Assumption of Our Lady, according to Fr. Theodore Ratisbonne.
by Fr. Theodore Ratisbonne.
“It was right and proper – thus expresses a Doctor of the Church – that the Son of God received in the highest heavens the Virgin who had conceived and had given the Being on earth. Prophets saw her rise as aurora stands out. She crosses the spaces, the heavens, the choirs of angels and saints, and will sit on the royal throne in the heavenly Jerusalem. How much magnificence! How much majesty! Go, daughters of Zion, behold your crowned Queen! If it is not given to man on earth to understand happiness prepared by God to holy souls, how can we make a judgment of Mary’s magnificence. Let’s confine ourselves to meditate this truth: wherever you are, Mother, there will be companions and daughters that are consecrated. Wives of Christ will gather to his Sovereign, if they follow his footsteps on the path of obedience and humility.
The Blessed Virgin reveals the reason for her excitement: “The Most High looked at the lowliness of his servant.” She remained humble in the midst of distinguished honors that were given to her by angels and men. This prodigious annihilation was the measure of his greatness. When humble souls come closest to God the more perfectly they with release of themselves, as the plate of a scale that rises as the other goes down. In heaven, joy and indescribable delights are waiting for us, whose pledge we receive still in this life, on the holy table. But to deserve them, we must be humble; and, for this virtue, let us celebrate the feasts of Our Lady with a renewed fervor in the service of God. ”
