Feast of the Assumption

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not sure where to post this but here goes:

Tomorrow is the Feast of the Assumption and I got to to thinking about
about our Blessed Mother.

Now I have had 3 mothers. The first did not want me, the second died when
I was very young. I don’t even remember her. The third did not like me at all.
This made praying the Rosary difficult for me for a long time, so I recently have
adopted our Blessed Mother as my mom. Still is hard but gives me a new
focus.

Regarding the Assumption I have a couple questions. Mary, the Mother of
God, was born without original sin. Did she know this? I’m a great sinner
and wonder how it is possible (yes, with God’s special graces) for a person
to go an entire lifetime with no sin…EVER. Does the stain of original sin
(even though it’s erased at Baptism) cause us to give in easily to temptation?
Because our Blessed Mother was born without original sin was she not tempted
like we are? (we = the typical human) I can’t help but think what a lucky person
she is to have been selected by God for this awesome blessing.

I suppose these questions would fall under “mysterious things” only God can explain,
but maybe someone here has a few thoughts about this.
 
Temptation and sin are two different things. Even Jesus was tempted in the desert by Satan. So it seems reasonable to me that Mary would have also experienced temptations.

As to her understanding, I think that’s an interesting question to ponder. Before Christ, there wasn’t really the developed concept of “Original Sin” that we have today. Before the cure came along (i.e. Jesus’ Paschal Mystery), people didn’t have a sense of exactly what the disease was (i.e. Original Sin).

Part of the consequences of Original Sin is that tendency toward sin (the fancy theological term for that is “concupiscence”). When we are baptized, Original Sin is wiped away, but that tendency to sin remains. Mary wouldn’t have had that.

Of course, it was all a grace a gift from God that preserved her from Original Sin. But I don’t think that necessarily made it easy for Mary. As Simeon foretold, a sword would pierce her heart, too, which certainly took place as she watched Jesus die on Calvary. The grace of God made it possible for her to endure and to remain free from sin. But it still took effort and a whole lot of love on her part.
 
Joe_5859 said:
Temptation and sin are two different things. Even Jesus was tempted in the desert by Satan. So it seems reasonable to me that Mary would have also experienced temptations.

As to her understanding, I think that’s an interesting question to ponder. Before Christ, there wasn’t really the developed concept of “Original Sin” that we have today. Before the cure came along (i.e. Jesus’ Paschal Mystery), people didn’t have a sense of exactly what the disease was (i.e. Original Sin).

Part of the consequences of Original Sin is that tendency toward sin (the fancy theological term for that is “concupiscence”). When we are baptized, Original Sin is wiped away, but that tendency to sin remains. Mary wouldn’t have had that.

Of course, it was all a grace a gift from God that preserved her from Original Sin. But I don’t think that necessarily made it easy for Mary. As Simeon foretold, a sword would pierce her heart, too, which certainly took place as she watched Jesus die on Calvary. The grace of God made it possible for her to endure and to remain free from sin. But it still took effort and a whole lot of love on her part.
Click to expand...
She probably would have had it harder not easier.
 
StrikingEagle said:
not sure where to post this but here goes:

Tomorrow is the Feast of the Assumption and I got to to thinking about
about our Blessed Mother.

Now I have had 3 mothers. The first did not want me, the second died when
I was very young. I don’t even remember her. The third did not like me at all.
This made praying the Rosary difficult for me for a long time, so I recently have
adopted our Blessed Mother as my mom. Still is hard but gives me a new
focus.

Regarding the Assumption I have a couple questions. Mary, the Mother of
God, was born without original sin. Did she know this? I’m a great sinner
and wonder how it is possible (yes, with God’s special graces) for a person
to go an entire lifetime with no sin…EVER. Does the stain of original sin
(even though it’s erased at Baptism) cause us to give in easily to temptation?
Because our Blessed Mother was born without original sin was she not tempted
like we are? (we = the typical human) I can’t help but think what a lucky person
she is to have been selected by God for this awesome blessing.

I suppose these questions would fall under “mysterious things” only God can explain,
but maybe someone here has a few thoughts about this.
Click to expand...
Do you mind if I post a question of my own on the Feast of the Assumption?

Years ago, when I was a newbie in the Catholic Church, I heard that bodies of water, such lakes, streams, rivers, oceans, ponds, become blessed, or holy during this day.

Has anyone heard this too?
 
to Joe,

your reply was an eye opener. To think our Blessed Mother was
tempted and yet did not sin, even though she could have, leaves
me feeling wretched about my failings…specifically: avoiding sin
in order to remain close to God and get even closer.

No wonder the Rosary is so special.

By the way, I bookmarked your blog.
 
As a result of Adam’s sin, we have a darkened intellect and a weakened will, and our passions tend to dominate. We tend to prefer ourselves to God, and to desire created things in his place or outside the order he set up. In other words, we are inclined to sin. This means we can be tempted both from without (“the world” and the devil) and from within (“the flesh”).

Our Lady never labored under concupiscence and thus was never tempted from within, just as our Lord never was, but only from without. She was also confirmed in grace, making it impossible for her to consent to temptations, not by a limitation on her freedom but by making her utterly free always to choose the good.

For the rest of us, baptism remits original sin and infuses us with grace, but it doesn’t take away the disordered desires inside, which theologians call “concupiscence.” The normal remedies for concupiscence are prayer, the sacraments, the exercise of virtue, and following the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience according to one’s state in life.

Most people do not entirely erase concupiscence their whole lives, but only lessen it to a lesser or greater degree. Monks, nuns, and religious brothers and sisters have an advantage in this regard, because they are free to live a more intense prayer and sacramental life and to follow the evangelical counsels to a more radical degree.
 
**
Sarcelle said:
Years ago, when I was a newbie in the Catholic Church, I heard that bodies of water, such lakes, streams, rivers, oceans, ponds, become blessed, or holy during this day.

Has anyone heard this too?
Click to expand...
**

I haven’t heard this before but it’s a beautiful thought and not beyond the realms of possibility:) Nice!
 
Sarcelle said:
Do you mind if I post a question of my own on the Feast of the Assumption?

Years ago, when I was a newbie in the Catholic Church, I heard that bodies of water, such lakes, streams, rivers, oceans, ponds, become blessed, or holy during this day.

Has anyone heard this too?
Click to expand...
I have now…a beautiful tradition! 🙂

Wedding and Blessing of the Sea / It is a custom in many coastal regions…

wf-f.org/Assumption.html
 
StrikingEagle said:
to Joe,

your reply was an eye opener. To think our Blessed Mother was
tempted and yet did not sin, even though she could have, leaves
me feeling wretched about my failings…specifically: avoiding sin
in order to remain close to God and get even closer.

No wonder the Rosary is so special.

By the way, I bookmarked your blog.
Click to expand...
Thanks. Although, the question of whether or not she could have given into temptation is a separate question. I like the way that Ad Orientem explains it.

You remind me that I need to be better about updating my blog. :o I spend so much time here that I don’t often go over there. 😛
 
I like Ad Orientem’s explanation too - the ‘from without’ and ‘from within’ aspect that helps clearly define the rest.
 
This has been very good. Thanks! The concept of temptation from within and from without was like seeing trees in the forest to me. I never thought about it before but it seems an obvious point today. Tomorrow at Mass I’ll focus on my “within” and say a prayer for everyone for helping me grow! Peace and Blessings, Joe
 
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