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Index to All Eight Articles on Mary
 Also See Is Mary The Woman of The Apocalypse?
One of the texts put forth in support of Mary's lofty status bestowed on her by Rome is John's description of "a great sign" that he saw appearing in heaven - "... a woman clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.
Interpreting this symbolism as a reflection of her bodily assumption, Catholicism claims this woman is Mary.
ON THIS PAGE
Emphasis Mine in All Bible Verses
Mary's "Assumption"
The Genesis and Development of The Doctrine
The doctrine is based on "pious crusades", "urgent petitions" and "Marian Congresses"
Mankind's Deep Seated Need For A 'Mother Figure'.
Drawing Analogies Where There Are None
Mary's Tomb
Catholicism claims that archaeology has revealed two tombs of Mary, one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus
However, no physical evidence has been found for a tomb in either place.
Enoch and Elijah
It is an exceedingly common misconception based on a very shallow reading on the Scriptures
that Elijah and Enoch were assumed into heaven.
Mary's "Assumption"
The Assumption refers to the belief that the Virgin Mary was carried body and soul into heaven at the end of her earthly life. In other words she was "assumed" into heaven.
Notwithstanding the fact Scripture is completely silent about what happened to Mary in later years and that she is never again mentioned in the New Testament after she, the disciples, and Jesus' brothers prayed in the upper room until the Holy Spirit came upon them on Pentecost (Acts 1:14), over half a century ago the Catholic hierarchy decided that Mary was taken body and soul into heaven at the end of her life.
The Catholic Catechism states (Emphasis Added)
966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death." The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians: [01]
In 1997 Pope John Paul II admitted that "the New Testament does not explicitly affirm Mary's Assumption" which raises the question of where this teaching originated.
The Genesis and Development of The Doctrine
In 1950 Pope Pius XII first declared the Assumption to be an official belief of the Catholic Church. What follows is part of his Munificentissimus Deus - Defining The Dogma Of The Assumption - which sheds light on how this doctrine came about. (All Emphasis Added)
... "when it was solemnly proclaimed that Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, was from the very beginning free from the taint of original sin, the minds of the faithful were filled with a stronger hope that the day might soon come when the dogma of the Virgin Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven would also be defined by the Church's supreme teaching authority...
See Original Sin Fact or Fable Below
...not only individual Catholics, but also those who could speak for nations or ecclesiastical provinces, and even a considerable number of the Fathers of the Vatican Council, urgently petitioned the Apostolic See to this effect.
During the course of time such postulations and petitions did not decrease but rather grew continually in number and in urgency. In this cause there were pious crusades of prayer. Many outstanding theologians eagerly and zealously carried out investigations on this subject either privately or in public ecclesiastical institutions and in other schools where the sacred disciplines are taught. Marian Congresses, both national and international in scope, have been held in many parts of the Catholic world...
on May 1, 1946, we gave them (all the venerable brethren in the episcopate) our letter "Deiparae Virginis Mariae," a letter in which these words are contained: "Do you, venerable brethren, in your outstanding wisdom and prudence, judge that the bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin can be proposed and defined as a dogma of faith? Do you, with your clergy and people, desire it?"
... But those whom "the Holy Spirit has placed as bishops to rule the Church of God"(4) gave an almost unanimous affirmative response to both these questions. This "outstanding agreement of the Catholic prelates and the faithful,"(5) affirming that the bodily Assumption of God's Mother into heaven can be defined as a dogma of faith, since it shows us the concordant teaching of the Church's ordinary doctrinal authority and the concordant faith of the Christian people. [02]
In other words it was not God's word but "pious crusades", "urgent petitions" and "Marian Congresses" (whatever those are) that caused the church to decide that 'the bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin could be proposed and defined as a dogma of faith'. Besides which I would love to know what "investigations on this subject" were carried out as the silence of the Bible on this subject is deafening.
What exactly did they "investigate?
See Original Sin - Fact or Fable?
Many Christians today including most Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians and Catholics unblushingly subscribe to the view that the sin of Adam was transferred to all future generations tainting even the unborn. This makes me wonder how many who profess to believe in Original Sin have given any thought to the fact that sin is not a substance with physical properties that can be transmitted from person to person like a virus.
Much to the contrary, sin is a conscious, willful act performed by an individual (in thought, word or deed)
that transgresses God's law. Think about it - sin can not even exist unless a sinner has an immoral, unrighteous thought then acts on it. Besides which, if sin can be inherited there is absolutely no reason why virtue, goodness, and righteousness cannot also be passed on.
Additionally the letter to the "all the venerable brethren in the episcopate" asked whether they "desired" that the "bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin can be proposed and defined as a dogma of faith".
Since when do people's 'desires' dictate what actually happened in history
The Roman church explains that the adoption of this belief is based on the church's supposed "teaching authority". It holds that as no human mind could know certain things by its own "natural powers", thus Mary's assumption "is a truth that has been revealed by God" (Emphasis Added).
This in all probability has influenced Mary's elevation to an almost god-like status.
The Roman church's answer to this is ... (All Emphasis Added)
Thus, from the universal agreement of the Church's ordinary teaching authority we have a certain and firm proof, demonstrating that the Blessed Virgin Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven- which surely no faculty of the human mind could know by its own natural powers, as far as the heavenly glorification of the virginal body of the loving Mother of God is concerned - is a truth that has been revealed by God and consequently something that must be firmly and faithfully believed by all children of the Church. [03]
This authoritarianism finds its foundation in an uncompromising and unrelenting belief in "apostolic succession" which is the teaching that bishops represent a direct, uninterrupted line of continuity from the first Apostles of Jesus Christ. This belief is also held by Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches as well as some Episcopalians and Lutherans etc.
In Catholicism it stems from the belief that Christ designated Peter to be leader of the church and His representative on earth. Thus all Catholic bishops are part of an unbroken lineage that goes back to the time of the apostles - in fact, from Peter down to the present pope. According to this theory, Peter was given this authority when Jesus referred to him as the rock of the church and said to him,
And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church... I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 16:18 -19)
More about this in Peter and The Papacy - Apostolic Succession
Mankind's Deep Seated Need For A 'Mother Figure'.
What has never been taken into consideration is the fact that because motherhood is a universal reality mankind seems to have a deep seated need for the 'Eternal Feminine'.
The worship of mother goddesses has come down from early prehistoric fertility cults to sophisticated organized religions and remains a significant part of modern pagan beliefs.
The pull toward a mother figure is a deeply felt worldwide impulse that has kindled the veneration of female sacred images for thousands of years. It is likely a regression into the experience of total dependence, safety, and nourishment provided by the biological mother.
Re-connecting with a female deity allows adults to psychologically re-engage with primary comfort. Thus virtually every culture features primary female deities - mother goddesses who embody the concepts of motherhood and fertility. Catholicism is no different.
Drawing Analogies Where There Are None
The Catholic site marian.org states (Emphasis Added)
"In his recent book Hail Holy Queen, Prof. Hahn shows conclusively that the story of the visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth in St. Luke's gospel, chapter one, bears numerous and remarkable similarities to the account in the Old Testament of King David bringing the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 6.
The similarities are too many to be accidental: St. Luke means to tell us, in his own characteristic way, that Mary herself is the new Ark of the Covenant. Just as the Ark in ancient Israel contained the tables of the Law, and some of the manna-bread from heaven - signs of the Old Covenant - so Mary's womb contained the sign of the promise of the New Covenant and the true Bread of Life: Jesus our Savior Himself.
Thus, it was already believed by the apostolic Church that Mary was the new Ark of the Covenant". [04]
2 Samuel 6
Escorted by thirty thousand men David went to bring the Ark of the Covenant from Kiriath-jearim to Jerusalem (Vs. 1-5). On the journey the ox happened to stumble causing Uzzah to put out his hand to save it from falling. And the anger of the LORD burned against Uzzah, and God He struck him down for his irreverence; (Vs. 6:6 -7).
This alarmed David who then concerned about the ark coming to him was unwilling to move it to the City of David. Instead he took it aside to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite where it remained for three months. However, LORD blessed Obed-edom and all his household. (Vs. 9-11 BSB)
Hearing of this David went and had the ark of God brought up from the house of Obed-edom into the City of David with with shouting and the sounding of the ram's horn rejoicing. He sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf and, wearing a linen ephod, danced with all his might before the LORD, (Vs. 12-15)
When the ark was set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, he finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of Hosts. Then he distributed to every man and woman among the multitude of Israel a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake. And all the people departed, each for his own home. (Vs. 17-19 )
Mary's Visit to Elizabeth
And this is the Biblical account of Mary's visit to Elizabeth which was followed by The Magnificat
In those days Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah, where she entered the home of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
In a loud voice she exclaimed, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord's word to her will be fulfilled." (Luke 1:39-45 BSB)
Apart from the fact that Luke tells us that Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months (Luke 1:56) which was approximately the same period of time the Ark was the Obed-edom's home before David brought it to Jerusalem there is absolutely NO particular correlation between the two accounts.
Mary's Tomb
In an article entitled 'The Assumption of Mary in History' author Tim Staples claims that...
Archaeology has revealed two tombs of Mary, one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus. The fact that Mary lived in both places explains the two tombs. But what is inexplicable apart from the Assumption is the fact that there is no body in either tomb. And there are no relics. [05]
The only problem with that statement is that no physical evidence has been found for a tomb in either place.
Jerusalem: Although the New Testament says nothing about Mary's death and burial, Christian tradition holds that Mary died a natural death and was buried at the foot of the Mount of Olives in the Kidron Valley over which a dimly lit church now exists.
Ephesus: Another tradition, popular in the Eastern Orthodox Church, suggests that after Jesus' death Mary accompanied John to Ephesus (present-day Turkey), lived there until her death, and was buried in a nearby grotto.
However, there is no material evidence for this belief except that the ruins of a house was discovered near a spring on the slopes of Mount Koressos in Turkey.
The site wasn't even known until a bedridden German nun Catherine Emmerich who never left Germany and died in 1824, saw it in a vision or series of visions prompting church officials to search for the house. What they found was a roof less, ruined house on a sloping hill that supposedly matched Sister Anne's description.
Under the belief that the house was Mary's last home, it has been rebuilt and is known as the House of the Virgin Mary. It has become a much venerated place of pilgrimage especially after Pope Leo XIII recognized it as such in 1896, and Pope Pius X granted permission for a plenary indulgence to visit the shrine in 1914. See Purgatory and Indulgences
The fact remains that it is only tradition that tells us that Mary was buried at the foot of the Mount of Olives.
And revelations by a Catholic mystic that point to a house near Ephesus as being Mary's last home.
No tomb has been found anywhere.
Enoch and Elijah
It is an exceedingly common misconception that Elijah and Enoch were assumed into heaven.
To be assumed into heaven is to enter heaven both body and soul, meaning complete personhood and not the soul alone, by a direct act of God. Thus "Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, for God took him away" (Gen. 5:24; cf. Heb. 11:5).
Elijah was assumed into heaven, though in a more grandiose style (2 Kings 2:11). Catholics believe that Mary entered heaven in this same manner, though they generally believe that she died before being assumed. Mary is seen not as a petty goddess, but as a redeemed Christian granted a special privilege through the love of Christ. [06]
This is impossible for the simple reason that Jesus clearly stated that "No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man". (John 3:13 NASB).
Therefore there has to be another explanation. And indeed there is. The verses in question say
Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. (Genesis 5:24 NASB)
By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for before he was taken up, he was attested to have been pleasing to God. (Hebrews 11:5 NASB)
And as they were walking along and talking, behold, a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and they separated the two of them. Then Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven. (2 Kings 2:11 NASB)
Neither verse quoted above (Genesis 5:24; Hebrews 11:5) tell us where God took Enoch. There is absolutely no evidence that, as so many assume, God 'taking" Enoch means that He took him to heaven.
And there is much more to Elijah going up by whirlwind to heaven than first meets the eye
See Did Either Elijah or Enoch Ascend to Heaven?
End Notes
[01] The Holy See. https://tinyurl.com/ymfb9rr8
[02] Apostolic Constitution Of Pope Pius Xii. Munificentissimus Deus. Defining The Dogma Of The Assumption. https://tinyurl.com/553nksbw
[03] ibid.
[04] The Case for the Assumption of Mary. Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.
https://marian.org/articles/case-assumption-mary
[05] Tim Staples. The Assumption of Mary in History. Catholic Answers
https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/the-assumption-of-mary-in-history
[06] T. L. Frazier. Assumptions About Mary. https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/assumptions-about-mary
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