The Holy Family

INVEST IN FAMILY

1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28; 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24; Luke 2:41-52

Readings for the Feast of the Holy Family

A little boy asks his father when he returns from work: “Daddy, how much do you make an hour?” The father is surprised: “Look, son, not even your mum asks that question!” The son keeps insisting. The father is tired and so replies: “Four hundred rupees.” “Daddy, could you lend me two hundred?” Dad is livid: “So that was the reason you asked how much I earn, right? Now, go to sleep and don’t bug me anymore!” 

Later, the father feels guilty; his son may have needed to buy something. He goes to his son’s room. “Are you asleep, son?” “No, Daddy. Why?” Dad gives him two hundred bucks: “Here’s the money you asked for earlier.” “Thanks, Daddy!” replies the boy. Then he reaches under his pillow, pulls out some crumbled notes, joyfully gives them to Dad: “Now I have enough! Daddy, here’s four hundred rupees; please give me an hour of your time tomorrow!” 

This is only a story, but it drives home a crucial point: a huge threat facing families today is we don’t spend enough time together. We are busy working or watching our screens; we have little time for each other. Today’s Feast challenges us to invest in our family life.

The holy family spent time doing religious things together.

Luke writes: “Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover…” The distance between Nazareth and Jerusalem was over 100 kilometres. Travelling was on foot; the journey was dangerous. Despite hardships, Mary and Joseph fulfilled their religious commitments together. 

The holy family came together at mealtime. 

We read: “In the evening they looked for him among their relations and acquaintances.” The pilgrims travelled in groups… men in one group and women in another, and children with either group. But Joseph and Mary were particular they came together for the meal. 

The holy family gave priority to family.

“He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them.” This is a bit of a puzzle! The twelve-year old Jesus knew that his mission was to be about his Father’s business. Yet he returned to Nazareth with his parents to spend the next eighteen years there. For every one year of his public life, Jesus spent ten years in family; that is the importance he gave to family and time with them.

The Holy Family is an example and a challenge to us to value and invest in our families before all else, even when our job is as important as saving the world.

How will I spend time with my family: will I pray together, eat together, and value our life together?

The Nativity of the Lord

NOT “MERELY”…

Readings for the Mass at Night

Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14

Readings for the Nativity of the Lord: Mass at Night

Readings for the Mass During the Day

Isaiah 52:7-10; Hebrews 1:1-6; John 1:1-18

Readings for the Nativity of the Lord: Mass During the Day

Virginia Owens in her book, “And the Trees Clap their Hands”, suggests that along life’s way, everything becomes “merely”. There are merely stars and sky, merely sunrises and sunsets, merely rain and dew… we lose their connection with God’s creation. 

Owens asserts that this diminishment to “merely” leads to crime! The human thought-process: It costs “merely” a few bucks; I’ll take it. It’s “merely” the earth; I’ll exploit it. He/she is “merely” an employee; I’ll fire him/her. This is “merely” a human life; I’ll destroy it. This diminishment to “merely” leads to violence and war; the loss of “merely” a few thousand lives makes little difference.

The Christmas story, nay, reality is a powerful affirmation that there is no “merely”!

Jesus is not merely an infant in a manger; he is the Son of God, the Word who became flesh and pitched his tent among us. 

Mary is not merely a maiden with child; she is the mother of the Saviour. And Joseph is not merely a carpenter; he is the earthly father of Jesus. 

They are not merely shepherds; they are the privileged recipients of the Good News and the first ones to pay homage to the Christ-child.

It is not merely a manger; it is the cradle of the “Prince of Peace”. It is not merely a stable; it is a marvellous symbol of communion among all God’s people—beyond barriers—and among his creation. Bethlehem is not merely an obscure town in Judah; it is birthplace of the new-born King of the Jews. This is not merely the world; it is a world so loved by God that he gave his only Son.

Everyone and everything are part of God’s grand design for the world and its salvation.

Yet it was not so at the first Christmas! In the Gospel, we have the one of the saddest lines in the Bible: “He came to his own and his own recognized him not.” Why? He was merely a carpenter. He was merely from Nazareth. 

We need to rediscover the inherent worth of every human being as a child of God, and the value of every aspect of reality as a part of God’s creation. A man/woman/child is not an object whom I can exploit for my selfish gain and lustful pleasure. The earth, with all its resources, is not something which I ravage and destroy without concern for others and without care about the future.

From this Christmas, will I stop looking at people and things as “merely” and start looking at them as connected with God and his wonderful plan? Will I give every person his/her rightful worth and everything its rightful value?

IV Sunday of Advent

THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS

Micah 5:1-4a; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45

Readings for the IV Sunday of Advent

The news this week. Xi and Putin meet against the backdrop of the Biden summit. A build-up of Russian forces on the Ukrainian border. Uproar in Parliament over the “Lakhimpur Kheri” case. Controversy rages over the F1 title race and there is a buzz about the IPL auction.

To deal with issues, humans have recourse to strong means:  power, authority, money.

How does God deal with issues? 

God’s standards and ways are different from ours. To save our world and us, he becomes human and joins us in our weakness. He is the God of small things.

In the first reading, Micah announces God’s intention to raise a king who would bring peace to God’s people. This ideal king would come not from the capital Jerusalem but from Bethlehem, a little obscure town. Bethlehem is small and obscure God will work through its littleness to raise a mighty shepherd king.

Little Bethlehem had within it a still littler life: a humble virgin who would give birth to the saviour of the world. The gospel tells us that Mary – humbly and despite inconvenience to herself – goes to serve her elderly cousin. 

Our God is not a powerful king, but a fragile infant born in a lowly manger. Our God brings salvation not through power, authority, and money, but with humility, obedience and service, and by his death on a cross (see the second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews). 

Our God is the God of small things; he comes among us in small ways.

Do I believe in the God of small things? How do I deal with the issues and problems of life: Do I use power and authority, or do I choose God’s little ways? Do I strive for influence and money, or do I allow God to work through my littleness and defects? 

III Sunday of Advent

GET MOVING – GET PREPARED – REJOICE

Zephaniah 3:14-18; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:10-18

Readings for the III Sunday of Advent

On 17 October 1989, San Francisco experienced a major earthquake. In one place, there stood a group of people watching fire-fighters try to put out a blazing fire. A cop came up to the crowd and yelled out to them: “What are you doing just standing there? Getting going! Go home and fill your bathtubs with water. Be prepared to live without city services for 72 hours. Your time is running out. Get going and get prepared.”

Roll back the clock two thousand years to the region around the river Jordan. We have a similar scene! Instead of a dishevelled cop, there is a dishevelled John the Baptist. The situation is the same: there was no geological earthquake but a political and moral one in Israel. The message and the urgency are the same. “Get going and get prepared!”

Today’s gospel continues from last Sunday; the people ask John: “What should we do?” John’s response may be summed up thus: 

- be loving by sharing your resources

- be just/ honest

- be content with what you have

When we are LJC (loving-just-content), we will be ready for the coming of LJC (our Lord Jesus Christ)! 

John announces the Lord’s coming as a coming of judgement. But it’s a judgement we can meet joyfully if we have loved and have faithfully done our daily work.

We find this theme of “joy in unlikely situations” in the other readings. In fact, this is a distinctive feature of Advent joy! Zephaniah announces the coming of the Lord as a day of doom and yet invites Israel to “shout for joy”! Paul calls the Philippians to “rejoice in the Lord always”; he writes to them from prison, uncertain about his future.

How can one be joyful in situations in which it seems impossible to be joyful? Joy comes – as Zephaniah prophecies – because “the Lord is in our midst”. Joy comes – as Paul writes – because “the Lord is near”. It comes not by us not by circumstances but because our future is secured by God and in God. Our task is to get moving and prepare ourselves for the Lord’s coming.

Let me ask: “What must I do?”

With whom will I share myself and my resources this Advent? Are there areas in my life in which I need to be just and honest? Will I be content with what the Lord has given me?

II Sunday of Advent

PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD

Baruch 5:1-9; Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11; Luke 3:1-6

Readings for the II Sunday of Advent

A man caused a stir among Christmas shoppers in a mall. He sat near the beautifully decorated Christmas tree and talked to people. He asked them why they spent so much money on Christmas, and why they stressed themselves out over this tinselled holiday. To some he said: “The best gifts we can give are kindness and compassion.” To yet others: “Why don’t you forgive or reconcile with family or friends?” 

Many nodded in agreement. Some quit shopping and went home to be with their families. Others bought an extra toy or some clothes for charity. 

Word reached the store managers. They had security escort him from the premises. He wasn’t really hurting anyone, but he had to go; he was ruining everyone’s Christmas. 

Were John the Baptist to appear today, he probably would ruin everyone’s Christmas. He would remind us of the same things and tell us that the coming of God among us means more than cleaning and decorating, shopping and cooking. It means preparing the way for the Saviour.

In the first reading, Baruch offers a song of hope to the Babylonian exiles that God would one day lead them home. Like the foreman of a road crew, God orders that mountains be levelled and valleys filled for the building of a royal road on which “Israel may walk safely in the glory of God.”

Luke takes up the same image to interpret the message of John the Baptist. John offers hope that “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

The salvation promised by Baruch and John is God’s work. Ours is to repair the road for God’s coming. Our task is to repent: to recognise and admit that I’m going the wrong way and then change direction. Repentance is awareness-admission plus action.

What are the areas in my life that need “repair”? What are the obstacles that must be removed? There are 

- mountains that need to come down: racism, communalism, sexism.

- valleys to be filled: despair, loneliness, grief, pain.

- crooked places to be made straight: abuse, immorality, violence.

- rough places to be made smooth: oppression, injustice.

There is work to do! Let’s bring on the bulldozers and road graders… and get to work on our hearts!

I Sunday of Advent

WAIT... WITH REALISTIC HOPE

Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:12–4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36

Readings for the I Sunday of Advent

In his book “Man’s Search for Meaning”, Viktor Frankl narrates how he survived Auschwitz. Frankl says one of the worst sufferings at Auschwitz was waiting: waiting for an uncertain release or for the war to end or for death. This waiting caused some prisoners to give up; the same waiting did not cause others like Frankl to succumb. They had a realistic goal; they had a “why”. They looked at the present realistically and to the future with hope.

 

Look at the present realistically and to the future with hope! This is the message of the readings today.

- Jeremiah is preaching at a time of national and personal distress: Jerusalem is under siege, and he is in prison. He recognizes that the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile are imminent. But Jeremiah foresees that a shoot will bud from the old stalk of David; this shoot will bring about peace with justice and there will be a total recovery of national and religious stability. The present is bleak; Jeremiah looks at it squarely and looks to the future with hope.

- Jesus predicts the total collapse of Jerusalem, which has been the symbol of God’s eternal fidelity. But he encourages his disciples to stand firm, because he is the shoot of David who will re-establish order and recovery of identity. Jesus paints a grim view of the future not to paralyse his listeners with fear but to call them to faith, prayer, and hopeful waiting; he invites them to be attentive to their disorders.

- St Paul urges the Thessalonians to grow in love for another and to grow in holiness during this period of waiting.

 

How will I spend this season of Advent: Will I lament the present or will I look at it realistically and to the future with hope? What are the disorders I need to remove from my life? How will I grow in love and holiness?

May this Advent be a time of preparation for the coming of Jesus, a time of hope-filled and realistic waiting-action.

Jesus Christ the Universal King

AN “ORDINARY” KING

Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 1:5-8; John 18:33b-37

Readings for the Solemnity of Christ the King

Arthur was the first-born son of King Pendragon of England. Since they lived in troubled times, Merlin, the wise magician, advised that the baby Arthur should be raised in a secret place without anyone knowing his identity. Merlin sent Arthur to be raised in the countryside. Arthur grew up as an “ordinary” lad; he lived among his people unspoiled and unsullied by the grandeur of royalty. That experience stood him in good stead—when he became king, he was kind and loving; he embodied loyalty, strength, boldness, and faithfulness.

Arthur is, perhaps, a legendary figure! But his story is like the story of our Universal King: Jesus. 

Jesus was born to a humble carpenter and a lowly maiden in obscure Nazareth; he grew up as an ordinary lad and did the ordinary things that other ordinary lads did. For much of his life, few knew his true identity.

Jesus grew up to be king but unlike any other. In his conversation with Pilate, he states: “My kingdom does not belong to this world.” His kingdom is not like the kingdoms of this world. 

- His kingdom was not for the nobility; it was for all people, especially the poor, the lost, the marginalized. His kingdom has no boundaries and goes beyond nationality; it is an everlasting kingdom (see the first reading from Daniel);

- His kingship was not of power and domination; it was the way of powerless and freedom.

- He had no palace; he was born in a manger, had no place to lay his head during his public ministry, and he was buried in a borrowed tomb. 

- His crown was made of thorns; his throne was the cross.

- His authority is that of humble and loving service. He did not have servants waiting on him; he put on a towel and became a slave to his apostles. 

- It is a kingship in which the king does not expect people to die for him; rather he goes to his death for them (see the second reading from the Book of Revelation).

We are subjects of this “ordinary” king who is extraordinary. To be subject to him is to experience love and acceptance, liberation and peace. Will I be his true subject? If so, how will I imitate this ordinary and servant king?

 

XXXIII Sunday of the Year

STAY IN THE RACE

Daniel 12:1-3; Hebrews 10:11-14, 18; Mark 13:24-32

Readings for the XXXIII Sunday of the Year

For the movie Ben Hur, director William Wyler decided that, for the race at the end, Charlton Heston should drive the chariot himself rather than use a stunt double. Heston agreed and started chariot-driving lessons.

After days of practice and hard work, Heston told Wyler: “I think I can drive the chariot all right. But I’m not sure I can win the race.” Wyler said: “Charlton, you just stay in the race, and I’ll make sure you win.” 

 

We can feel with Heston; given the situation of our lives and world forget about winning the race, even staying in the race is tough! To each one, God says: “You just stay in the race, and I’ll make sure you win.” This is the message of hope and consolation in the Sunday readings. 

But where is the message of hope? The first reading from the Book of Daniel and the Gospel from Mark predict disaster! 

The first reading talks of “a time unsurpassed in distress since nations began until that time.” The Gospel text is often interpreted as announcing the end of the world. 

 

These are “apocalyptic” writings: symbolic and graphic descriptions that must not be understood literally. 

Further, after the catalogue of disaster comes the good news of hope: the Book of Daniel talks about a chosen group which will overcome the disaster, and lead many to justice; in the gospel, Jesus speaks about his coming in glory when he will “gather his elect” from all over. Both readings see beyond suffering-persecution-distress to a future of peace. The disciples of Jesus are to respond with faith and hope. God has not lost control of history but will bring things to a triumphant end. 

And what is the basis for our hope? 

We have the answer in the Letter to the Hebrews. The basis for our hope is the one sacrifice that Christ offered for the forgiveness of sins. This is what we celebrate at every Eucharist. 

The Lord invites you and me to remain steadfast through the turmoil in our lives. We ask ourselves: 

Will I stay in the race trusting that the Lord will stay with me and see me through? Will I look beyond the tribulation and respond with faith and hope?

XXXII Sunday of the Year

SHE GAVE ALL SHE HAD

1 Kings 17:10-16; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44 or 12:41-44

Readings for the XXXII Sunday of the Year

In the late 70s, a young man walked into church one evening with his first salary: a thousand green. After communion, the celebrant announced a collection for the new parish school. When the ushers reached the man, he put his salary envelope into the collection!

Sharing about the incident, he said: “I didn’t know from where my next meal would come but I put my entire salary into the collection. I was reckless! Today I make several times that amount. But I’m sure I won’t repeat that action.” He added something profound: “When we possess much, we find it difficult to give it all.”

Perhaps that is true. The reverse is certainly true in today’s readings!

The widow of Zarephath gave everything she had for God’s work, she gave her son’s and her own last meal to a foreigner whose God she did not even worship. She gave everything. And this God provided for her!

The widow in the temple offered two of the smallest coins in circulation. In the arithmetic of the kingdom, the widow’s mite is worth more than all the other contributions. While the others gave from their surplus, she gave all that she had. The two coins made up the total of resources. God must have provided for her.

Last Sunday we concentrated on the “Great Commandment”. The ultimate love towards God is found in these two widows.

Right through this section in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus has shown the emptiness of the Pharisees’ religion; he now presents this widow as an example of someone who gives all she has to God. Further, the poor widow typifies what Jesus has done and will do – give everything, give himself as an offering to God. 

Jesus hopes that his disciples will take their cue not from the scribes’ ostentation but from the widow’s piety and generosity. He hopes that we will be recklessly generous with our resources. 

If these poor widows could give everything to God, if a young man could give his whole salary for God’s work, what about me: What am I going to put into the “temple treasury” this week? Will I be recklessly generous and trust in divine providence?

True generosity is measured not by what I give, but by what I have left over after I give!

XXXI Sunday of the Year

THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT

Deuteronomy 6:2-6; Hebrews 7:23-28; Mark 12:28b-34

Readings for the XXXI Sunday of the Year

In a cartoon strip, Frank and Ernest are standing in front of rows of shelves of books. The sign on top of one of the shelves reads: “Law Library.” Franks tells Ernest: “It’s frightening when you think that we started out with just Ten Commandments.” 

It is frightening! The Jews started out with Ten Commandments and ended up with 613 (there are 1752 codes in our Canon Law)! 

There were two tendencies in Judaism: one expanded the law into many regulations; the other gathered the law into one summary sentence. Further, there were two schools of thought: one believed there were lighter and weightier matters of the law, and one could prioritize; the other held that all principles – even the smallest – were equally important and binding. Hence, the question the scribe asked in the gospel passage was a living issue in Jewish circles. 

Jesus’ response gathers up the scripture of Israel in one statement. 

He quotes the creed of Judaism, the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:2-6, first reading): “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” Alongside this creed, Jesus places another passage (Leviticus 19:18): “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” For Jesus, it is a combination of these texts that makes the summary and the essence of the law; religion is loving GOD and loving people. 

The scribe, pleased with Jesus’ reply, makes a pertinent point: such love is better than all ritual sacrifices. But it is always easier to let ritual take the place of love; it is easier to let worship become a matter of the church building instead of a matter of one’s whole life.

 

Jesus loved God and people totally. 

How am I going to imitate Jesus in the week ahead? How shall I love my God with my whole being? How shall I love my neighbour as myself?

PS: G.K. Chesterton said that the great lesson of Beauty and the Beast is that a person must be loved before he/she is loveable. Unless we feel loved, we cannot love. Just as abused children grow up to become abusers, loved children grow up to become loving adults. God loves and accepts us “just as we are”. Therefore, we can love and accept ourselves and in so doing, love and accept others.

XXX Sunday of the Year

LORD, I WANT TO SEE

Jeremiah 31:7-9; Hebrews 5:1-6; Mark 10:46-52

Readings for the XXX Sunday of the Year

In Pastor Steven Albertin’s office, hung a modern picture, a maze of colours and shapes. He knew this picture contained some profound artistic message but was unable to figure it out. 

One day, Adam, a kindergartener, came to his office, saw the picture, and asked: “Do you see what I see?” The pastor asked: “Do you see something in that picture? I don’t.” “Pastor, can’t you see Jesus hanging on the cross?”

The pastor stared at the picture, tried to find the image of the crucified Jesus hidden in the maze, but couldn’t. Slowly Adam moved his finger along the picture: “There, Pastor, is Jesus’ face, his arms outstretched on the cross.” The image began to appear. There hidden behind the colours and the shapes was the image of the crucified Jesus. 

Adam helped a “blind” pastor to see the suffering messiah.

Like Pastor Albertin, many of us fail to see Jesus in the maze of colours and shapes in our lives, in the suffering in our lives and around us. We need help to see him and to make sense of suffering.

In this Sunday’s gospel, Jesus helps blind Bartimaeus see! 

This healing appears at the end of the section on discipleship in mark’s gospel, in which the theme is suffering. Jesus thrice predicts his passion and death; each time his disciples fail to understand the meaning of suffering in his mission. They are blind. For instance, in the verses preceding this text, Jesus makes the third prediction, and James and John ask to sit beside him in his glory.

Mark uses the healing of Bartimaeus as a device to open the eyes of the disciples to the meaning of suffering. Mark contrasts the disciples with the blind beggar. Jesus puts the same question to Bartimaeus that he put to James and John: “What do you want me to do for you?” James and John wanted to advance themselves; Bartimaeus asks only to see.

Before the encounter with Jesus, Bartimaeus is blind, sitting, on the side of the way. After his encounter, he sees, gets up, and follows Jesus on the way to Jerusalem. Bartimaeus has understood the meaning of suffering in the life of Jesus and of a disciple. He is the paradigm of the ideal disciple.

Like Pastor Albertin in the story, like the disciples of Jesus, we fail to see Jesus as the suffering Messiah, we fail to understand that suffering is an essential part of discipleship. Like Bartimaeus, we sit by the side of the road of life and struggle to make sense of suffering. 

May we, like Bartimaeus, recognize Jesus passing by the way, and call out to him to heal us. May we cast off our cloaks, our false securities and follow Jesus on the way… because it is the only way to life.

XXIX Sunday of the Year

TRUE GREATNESS

Isaiah 53:10-11; Hebrews 4:14-16; Mark 10:35-45

Readings for the XXIX Sunday of the Year

When India became independent, the Defence Minister offered to make General Nathu Singh Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. He declined stating that General K. M. Cariappa was senior to him and more eligible for the post. The Minister then offered the position to General Rajendrasinhji Jadeja; he, too, declined for the same reason. On 15 January 1949, General Cariappa became the first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army.

Generals Singh and Jadeja knew that what matters is not where you sit, but where and how you serve. That is what Jesus teaches his disciples in the gospel… again!

James and John ask Jesus for places of honour in his kingdom. The episode continues the theme of discipleship in the Marcan gospel. Recall that in the two chapters before this Jesus has consistently challenged his disciples with the core values of the kingdom: they are to become like children, like servants; to give up all attachments; to be willing to take up their cross and follow – all this in the context of the passion predictions. After the third prediction, James and John ask for special status. Jesus is patient with them and points out that they will share his cross and his resurrection but the glory they seek is not his to give. 

The other ten are indignant, perhaps, because the brothers beat them to the bargaining spot. Jesus instructs them again that the exercise of power in his kingdom is radically different from the exercise of power in earthly realms; that he calls them to greatness through humble service. Their model is Jesus himself. John in his gospel conveys the same message through Jesus’ servile act of washing the feet of his disciples.

The first reading, which is the fourth servant song, gives us another aspect of servant leadership: suffering. 

In the kingdom of God, true greatness comes through service and suffering.

Do I understand Jesus’ teaching on discipleship or do I clamour for position and power? Am I willing to be serve and to be “the slave of all”?

Albert Schweitzer wrote: “I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found a way to serve.” May we find happiness in service and suffering.

The Assumption of Our Lady

CELEBRATING HUMAN LIFE AND DIGNITY

Revelation 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab; 1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56

Readings for the Solemnity of the Assumption

I came across a book “A Child Called It”. It is the autobiography of Dave Pelzer, who was brutally beaten and starved by his mother. She considered him not a son, but a slave; not a boy, but an “it”. Dave’s clothes were torn rags; his food was spoiled scraps that dogs refused to eat. He had no one to whom he could turn; his dreams kept him alive – dreams of someone loving and caring for him, of being treated as a human being. 

The story of David Pelzer is the story of many. The book’s publisher, Trevor Dolby, said: “We get ten letters a day from people saying the book mirrors their childhood.” 

The story of David Pelzer is the story of our world. We seem closer to one another than ever before. In fact, we live in “anonymous proximity” in a depersonalised society; we treat one another as “its”.

It is this context of a depersonalized society that we celebrate this Solemnity of Mary’s Assumption and our Independence Day.

The Assumption means that Mary already experiences the union of glorified body and soul; she already shares in Christ’s resurrection. It points to and anticipates a gift to all believers. We too will one day share in Christ’s resurrection as complete persons.

Perhaps more important than the “what” of the Assumption is the “why” of the declaration of the dogma. In the declaration, Pope Pius XII stated that the previous fifty years had seen the loss of several million lives in the Armenian genocide, the two World Wars and the Holocaust, and the Russian Revolution. He deplored the destruction of human life, the desecration of human bodies, and the loss of reverence for the God-given identity of every human being, and intended “that the celebration of the Assumption of Mary might make clear the sacredness and the high destiny of every single human person.”

The horror of the last century is not over: violence and terror attacks; communalism and caste discrimination; oppression of the poor and the weak; racial profiling and hate crimes; women and children being raped – we hardly treat human beings as persons. 

We need this solemnity, which “makes clear the sacredness and the high destiny of every single human person,” more than ever before.

Our celebration of the Solemnity of the Assumption is a challenge and an invitation to treat every human being with respect and dignity. When we can do that, we can call ourselves free!