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In the Eastern Church, the dormition
("falling asleep") of Mary began to be commemorated in the
6th century. The observance gradually spread to the West,
where it became known as the feast of the Assumption. By
the 13th century most Catholic theologians accepted the
belief of the Assumption. However this doctrine did not
become an article of faith until recent times, when Pope
Pius XII declared it a dogma of the Catholic faith: “The
Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having
completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body
and soul into heavenly glory” (Munificentissimus Deus,
Pope Pius XII, 1950).
Not taught in Scripture
Catholic authors readily admit that
the Assumption is not explicitly taught in Scripture.1
In the biblical narrative, Mary is last mentioned in Acts
1 where she is found praying with the other disciples
before Pentecost. After that, the Bible is silent about
her life and death.
Naturally Catholic writes refer to
various scriptures to demonstrate the possibility of this
doctrine, and that it is was ‘fitting’ that Mary should be
assumed to heaven. These efforts fall short of biblical
proof. Consider some examples:
§
Genesis 3:15 [And I will put
enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed
and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt
bruise his heel] It is argued that Mary, “most
intimately associated with him in that struggle against
the infernal foe which, as foretold in the
protoevangelium, would finally result in that most
complete victory over the sin and death.” We notice,
however, that it is the seed, Jesus, rather that the
woman, who bruised the serpent’s head. His resurrection
is the sure sign of Messiah’s triumph over the Devil.
Together with all Christians, Mary would also benefit
from Christ’s victory according to God’s plan of
salvation at the “resurrection of life.” That is still a
future event.
§
Luke 1:28 [And the angel came in
unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured,
the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women].
Bodily assumption is said to be the natural effect of
being highly favoured or full of grace. However, the
same word translated “full of grace” (Greek, charitoo)
is applied to all believers in Ephesians 1:6.
Yet, no-one suggests that every believer should be
assumed bodily into heaven soon after death!
§
Revelation 12:1 [And there
appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with
the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head
a crown of twelve stars]. A Catholic author writes:
“Mary's coronation implies her preceding bodily
assumption.” He wrongly assumes that this “woman” is
Mary and ignores the problems of such interpretation.
For example, the woman of Revelation, “being with child
cried, travailing in birth, and pained
to be delivered” (Revelation 12:2); whereas Catholics
believe that Mary “gave birth to her Son without pain”
(Pope Alexander III).
None of these and similar scriptures
actually prove the bodily assumption. As Pope Pius XII
commented, “Often there are theologians and preachers who,
following in the footsteps of the holy Fathers, have been
rather free in their use of events and expressions
taken from Sacred Scripture to explain their belief in the
Assumption.” Yet he still based his argument on these
writings, thereby conceding that there is no genuine
biblical proof of the Assumption.
Not
taught by the Church Fathers
The Catholic Encyclopaedia admits
that the first “genuine” written references to the
Assumption come from authors who lived in the sixth to the
eight centuries:
“If we consult genuine writings in
the East, it is mentioned in the sermons of St. Andrew of
Crete, St. John Damascene, St. Modestus of Jerusalem and
others. In the West, St. Gregory of Tours (De gloria
mart., I, iv) mentions it first.”2
St. Gregory lived in the sixth
century, while St John Damascene belongs to the eight.
Thus for several centuries in the early Church, there is
no mention by the church fathers of the bodily assumption
of Mary. Ireneus, Jerome, Augustine, Ambrose and the
others church fathers said nothing about it. Writing in
377 A.D., the church father Epiphanius states that no-one
knows Mary’s end.3
First taught by heretics
So, how did this teaching originate,
given that it is absent in the Sacred Scriptures and in
the tradition of the early Church? The belief of the
assumption is based on apocryphal and spurious writings.
“The belief in the corporeal
assumption of Mary is founded on the apocryphal treatise
De Obitu S. Dominae, bearing the name of St. John,
which belongs however to the fourth or fifth century. It
is also found in the book De Transitu Virginis,
falsely ascribed to St. Melito of Sardis, and in a
spurious letter attributed to St. Denis the Areopagite” (Catholic
Encyclopaedia).
The first church author to speak on
the assumption, Gregory of Tours, based his teaching on
the Transitus, perhaps because he accepted it as
genuine.4 However, in 459 A.D. Pope Gelasius
issued a decree that officially condemned and rejected the
Transitus along with several other heretical
writings. Pope Hormisdas reaffirmed this decree in the
sixth century.5 It is ironic that this
heretical teaching was later promoted within the Catholic
Church, until eventually it was proclaimed a dogma in the
twentieth century.
Conclusion
a) The Roman Church solemnly warns
anyone who “should dare willfully to deny or to call into
doubt that which we have defined (i.e. the Assumption),
let him know that he has fallen away completely from
the divine and Catholic Faith (Munificentissimus
Deus). How could this dogma be so important, seeing
that it was unknown in the early Church, even condemned by
some Popes, and more importantly, since it is absent from
the Holy Scriptures? Some have indeed fallen from the
catholic faith. The apostates are those who have invented
this novel doctrine. The faithful are those who, together
with the early Christians, have remained steadfast in
upholding the faith of the New Testament.
b) In theory, the Roman Church
teaches that:
1. The sacred deposit of the faith
(the Word of God) is contained in Sacred Scripture and
Tradition.
2. The Magisterium gives an authentic interpretation to
the Word of God but does not add to its contents.
"The apostles entrust the 'Sacred
deposit' of the faith (the depositum fidei), contained in
Sacred Scripture and Tradition, to the whole of the
Church...[the Magisterium] teaches only what has been
handed on to it...All that it proposes for belief as being
divinely revealed is drawn from this single deposit of
faith" (Catechism, 84-86).
In practice, Rome teaches doctrines
that are not drawn from the deposit of faith. We have seen
that the Assumption is neither found in Scripture nor in
the early church tradition. Certainly, if this doctrine
were transmitted by the apostles to the bishops of the
early church, we would expect to find at least some
references to it in the voluminous writings of the
Fathers. But they are conspicuously silent about this
subject.
If you are a Catholic, ask yourself
whether your implicit trust in the Roman magisterium is
warranted. The magisterium claims to explain the Word of
God, but at least in this case, it has gone far beyond
it's stated role. It is inventing novel doctrines beyond
the Word of God. Be careful! You may feel convinced that
your faith is built on a solid rock, when in fact, you are
standing on sinking sand.
c) Catholic theology has exalted
Mary to the heavens, and it is therefore natural for
Catholics to look to her for their spiritual needs. “O
most sweet Lady and our Mother, thou hast already left the
earth and reached thy kingdom, where, as Queen, thou art
enthroned … From the high throne, then, to which thou art
exalted, turn, O Mary, thy compassionate eyes upon us, and
pity us.” (Of the Assumption of Mary, St. Alphonsus
de Liguori).
Despite their protestations to the
contrary, the sad truth is that such Marian devotion
detracts from that simple faith and devotion to the Lord
Jesus Christ. The Scripture explicitly speaks of Jesus,
who having lived a sinless life, died for sinners, was
buried and raised from the death, and after forty days He
ascended into Heaven, where He is reigning in glory,
interceding for His people. Compassion and pity is found
only when we have recourse to the Lord Jesus. “Wherefore
he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come
unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make
intercession for them. For such an high priest became us,
who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,
and made higher than the heavens” (Hebrews 7:25,26).
Endnotes
-
"Since the Immaculate Conception
and Assumption are not explicit in Scripture,
Fundamentalists conclude that the doctrines are false."
Immaculate Conception and Assumption; Catholic Answers;
www.catholic.com
-
St. Gregory of Tours lived in the 6th
Century; St. Andrew of Crete, St. Modestus of Jerusalem
lived in the 7th Century; St. John Damascene lived in
the 8th Century.
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"But if some think us mistaken, let them
search the Scriptures. They will not find Mary's
death…for her end no-one knows." (Epiphanius, Panarion,
Haer. 78.10-11, 23. Cited by Juniper Carol, OFM,
Mariology, vol. II, pp. 139-40).
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"The first Church author to speak of the
bodily ascension of Mary, in association with an
apocryphal transitus B.M.V., is St. Gregory of Tours"
(Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma (Rockford:
Tan, 1974), pp. 209-210).
-
Webster, W; Marian
Dogmas in The Church of Rome at the Bar of History;
Banner of Truth Trust, 1995; pp. 81-85.
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