6:8 One is my dove, my perfect one is but one, she is the only one of her mother, the chosen of her that bore her. Mary shares so fully in the glory of Christ because she participated so fully in His suffering. . Holy Virgin Mary, there is none like you among women born in the world. ), “In lightning is terror, but in snow is a tempered brightness; and because Almighty God is terrible to sinners and mild to the righteous, so the angel, who is a witness of His resurrection, is rightly shown with a countenance like lightning and with raiment like snow, that by his appearance he might terrify the wicked and comfort the good.”. 12 And they were all astonished, and wondered, saying one to another: What meaneth this? Therefore receive me, Your servant, and free me from the power of darkness, that no onset of Satan may oppose me, and that I may not see filthy spirits standing in my way. Christ went to Bethany to say farewell to Lazarus and his sister, and to bring them with Him to mount Olivet, in order that they might witness His ascension, and share in His triumph. And after five days it was known to the procurator, and the priests, and all the city, that the Lord's mother was in her own house in Jerusalem, along with the apostles, from the signs and wonders that came to pass there. Moreover, the scholastic Doctors have recognized the Assumption of the Virgin Mother of God as something signified, not only in various figures of the Old Testament, but also in that woman clothed with the sun whom John the Apostle contemplated on the Island of Patmos. Actually it was seen that not only individual Catholics, but also those who could speak for nations or ecclesiastical provinces, and even a considerable number of the Fathers of the Vatican Council, urgently petitioned the Apostolic See to this effect. i. John the evangelist and apostle was suddenly brought from Ephesus, and entered the chamber of the blessed Mary, and saluted her, and said to her: Hail, Mary, full of grace! 5. Indeed, S. Jerome, commenting on the words, “I will set a sign upon them,” Isa. This guided centering prayer (or meditation) of the Holy Rosary will take you on a journey through the Glorious Mysteries. .10 - The Resurrection - The Ascension - The Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles - The Assumption of Mary into Heaven Go, tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, there they shall see me. 30 He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin. Can any be so bold as to pretend, either that she is not willing, or that she cannot exert her charity in our behalf? And when they had sat down in a circle consoling her, when they had spent three days in the praises of God, behold, on the third day, about the third hour of the day, a deep sleep seized upon all who were in that house, and no one was at all able to keep awake but the apostles alone, and only the three virgins who were there. Then Mary, undressing herself, put on better garments. ... Meditations on the 5 Glorious mysteries Author: Valued Gateway Client I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, died, and was buried. 9, I will awake early. And she said to them: God has not deprived me of the sight of you. And, behold, the archangel Michael rolled back the stone from the door of the tomb; and the Lord said: Arise, my beloved and my nearest relation; you who hast not put on corruption by intercourse with man, suffer not destruction of the body in the sepulchre. The First Glorious Mystery: The Resurrection of Jesus Then the blessed Mary gave him her benediction, and again kissed him. They have resulted in many more petitions, begging and urging the Apostolic See that this truth be solemnly defined. Symbolically: The earth which trembled with horror at the death of Christ, as it were leaped with joy at the resurrection. St. Teresa, in her childhood, grieving for the loss of her mother, east herself on her knees before the picture of the Blessed Virgin, beseeching her with many tears to take her under her special patronage, and to be to her a tender mother and tutoress.24 In like manner, we may, by a solemn dedication of ourselves to God under the patronage of the Virgin Mary, choose her for our principal advocate with him, and commend ourselves most earnestly to her mediation. And thus by the Holy Spirit, as has been said, they all came together. 15:10 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; nor wilt then give thy holy one to see corruption. And Christ had answered, "I am. In ascending to Heaven, Christ has left us for a little while, though He has not left us alone, but in the loving embrace of His Church. 16 But their eyes were held, that they should not know him. And he believed, and glorified Christ, God who had been born of her. "(8) Thus, from the universal agreement of the Church's ordinary teaching authority we have a certain and firm proof, demonstrating that the Blessed Virgin Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven- which surely no faculty of the human mind could know by its own natural powers, as far as the heavenly glorification of the virginal body of the loving Mother of God is concerned-is a truth that has been revealed by God and consequently something that must be firmly and faithfully believed by all children of the Church. Apostolorum Expositio, a. 17 Jesus saith to her: Do not touch me, for I am not yet ascended to my Father. The blessed Mary said to them: I asked my Son, before He endured the passion, that He and you should be at my death; and He granted me this gift. We, who have placed our pontificate under the special patronage of the most holy Virgin, to whom we have had recourse so often in times of grave trouble, we who have consecrated the entire human race to her Immaculate Heart in public ceremonies, and who have time and time again experienced her powerful protection, are confident that this solemn proclamation and definition of the Assumption will contribute in no small way to the advantage of human society, since it redounds to the glory of the Most Blessed Trinity, to which the Blessed Mother of God is bound by such singular bonds. Pope Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus, 1950. Further, Christ does not seem to have risen immediately after the middle of the night. Then she joyed and gloried, and kissed the knees of her Son, and blessed the Creator of heaven and earth, who gave her such a gift through Jesus Christ her Son. And her, whose assumption is at this day venerated and worshipped throughout the whole world, let us assiduously entreat that she be mindful of us in the presence of her most pious Son in heaven, to whom is praise and glory through endless ages of ages. Given at Rome, at St. Peter's, in the year of the great Jubilee, 1950, on the first day of the month of November, on the Feast of All Saints, in the twelfth year of our pontificate. But it would be superfluous and tedious to load a discourse with the quotations of all those writers who are, in every age, vouchers of this article of the Catholic faith, and witnesses of the homages which the Church, instructed by the Holy Ghost, has never failed to pay to the glorious Mother of God. Romans 8:7 Because the wisdom of the flesh is an enemy to God. 7 But he said to them: It is not for you to know the times or moments, which the Father hath put in his own power: 8 But you shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth. For the angel, &c. Franciscus Lucas and others are of opinion that this angel was Gabriel, who, according to the meaning of his name, is the minister of the power of God. And, behold, one of them, who was chief of the priests of the Jews in his rank, filled with fury and rage, said to the rest: Behold, the tabernacle of him who disturbed us and all our race, what glory has it received? And those who had come before likewise answered, and gave an account of how they had come. 2 And very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they come to the sepulchre, the sun being now risen. 48 And you are witnesses of these things. "It was fitting that she, who had kept her virginity intact in childbirth, should keep her own body free from all corruption even after death. For the end of the first part of the night is the beginning of the second; and the dawn is the end of the whole night. An angel descends from heaven, rolling back the stone, and sits upon it with his appearance as lightning and his clothing as snow. 3 And his countenance was as lightning, and his raiment as snow. We are an Easter people, and however cast down we may be at times, grace enables us to rise again and again. The same path which conducted her to glory, will also lead us thither; we shall be partners in her reward, if we copy her virtues. John 20:1 And on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalen cometh early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre; and she saw the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Reigning in perfect union with her Divine Son, Christ the King, she as both Mother and Queen is granted the most highly favored position to plead for us sinners. Hence the tradition which has come down from the time of Christ and the Apostles that in giving a blessing the hands should always form the sign of the Cross. While the Apostles transport her undefiled body, a certain Hebrew puts his hands upon the couch attempting to stop the procession. Mary said yes. And the angel said: No power indeed of the lower world will hurt you; and your Lord God, whose servant and messenger I am, has given you eternal blessing; but do not think that the privilege of not seeing the prince of darkness is to be given you by me, but by Him whom you have carried in your womb; for to Him belongs power over all for ever and ever. And Peter turned and said to him: In the name of Him who was born of her, your hands which have been taken away from you, will be fixed on again. In that same day, three thousand souls receive his word and are baptized. An angel then cuts off his hands, the man repents, and St Peter heals him. 1. But the spices which the women bring signify the odour of virtue and the sweetness of prayers, by which we ought to approach the latter.”. "(28), When, during the Middle Ages, scholastic theology was especially flourishing, St. Albert the Great who, to establish this teaching, had gathered together many proofs from Sacred Scripture, from the statements of older writers, and finally from the liturgy and from what is known as theological reasoning, concluded in this way: "From these proofs and authorities and from many others, it is manifest that the most blessed Mother of God has been assumed above the choirs of angels. i. “As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you.” Jesus breathes on them and says, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Glorious Mysteries. But now the angels continue: "Remember how he spoke unto you, when he was in Galilee, Saying: The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again" (Luke 24:6-7). 7:25. 26 And they gave them lots, and the lot fell upon Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. And Bartholomew said: I was in the Thebais proclaiming the word, and behold the Holy Spirit says to me, The mother of your Lord is taking her departure; go, then, to salute her in Bethlehem. The present Sovereign Pontiff Pius IX., by a decree of the S. Congr. For, "by ascending into heaven He did not abandon those whom He adopted," as Pope Leo says (De Resurrec., Serm. 23 And Ozias the prince of the people of Israel, said to her: Blessed art thou, O daughter, by the Lord the most high God, above all women upon the earth. Further, Matthew here only mentions directly the time of the coming of the women to the sepulchre, yet he indirectly signifies also the time at which Christ rose, namely, in the early morning, a little before the arrival of the women, according to the common opinion of the Doctors and the Church, which S. Jerome and S. Augustine prove from Ps. And with the departure of her blameless soul the place was filled with perfume and ineffable light; and, behold, a voice out of the heaven was heard, saying: Blessed are you among women. But this was bestowed upon us by His Passion, for it is written (Heb. They base the strength of their proofs on the incomparable dignity of her divine motherhood and of all those prerogatives which follow from it. "(11), What is here indicated in that sobriety characteristic of the Roman liturgy is presented more clearly and completely in other ancient liturgical books. But ascension is movement. In the Fourth Glorious Mystery we meditate how, twelve years after our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead, His Mother herself passed from this mortal life, and was carried into heaven by the angels. The Glorious Mysteries are traditionally prayed on Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays (except during Lent, Advent, and Christmastide). She therefore called St. John, and led him into the secret chamber of the house, and showed him the robe of her burial, and that palm of light which she had received from the angel, instructing him that he should cause it to be carried before her couch when she was going to her tomb. That it was so clear, first, from S. Mark, who says, and when the Sabbath was passed; secondly, because S. Matthew is wont to sum up many things in a few words. Romans 8:34 Christ Jesus that died: yea that is risen also again, who is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Amadeus of Lausanne, De Beatae Virginis Obitu, Assumptione in Caelum Exaltatione ad Filii Dexteram. Mark 16:1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought sweet spices, that coming, they might anoint Jesus. Though we know that, at our death, our body will suffer decay, we can still look forward with hope because we know that Mary's life in the world to come will one day be ours as well, so long as we unite ourselves to her Son. The path of prosperity, if uninterrupted, exposes souls to much illusion; in it many are filled only with self-love whilst they flatter themselves they are walking with God, and reaping the fruits of virtue. [6] St Bridget of Sweden from The Prophecies and Revelations of St Bridget of Sweden and Her Life with Various Prayers. Acts 1:5 For John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost, not many days hence. We have also included a Spiritual Fruit that is exemplified in the mystery. And when this miracle had been done, the apostles carried the couch, and laid down her precious and holy body in Gethsemane in a new tomb. (6) Certainly this teaching authority of the Church, not by any merely human effort but under the protection of the Spirit of Truth,(7) and therefore absolutely without error, carries out the commission entrusted to it, that of preserving the revealed truths pure and entire throughout every age, in such a way that it presents them undefiled, adding nothing to them and taking nothing away from them. Tropologically: Learn here how religiously we ought to venerate and adorn the tombs and relics of Christ, the Martyrs, and other Saints. Christ's faithful, through the teaching and the leadership of their pastors, have learned from the sacred books that the Virgin Mary, throughout the course of her earthly pilgrimage, led a life troubled by cares, hardships, and sorrows, and that, moreover, what the holy old man Simeon had foretold actually came to pass, that is, that a terribly sharp sword pierced her heart as she stood under the cross of her divine Son, our Redeemer. 10:19): “We have [Vulg. Base and unworthy sinners as we are, can we do better than strengthen our prayers by the joint intercession of such an advocate, and by invoking her as our secure refuge? 19 Now when it was late that same day, the first of the week, and the doors were shut, where the disciples were gathered together, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them: Peace be to you. And they said: Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet, mighty in work and word before God and all the people; 20 And how our chief priests and princes delivered him to be condemned to death, and crucified him. ii). And Peter, and I John, and Paul, and Thomas, ran and wrapped up her precious feet for the consecration; and the twelve apostles put her precious and holy body upon a couch, and carried it. (Collect for Pentecost), Spiritual Fruit: Grace of a Happy Death | Desire for Heaven​Spiritual Work of Mercy: Pray for the living and the dead, Song of Solomon 2:10; 6:8; Psalms 15:10; 44:10-12, 14; 131:8, Almighty everlasting God, Who hast taken body and soul into heaven the Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of Thy Son: grant, we beseech Thee, that by steadfastly keeping heaven as our goal we may be counted worthy to join her in glory. In some accounts, St Thomas arrives late and asks the Apostles to take him to the tomb on the 3rd day after her burial, at which time, they show him and discover her body had been assumed into heaven. Primum Mysterium Gloriosum: Resurrectio. It is forbidden to any man to change this, our declaration, pronouncement, and definition or, by rash attempt, to oppose and counter it. And Mark likewise coming round, was present from Alexandria; he also with the rest, as has been said before, from each country. Wherefore, what Mark says about their entering into the tomb is to be understand thus, when they were preparing or beginning to enter the tomb; for they had not yet entered it, but were still outside, and there they saw and heard the angel, as Matthew has it. 8 And they who are in the flesh cannot please God. That privilege has shone forth in new radiance since our predecessor of immortal memory, Pius IX, solemnly proclaimed the dogma of the loving Mother of God's Immaculate Conception. Sirach 24:23 As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odour: and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches. “He sat, though he was not weary, as teacher of the faith, as master of the resurrection. We find churches dedicated to God in her honor in all parts of the Christian world, as soon as that liberty was allowed under the first Christian emperors. Click on image for a larger version. 8 But they going out, fled from the sepulchre. so that for the very reason that God so exalted human nature in Christ, He may take pity on them for whom the Son of God took human nature. THE GLORIOUS MYSTERIES 1 The Resurrection 2 The Ascension 3 The Descent of the Holy Spirit 4 The Assumption of Our Lady 5 The Coronation of Our Lady as Queen of Heaven and earth. For this promise is for you and for your children.” At his preaching, entire households are baptized: men, women, and children. xiv), Christ's body was in no way changed after the Resurrection. No certainly. . Further, the Son of God took human flesh for our salvation. That is, on the first day after the Sabbath, on the Lord’s day; about the religious observance of which day S. Augustine thus writes (Serm. 2. [8] Ibid., The Raccolta. And he asked pardon with bended knee. For those who believe in Christ, though, the answer brings not rage, nor fear, but hope. Watch and pray with me, that when the Lord comes to receive my soul, He may find you watching. THE ASSUMPTION. Glorious Mysteries Holy Rosary Meditations: The Resurrection, The Ascension, Descent of the Holy Spirit, The Assumption, The Coronation Consequently, while we sent up earnest prayers to God that he might grant to our mind the light of the Holy Spirit, to enable us to make a decision on this most serious subject, we issued special orders in which we commanded that, by corporate effort, more advanced inquiries into this matter should be begun and that, in the meantime, all the petitions about the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven which had been sent to this Apostolic See from the time of Pius IX, our predecessor of happy memory, down to our own days should be gathered together and carefully evaluated. Descent into hell - the realm of the dead: Matthew 27:52-53 And the graves were opened: and many bodies of the saints that had slept arose, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection, came into the holy city and appeared to many. 5 And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed with a white robe: and they were astonished. And when the third day was ended, the voices were no longer heard; and from that time forth all knew that her spotless and precious body had been transferred to paradise. For nine days they had prayed, and now their prayers are being answered. How bitter must the prolongation of her banishment amidst the sins of the world have been to her, whose burning charity surpassed that of all other saints! And, behold, a cloud of light having snatched me up, set me down in the same place as you. Whence the evening could not be said to dawn towards the first day of the week, unless by the word evening the night itself is understood, which is concluded by the dawn. Lifting up His pierced hands, Jesus blesses them, signing them with the sign of the Cross. 3. 49 And I send the promise of my Father upon you: but stay you in the city till you be endued with power from on high. Luke 24:46 And he said to them: Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead, the third day: 47 And that penance and remission of sins should be preached in his name, unto all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Thus, when it was solemnly proclaimed that Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, was from the very beginning free from the taint of original sin, the minds of the faithful were filled with a stronger hope that the day might soon come when the dogma of the Virgin Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven would also be defined by the Church's supreme teaching authority. 53 And they were always in the temple, praising and blessing God. Rosary Meditations & Prayers . An indulgence of seven years and seven quarantines to every one who with contrition shall say a third part of the Rosary in company with others, either in public or private. But ought we not rather to stop our inquiries in silent raptures of admiration and praise, than presume to pursue them in an object which is the astonishment of the highest angels? The tomb devours death, and not the dead. And Jephonias himself, when Peter ordered him, that the wonderful things of God might be showed forth, stood up behind the couch, and cried out: Holy Mary, who brought forth Christ who is God, have mercy upon me. In this pious striving, the faithful have been associated in a wonderful way with their own holy bishops, who have sent petitions of this kind, truly remarkable in number, to this See of the Blessed Peter. The Bull Ineffabilis Deus, loc. "(39), Once the mystery which is commemorated in this feast had been placed in its proper light, there were not lacking teachers who, instead of dealing with the theological reasonings that show why it is fitting and right to believe the bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven, chose to focus their mind and attention on the faith of the Church itself, which is the Mystical Body of Christ without stain or wrinkle(40) and is called by the Apostle "the pillar and ground of truth. And she eagerly rose quickly, and bowed herself, and kissed them, and gave thanks to God. St. Anthony of Padua, Sermones Dominicales et in Solemnitatibus, In Assumptione S. Mariae Virginis Sermo. To take one as an example, the Gallican sacramentary designates this privilege of Mary's as "an ineffable mystery all the more worthy of praise as the Virgin's Assumption is something unique among men." “She is said to be clothed with the sun, that is, with a glory transcending that of the other blessed, as the brightness of the sun surpasseth the stars.”. 25 The other disciples therefore said to him: We have seen the Lord. By ascending into heaven Christ acquired no addition to His essential glory either in body or in soul: nevertheless He did acquire something as to the fittingness of place, which pertains to the well-being of glory: not that His body acquired anything from a heavenly body by way of perfection or preservation; but merely out of a certain fittingness. 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