Why do we refer to Our Lady, as Spes Nostra, Our Hope? Well, our hope of what? Of heaven, of course. I’ve not been to heaven, have you? None of us have. When we set off on a journey, we hope to reach our destination. If our destination is right down the road, we don’t need much hope. If it’s a far off land, we need a little bit more hope, for the journey will be difficult. If it’s a place that no one has ever been to, we need a lot more hope, don’t we?
Heaven, is that place, that no one has reached on their own. Paul writes to Timothy, God lives in unapproachable light. The mountain to heaven is untraversable to man by his own power. Additionally, the very gates of heaven were closed to humanity due to sin. What hope do we have of heaven? Well, our faith tells us that Jesus died for sins.
He promised eternal life to those who believe in him, and follow him, and are reborn in the waters of baptism. Those who eat his flesh and drink his blood shall have eternal life, and shall be raised on the last day. But, where is the proof his promises are true?
Well, we need look no farther than Our Lady. Her assumption is proof that there is a place in heaven for redeemed humanity. There is a place in heaven for the human body and the human soul. How do we know? She’s there. God has given us the great gift of taking our Lady at the end of her earthly life, body and soul, into heaven. And so she our Hope fulfilled. God keeps his promises. It’s possible to live body and soul forever in heaven because she’s already there.
What Jesus promised is fulfilled in her and so we can truly hope in his promises. A human creature of body and soul can come to heaven through Christ—through God’s grace.
Now, living outside of that grace, ignoring his commandments, failing to repent, disbelieving His word, that’s a whole other story. We have no hope in that. We have no promise that those things lead to heaven.
But when the Lord says “blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it” we have good reason to believe that observance of the word of God does lead to beatitude because of today’s feast, Our Lady’s assumption. Our Lady, who heard the word of God and observed it, has entered body and soul into heaven.
This feast is the fulfillment of the great Magnificat which Mary proclaimed upon visiting her cousin Elizabeth. Mary said, “all ages will call me blessed”? Why would we do that? Because she has been assumed into heaven, she is in the blessed presence of God, forever.
The Assumption shows us that God truly has cast down the mighty from their thrones: the mighty powers of sin and death which kept humanity from living in the heavenly presence of God have been defeated. God has lifted up lowly handmaid into heavenly glory.
Mary truly magnifies the Lord. Like a magnifying glass helps us to see clearly something which is difficult to see. Mary helps us to see what God was up to in his plan of salvation. She has been filled with all the good things of God. And what was true for her, shall be true for us, if we take her as our model.
Because Mary magnifies the Lord, it is always helpful to look at her and to turn to her. As Catholics, we need to keep our eyes fixed on Our Lady, daily. A day shouldn’t go by without thinking of her, considering her example, talking to her, praying with her. Every Catholic house should have a crucifix and a statue or image of the Blessed Virgin so that we don’t forget who we are and what we are called to be, and the reason for our hope.
Friday night, I offered an adult faith formation session on some spiritual lessons from the life of St. John Vianney. I shared how during his seminary years, the saint dedicated himself to Our Lady through the consecration of St. Louis Marie de Montford. Many of you may have come across this devotion, it’s been popular for a few hundred years. In fact, Pope St. John Paul II took as his papal motto words from de Montford’s book. “Totus Tuus” I Am all yours, and all that I have belongs to you, oh blessed virgin mary. God entrusted himself to our Lady’s maternal care. For 9 months in the womb he was totally dependent on her. Our Lord was the first to utter “totus tuus” to Mary. And so, Totus tuus should be the motto of every Christian. For she is our mother, the mother of the church, the mother of Christians, Jesus himself said so from the cross.
John Vianney encouraged his flock to deepen their devotion to the Blessed Virgin, for vibrant Marian Devotion is a characteristic of every vibrant saint. You will not find a saint who does not love and honor from the depths of their being, the Blessed Virgin Mary.
I also shared another story from John Vianney. After ordination, in his first parish assignment, Father Vianney started a lifelong practice of praying to Our Lady to give him strength to overcome his sensual temptations. Just because one is a priest or religious, doesn’t mean we are free from all temptations. So John Vianney made a vow to God to pray daily to Our Lady the Regina Coeli for this purpose.
Even the saints go to special lengths in order to remain faithful against sensual temptations. That’s how they become saints: they go to special lengths to grow in holiness and combat temptation.
As a priest, I hear a lot about sensual temptations in the confessional, and I’m convinced that we all need a special devotion, or prayer, on a daily basis, to remain strong against those particular temptations. If it’s good enough for John Vianney, it’s good enough for us. So whether it’s lust, or gluttony, or overindulgence of drink, or laziness, say a special prayer every day to Our Lady, to help you to overcome those temptations. The Salve Regina, the Regina Coeli, the rosary, some marian prayer, every day, to overcome the sins of the flesh—that your flesh, like hers, may be one day with God.
As we stumble through life’s hardships and pitfalls, may we place our hope in her. She prays for us now, praying to obtain from God the grace to persevere our trials, to overcome our sins, to be faithful when our flesh and the world and the devil conspire against us. May we keep our eyes daily fixed on her, who is our life, our sweetness, and our hope, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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