GOSPEL POWER l AUGUST 15, 2022 - MONDAY

Solemnity of the Assumption  of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Gospel: Lk 1:39-56 

39In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town  in the hill country, 40where she entered the house of Zechariah and  greeted Elizabeth. 41When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child  leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit  42and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and  blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43And why has this happened to  me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44For as soon as I heard  the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.  45And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of  what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 46And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, 47and my spirit  rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked with favor on the  lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will  call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me,  and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from  generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm;  he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has  brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the  lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich  away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of  his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to  Abraham and to his descendants forever.” 56And Mary remained with  her about three months and then returned to her home. 

Heaven is not only an after-death reality. It becomes  present on earth whenever someone allows God’s will  to reign supreme in one’s life and relationships. This is the  underlying truth in the petition in the Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father who  art in heaven… thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in  heaven.” Mary, by her faithfulness and obedience to God’s will, began  living heaven partially while still on earth. Her visit to her cousin  Elizabeth gives us a glimpse of her Spirit-directed life, especially her  sensitivity and responsiveness to the needs of others, even at the cost  of sacrifice. The belief that Mary was assumed into heaven at the  conclusion of her earthly life speaks to us about the faithfulness of  the Father to whom she entrusted her life and who fulfilled her hope  for the fullness of that heaven that she began to live partially on earth.  This belief assures us, who are still on our earthly pilgrimage, that  our hopes too will not be disappointed. Lord Jesus, keep our wills aligned with God’s will, that we may begin to  experience heaven partially now, while yearning to enjoy its fullness at the  end of this life. Amen.