Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Assumption of Mary, by Mateo Cerezo, ca. 1650

Faith, observes Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis, "is the beginning of a work of transformation and enlightenment, the work of God's Spirit in us, accomplishing in us what has already been accomplished in Christ." Jesus' "glorious destiny is ours, too." This reality "climaxes liturgically in the feast of Our Lady's Assumption and glorification: the Resurrection of the Son has already worked its full effect in the Mother who bore him in faith and love, and this, too, is our own path and destiny if we want it to be and if we are willing to live accordingly" (The Way of the Disciple 17-18)