Vigil of the Assumption 2026
Our first reading for the Vigil Mass begins: “David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring the ark of the Lord to the place which he had prepared for it.”
The Ark of the Covenant and the Assumption of the Queen into Heaven are two invocations from the Litany of Our Lady. They are appropriate for this feast, since Mary conceived the Son of God in her womb and gave birth to Jesus.
The Assumption of Mary is the dogma that Mary, at the end of her earthly life, was taken body and soul into Heaven. This was defined by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950.
The dogma leaves open the question of whether Mary died or was raised to eternal life without bodily death.
It has been said that Pius XII chose this time to proclaim the dogma in order to restore dignity to women who had been abused, especially those in all the war-torn countries of the world.
The Dormition and Assumption can be traced in Church history to the apocryphal books as early as the second or third century.
The most ancient and common tradition holds that Mary died on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. The Abbey of the Dormition marks the site where she fell asleep. Her body was then laid to rest in a tomb at the foot of the Mount of Olives in the Kedron Valley.
In a related apocryphal account, Thomas was late in returning to Jerusalem and wished to go to Mary’s tomb. The apostles who were present in Jerusalem for the burial accompanied Thomas to the tomb. They discovered burial cloths but no body, and knew Mary had been taken to Heaven.
Based on the biblical account in John’s Gospel, Chapter 19, verses 21 and 22, Jesus entrusted the care of his mother to John. It is believed the Apostle John took Mary with him to Asia Minor to escape persecution.
This gave rise to another ancient tradition of the Assumption. It took place in Ephesus in a stone dwelling called the House of the Virgin Mary.
Based on the visions of the mystic Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, the stone dwelling was discovered in the 19th century.
Several popes, including Paul VI and John Paul II, have visited and recognized this site as a holy place of pilgrimage.
Mary’s Assumption testifies that the future is in God’s hands, that God has prepared a place for each of us, and that God is able to bring us there.
While on earth, the Virgin Mary’s ministry was completely dedicated to reflecting the love, joy, and peace that come from following her Son. That ministry did not end when Mary was assumed into Heaven. Many saints have spoken about our Blessed Mother’s ability to guide her children to her Son, Jesus, Our Lord.
Marian apparitions are one of the most intimate ways Mary helps us to find the Lord. Throughout the centuries, the Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven, has chosen to appear to the poor, the lowly, the sickly, the young, the oppressed, and those striving to be holy. A number of these visionaries were shepherds. Were shepherds chosen because they were the first to visit the newborn Jesus?
Apparitions have occurred and still occur all over the world. Mary uses different titles and frequently appears as a woman resembling the ethnic group of those to whom she is visiting.
Our Lady pleads with those present to pray, often asking them to recite the rosary for the conversion of sinners and that her Son be revered. There were times Mary cried, as she did at La Salette in 1846, because her children were drifting away from her Son. Often Our Lady asked visionaries to do penance as well as pray.
When Mary requests that a chapel be erected at the place where she is appearing and when places of worship are built, great numbers of pilgrims come and draw close to Our Lord, as well as honor Mary, the Mother of God. These shrines are sites of physical and spiritual healing.
In 1917 at Fatima, Mary warned of impending wars and disasters if hearts were not turned to the Lord.
Now, in 2026, we have so many peoples, dire situations, and even the protection of God’s creation to raise in prayer, offer our sufferings, and do penance.
We are people of hope who believe hearts can change and minds can open to God’s inspiration.
Today, we who are present in this chapel or attending Mass via television ask Mary, the Ark of the Covenant, our Queen, and our Mother, to pray for us, that we may always remain faithful to her Son, listen to the Word of God, observe it, and be women making a difference.
May Mary be with us as we receive the Eucharist and welcome the Lord into our bodies. Amen.
– Sister Margaret Carey, OP
Sister Margaret resides in Dominican Convent where she is engaged in prayer ministry and community service.