Monday, August 15, 2011

Was Our Lady the only person assumed into Heaven?

The Holy and Immaculate Conception, assumed body and soul into Heaven.

By Pontifical Definition - yes... 
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The Blessed Virgin is the only one whose assumption is defined as dogma.
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Pius XII defined the Assumption of the Mother of God into Heaven thusly:
44. For which reason, after we have poured forth prayers of supplication again and again to God, and have invoked the light of the Spirit of Truth, for the glory of Almighty God who has lavished his special affection upon the Virgin Mary, for the honor of her Son, the immortal King of the Ages and the Victor over sin and death, for the increase of the glory of that same august Mother, and for the joy and exultation of the entire Church; by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma:
that 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.
45. Hence if anyone, which God forbid, should dare willfully to deny or to call into doubt that which we have defined, let him know that he has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith. - MUNIFICENTISSIMUS DEUS

Unassuming souls floating in the ether?

Were there others?
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Well for sure Our Lord Jesus Christ ascended into Heaven - that is Gospel and part of the Creed.  There can be no denying that truth either.
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But what about Enoch?   Moses?  Elijah?  Enoch is easy, the book is not in our canonical scriptures, and his story is just 'referred to' in the Epistle of St. Jude.  Moses died however - and St. Michael just hid his body.  But Elijah?  He got taken up somewhere.  It's in the Bible.  Never did a Pope define the assumption of Elijah, although the mystery may be said to foreshadow the assumption of the Virgin, as some of the Fathers speculated.  Interestingly, I found the following reflection upon what St. Gregory Palamas thought about the assumption of Elijah:
He writes: "But neither did he exceed the bounds of the earth's atmosphere; the ascension of each of them was a raising from the earth without being taken from the surroundings of the earth...". From this interpretation it appears that the taking up of Prophet Elijah was in some way a translocation, we could say that it was a kind of death, and that of course in being taken up he did not go beyond the limits of the earth's atmosphere. Therefore only the Panagia (Our Lady) was resurrected and taken up bodily into heaven, and is glorified with her Son, as His mother, in her human nature. - Monachos 

Did you know some of the old Spanish Carmelites believed St. Joseph was assumed into heaven as well?  At least that is what the Spanish fathers told me when I was a postulant in the Southwest province.  I think a few Alcantarine Franciscans believed as much too.  Others, such as the followers of Anna Katherine Emmerich's visions, seem to think that the original paradise of Adam and Eve exists someplace in the ethereal world contained in an immense crystal bubble - and that's where the undefined assumed reside until the end of the world.  Go to the light!  Go to the Light! 
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Thankfully, what we Catholics know for sure is that Our Lady was taken body and soul into heaven - and all heaven and earth rejoices.  Happy feast day to all.

One of those crystal bubbles perhaps?


Art:  Top:  Immaculate Conception, Middle: Hironymous Bosh, Bottom:  Hieronymous Bosch
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NB:  For Catholics in the United States today is a holy day, but not a holy day of obligation in most dioceses since it falls so close to the Sunday obligation. 

29 comments:

  1. Georgette11:34 AM

    Some believe that dear St Joseph was born without stain of Original Sin, as well; hence, the idea that he'd be assumed into heaven. I can believe it.

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  2. Gette - I actually do believe it.

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  3. roflmao- and envisioning Terry as Bubble-Boy!

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  4. Terry - very interesting post.

    I always thought part of St Joseph's sainthood was be because the poor guy had to live in a home where neither of the other two sinned - just imagine what that would be like! The humility of knowing that the other two are literally perfectly without sin.

    There's a lot of weird stuff in the visions of Bl. Anne Catherine Emmerich. I know that her visions are often used as "proof" by sedevacantists and super-duper trads, like that "tremble while you still can" anonymous guy.

    Didn't she also say something weird about the birth or conception of the Blessed Virgin? Either that she herself was a virginal birth, or that she was conceived without her parents experiencing passion or pleasure (since no one so pure could be born in such an "obviously" sinful way). Of course, one finds all kinds of crazy stuff in visions (Bridget of Sweden, anyone?).

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  5. When you give birth to God, and smash the head of Satan, you qualify for Assumption.

    They Holy Mother was to be taken to Heaven without dying; she asked to die as her Son did.

    Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich was a Roman Catholic Augustinian nun, stigmatic, mystic, visionary and ecstatic.

    Those are good credentials.

    The Blessed means one day there will be an St. before her name.

    How can anyone claim this woman with above and beyond mere mortals credentials says weird things?

    Having the standard of television, (Modern Family) cinema (Rocky Picture Horror Show), and the news media, Glenn Beck, Rush Limpburger, Hannity, et. al. as our hearts and souls, I guess the opinion of some would be to consider the Blesseds and Saints of Almighty God as weird.

    How sad.

    Roman Catholic question of the day:

    What is the Ethereal Presence, and how does it relate to the six days of creation?

    To the end of times?

    *

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  6. No, Pablo, but when saints and blessers say things that seem to conflict with what we know the Church teaches, then it is weird ad we should be suspect. In fact, everything in the Catechism of the Church or in papal encyclicals is higher than the writings of any saint, visionary or otherwise. In fact, it is VERY dangerous to base one's faith on the visions of saints, especially since those visions are filtered through te human person of the saint, an then usually filtered through the interpretation of someone else.

    St Bridget of Sweden said that people go to HELL for having sex during pregnancy. As in, eternal fire and punishment. St Berardine of Sienna also said similar things. Yet, the church teaches that this is not a sin AT ALL, a can in fact be full of grace.

    Yes, so sometimes they do say weird things that are not even worth devoting our attention to. In fact, there are sometimes things said in locutions that can be harmful to our faith I we do not know how to filter them properly.

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  7. And by the way, being a nun, visionary, ecstatic, stigmatic, etc. are in NO WAY good credentials in and of themselves. In fact, I'd say most visionaries and stigmatize throughout history should be disbelieved and treated very, very carefully ( this does not necessarily apply to the blessed in question, just pointing out that those things themselves mean nothing as to the veracity of a claim nor to the holiness of a person)

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  8. Anonymous1:51 PM

    Happy Feast Terry..

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  9. I went to Opus Dei today for Mass. Sheer heaven. Then adoration. I said several rosaries and begged Our Lady for help as I have been unemployed. I am not kidding. When I got home there was a message--I have a job and start at NIH on the 10/29!

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  10. Maria!!! That's wonderful!

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  11. Isn't it, Julie? The untier of know, Our Lady...

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  12. Isn't it, Julie? The untier of knots, Our Lady...

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  13. What is NIH, if you don't mind me asking?

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  14. Congratulations Maria! Wow - that took a long time. Best wishes.

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  15. Terry--
    Thanks so much. Oh, Terry, I know it took along time. Nine months. Sort of like giving birth, lol. The last time I got a job it was good Friday. Today, Feast of the Assumption. The Assumption is our symbol of hope. I take this as a very good sign. I am under enormous financial pressure so it came just in time. As my faithful father was always fond of saying: God is always right on time...

    Mercury--it is the National Institute of Health.

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  17. Congratulations, Maria; that's good news!

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  18. Anonymous4:09 PM

    "like that "tremble while you still can" anonymous guy."

    I am a woman, thank you.

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  19. Then we were all wrong anonymous. Now see how a name would help?

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  20. Melody--Thanks so much! I attribute my good forutune to the Blessed Mother.

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  21. Congratulations, Maria!

    Anonymous, since you're a saint and all that, you may want to check out what the saints have to say about acting all offended. Also about acting like a jerk and encouraging despair.

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  22. Mercury--Thanks so much!

    Mercy, what on earth is there to be offended about?

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  23. The Ethereal Presence is the presence of God when He said "Let there be light."

    This was on the first day of creation.

    On the fourth day He created the Sun, Moon, and stars that they might also give light to man; it is for this reason Holy Mother Church believes the Earth is stationary, it also does not spin.

    God gave us this light that we may not live in complete darkness, but labor during the day, and sleep at night.

    Satan helped man create artificial light to mock God's plan.

    At the end times, when the Angel says "Time is no more" there will be no Sun, Moon, or Stars; or satanic artificial light.

    There will only be the empyreal ethereal presence.

    We will stand in God's light.

    *

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  24. Pablo, so you do not use artificial light? I'm pretty sure I've seen you leave comments at night. What about the light from the computer screen? Did Satan help man make computers too? Cars? Does God frown upon those who labor at night and sleep during the day?

    And hate to break it to you, but the Church most definitely does not teach geocentrism as an article of faith, and only closet sedevacantists like Sungenis even try to pretend that She does.

    And please don't try to "prove" it to me because I've read all the "arguments" before, but as far as the Church is concerned, you are free to believe that the sun revolves around the Earth and that all the pictures from space, all the technology that has been created based on astronomy is all fake and created by Satan and his agents, and I am free to believe that God created a marvellous and fascinating universe and that science has shown God's creation to be even more perfect and beautiful and balanced than the ancients could even imagine. He didn't create just one sun, but billions upon billions of them.

    And I will continue to use artificial light, and by your logic, Satan helped create candles too, since a candle serves the same purpose that artificial lighting does.

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  25. Maria--congrats on your job!!

    St Joseph and all of the Carmelite saints..and other saints whom we implored--thank you for your intercessions for helping our dear Maria get a job.

    We also pray that her transition to her new job be easy and that it is a good work environment and that she has a good boss and good coworkers.
    Hail Mary, Our Father, Glory Be.

    Sara

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  26. Oh, Sara: Thank you so very much! Did you really pray for me? You are so sweet. I can't thank you enough. Truly.

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  27. Anonymous8:20 PM

    The message God kept giving me through the entire Mass this evening: Stop trying to direct. Over and over: Stop trying to direct! Sometimes gently and sometimes sternly.

    Clark

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  28. Direct what, Clark ... just anything?

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  29. I believe the St Joseph one(I hadn't heard the original sin addition). But I also heard John the Baptist was assumed, even though supposedly his head is in possession in a church(I don't remember where).

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