of this good Mother is nothing but love and mercy; all she wants is to see us happy. To be heard, it suffices to address oneself to her.”
The first reading shows the struggle between the woman and the dragon — good and evil. The first Eve was defeated by sin; the new Eve, Mary, triumphed through her union with Christ, the new Adam. In the Gospel, Mary visits Elizabeth in haste; today we contemplate her final journey into the heavenly Jerusalem, “clothed with the sun” (Rev 12:1).
No one loved God as Mary did, and God honoured her with incorruptibility of body and soul. The emptiness in our hearts can be filled only by God — as Mary’s life shows. “All generations will call me blessed” (Lk 1:48) because she followed Jesus as His first disciple and participated uniquely in His mission.
This feast speaks of our future: what God has done for Mary, He desires for us. The Assumption reminds us that salvation is for the whole person — body and soul — and invites us to glorify God now in both. As St. Irenaeus said: “The glory of God is a living man, and the life of man consists in beholding God.”
Let us ask Our Lady to help us live each day with the hope of sharing her glory, and to intercede for India on this day of national celebration.
Mary, assumed into heaven, pray for us.