Week beginning: 16th August, 2026.
This Sunday, we celebrate the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This great feast is about Mary, the Mother of the Saviour, taking her place in heaven, body and soul; and this is a privilege bestowed upon her by God. This feast confirms the belief, since the earliest times of the Church, that Mary was taken up, or assumed, into heaven by the gracious act of God.
Just as the Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus conquered sin and death and opened up heaven for our inheritance, Mary is the first to receive this reward through the merits of Jesus Christ. And what Mary has received is to be also our eternal reward. As the mother of Jesus Christ, she received this reward because she said “Yes” at the Annunciation, and continued to say “Yes” to God. And as our Mother, Mary also wants to share this reward with us.
In the Gospel, Mary states the one thing necessary for us to attain this reward: HUMILITY. It is with humility that we will experience the mercy of God who will come to our help as we strive to do God’s will. It is with humility that our lives will proclaim the greatness of the Lord and exult in God our Saviour. It is with humility that we will realise how useless and futile it is to be proud, to be selfish, to be conceited, to be arrogant and to be too confident of our own abilities and resources (self-sufficient) and not be dependent on God.
Ultimately, it is with humility and with the mercy of God that we will resist the temptation to sin, so as not to forfeit the eternal reward from God. Therefore, in celebrating this great feast of the Assumption, we join the Blessed Virgin Mary to glorify God, OUR Saviour, as we set our hearts to be with God in heaven; and this feast is a feast of profound hope, reminding us that our bodies are made for “resurrection and eternal life” with God.
At the same time, we renew our devotion to Mary our Mother and to follow her in doing God’s will so that God in turn will do great things for us.
Please find the link to this week’s Newsletter below:
