Father's Corner - August 15 - The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Belief in the Assumption of Mary dates back to ancient times. Although Protestants argue it isn’t in scripture, the assumption of Elijah is in 2 Kings 2. That’s not to mention Enoch being taken into heaven seemingly without dying in Genesis 5:24. There are no relics from her physical body (bone fragments). There are pieces of her veil around however. Our Lady is often portrayed in statues standing on the crescent moon with her foot on the head of the serpent. This comes from Genesis 3:15 which is called the protoevangelium and speaks of the seed of the woman striking at the head of the serpent. It also comes from Revelation 12 where Our Lady, standing on the moon with a crown of 12 stars, battles the dragon. She is one of our chief intercessors with Our Lord and it is said she will help bring about the defeat of the devil. One reason for this is her humility. Humility is the counter virtue to pride, the first deadly sin. It was the devil’s sin. If God were to crush the head of satan, he could claim it took God to defeat him, after all he was the most powerful angel. If however, a mere human defeats him, he is nothing. Our Lady is held up as an example for us to follow and an intercessor with Our Lord.