"For even though her God-bearing body tasted death, it did not undergo corruption"

The Dormition of Mary, 13th century mosaic from Santa Maria
in Trastevere, Rome. Click here to share on Facebook.

August 15 is the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, into Heaven, body and soul. Though the Assumption was dogmatically defined in 1950 by Venerable Pope Pius XII in his apostolic constitution, Munificentissimus Deus, the traditional belief in the Assumption of Mary goes back to the earliest days of the Church. Originally, the feast was called the "Dormition" or falling asleep of Mary, and is still referred to as such by our Eastern Orthodox brethren.

Here are some passages from ancient sources that indicate that this belief existed from antiquity and was widespread. The first is taken from a homily preached by Theoteknos, Bishop of Livias in Palestine in the late 6th century AD:

"For Christ took His immaculate flesh from the immaculate flesh of Mary, and if He had prepared a place in heaven for the Apostles, how much more for His mother; if Enoch had been translated and Elijah had gone to heaven, how much more Mary, who like the moon in the midst of the stars shines forth and excels among the prophets and Apostles? For even though her God-bearing body tasted death, it did not undergo corruption, but was preserved incorrupt and undefiled and taken up into heaven with its pure and spotless soul."

Second, is a brief account in the Book of Miracles Book 1, Chapter 4, by Saint Gregory of Tours:

"The Lord took Mary's holy body and conveyed it on a cloud to Paradise; there it was united with her soul, and glorified with the elect, it enjoys the eternal blessings that shall have no end."

Third is a passage from Saint John Damascene, written in the 8th century AD, describing the history of the belief:

"St. Juvenal, Bishop of Jerusalem, at the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451), made known to the Emperor Marcian and Pulcheria, who wished to possess the body of the Mother of God, that Mary died in the presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened, upon the request of St. Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to heaven."

This passage is especially interesting because Saint John seems to be quoting from a much earlier source: the late 5th century Euthymaic History, otherwise known as the Life of Saint Euthymius the Great. This story is the only known surviving fragment of this work. See Wortley, The Marian Relics at Constantinople for more information. (Note, this link downloads a PDF of this article.) 

Fourth, is a passage from Saint Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople, written in the late 7th century AD:

"You are she who, as it is written, appears in beauty, and your virginal body is all holy, all chaste, entirely the dwelling place of God, so that it is henceforth completely exempt from dissolution into dust. Though still human, it is changed into the heavenly life of incorruptibility, truly living and glorious, undamaged and sharing in perfect life."

There is a wealth of additional literature on this topic for those who wish to dig deeper. Check out the following for further reading:

• Entry on the Assumption from the Catholic Encyclopedia (1911)
• Article on the Assumption of Mary on EWTN's website
• De Maria Nunquam Satis: The Significance of the Catholic Doctrines on the Blessed Virgin Mary for All People by Gentle and Fastiggi
• Ancient Traditions of the Virgin Mary's Dormition and Assumption, by Shoemaker