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Goanetter Francis Rodrigues (Vasco/Toronto) book launch in
London, England @ the World Goa Day festivities on 15 Aug at 7pm
Details http://www.konkanisongbook.com
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Dear Goanetters,
Today is the Feast of Assumption to heaven of Mary, Mother of Jesus and our
Mother.
It is also a privilege to commemorate the 62nd year of the Independence of
India. May our country prosper
amidst pluralism of religions,cultures, languages, customs and mores.
ASSUMPTION OF MARY
*.Fr.Ivo da Conceição Souza
To speak about the heavenly truths may seem to be outdated. But the
reality of life can be lived more fully in the light of heavenly reality.
Heaven is the fulfillment of our longings and aspirations. The Church has
the mission of opening the way to heaven by giving us a foretaste of the
heavenly reality. In fact, today's world needs a reminder of the afterlife,
of heavenly bliss. As the Vatican II in her Constitution on The Church in
the Modern World puts it at the very outset: "The joys and the hopes, the
griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are
poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and
anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails
to raise an echo in their hearts. For theirs is a community composed of men.
United in Christ, they are led by the Holy Spirit in their journey to the
Kingdom of their Father and they have welcomed the news of salvation which
is meant for every Man. That is why this community realizes that it is truly
linked with humankind and its history by the deepest of bonds" (Gaudium et
Spes, no.1).
That Mary, the Mother of Jesus, was assumed into heaven is a tradition
of the Catholic Church. It was solemnly defined as a dogma of faith by Pius
XII on November 1, 1950 in his Apostolic Constitution, Munificentissimus
Deus, where he articulates the grounds in faith of this doctrine and the
witnesses of faith to it down through the centuries. Pius XII defined as
follows: "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 into
heavenly glory" (cf.MD, no.44). The meaning of the formula is that Mary is
alive, living the life that our Risen Lord lives and that we hope eventually
to live. The dogmas of her Immaculate Conception, Motherhood of God, and
Perpetual Virginity, are all contained in the subject of this definition.
Did Mary die? How could she die if she was preserved from original sin?
Even if she died like Jesus, God did not allow her body to undergo decay.
The theological opinion is that Mary did undergo death in the Lord, was
probably buried near the Garden of Gethsemane in Jerusalem, and, in the
likeness of her Son's Resurrection, Mary's body did not decompose after her
death and burial, but she was gloriously assumed intact.
Why? Mary enjoyed intimate relationship with Jesus on this earth and
now she accompanies the Risen Lord before us into that everlasting life. God
who had prepared Mary to be Jesus' Mother by preserving her from all sin,
having triumphed over death, certainly prevented death from spoiling her
pure, beautiful body.
What are the consequences of this dogma for us ? The Resurrection of Jesus
with the consequent Assumption of Mary to heaven points up to the
significance of our human body. Theology of body is the need of hour. God
has given us a body, the gift of his bountiful love. We should not regard it
as inferior, or as instrument, or as inherently dirty, and then be tempted
to violate our bodies through violence or sexual aberrations. The doctrine
of Mary's Assumption underlines also the realism of the Resurrection for
which we hope: Mary lives a bodily life now. It is a privilege for our
country to celebrate the Independence Day on this important date, it is the
62nd year of independence from the British rule. May this truth help us to
improve the quality of our lives!
