The Assumption

According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Catholic Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Churches, Oriental Orthodoxy, and the Anglican Communion, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life. The Roman Catholic Church teaches as dogma that the Virgin Mary "having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory."[1] This doctrine was dogmatically and infallibly defined by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950 in his Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus. This belief is known as the Dormition of the Theotokos by the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches. In the churches which observe it, the Assumption is a major feast day, commonly celebrated on August 15. In many countries it is a Catholic Holy Day of Obligation.

In his August 15, 2004, homily given at Lourdes, Pope John Paul II quoted John 14:3 as one of the scriptural bases for understanding the dogma of the Assumption of Mary. In this verse, Jesus tells his disciples at the Last Supper, "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also." According to Catholic theology, Mary is the pledge of the fulfillment of Christ's promise.[2]

The feast of the Assumption on August 15 is a public holiday in many countries, including Lebanon, Italy, Malta, Belgium, Portugal, France, Spain, Greece and Chile.[3] In Eastern Orthodox churches following the Julian Calendar, the feast day of Assumption of Mary falls on August 28, and is a public holiday in the Republic of Macedonia.