Today is the Feast of the Assumption, a Marian Feast that is described as a feast of pure joy. Most other of her feast days entail an element of sorrow and joy but this one points simply to the purity and complexity of who Mary is.
I am not a Catholic who has Mary on a pedestal. I am attracted to her by her seemingly unending yes, by her praise of the Creator, by her fidelity to the path she knew she had to walk, and by her grace. The real Mary fascinates me. Fr. Brian, my former pastor, always unglorified the reality of Christmas—it was messy, he insisted. There were no sterile sheets upon which to lay the Christ Child. This was not a clean home, brimming with well-wishers and midwives. This was no ordinary baby born into poverty and humility.
Mary, to me, is a woman whose fidelity to God gave her the strength to do what was asked of her and to demand us to “do whatever he tells” us. Her life was not pious or untouched. Instead her heart was pierced and I am sure many times she wondered what her yes would mean.
This feast celebrates the fact that Mary awaits us, whole and radiant, in Heaven. I sometimes wonder who my grandmother flung wide open her arms to greet in her final seconds of life. Some relatives think it was her Mother to whom she had a special devotion. She shared some parts of Mary’s motherhood issues and I believe turned to her early on in life to weather the cruel blows that came her way.
I would be happy to arrive at the gates of Heaven to find my grandmother, Mary and so many others ready to warmly embrace me, joyously shouting, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Welcome Home.”
Peace,
Suzanne
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