In Honor of the Assumption
O Immaculate Virgin,
Mother of God and Mother of men.
We believe with all the fervor of our faith in your triumphal Assumption,
both in body and soul, into heaven,
where you are acclaimed as Queen by all the choirs of angels
and all the legions of saints;
and we unite with them to praise and bless the Lord
who has exalted you above all other pure creatures,
and to offer you the tribute of our devotion and our love.
We know that your gaze,
which on earth watched over the humble and suffering humanity of Jesus,
is filled in heaven with the vision of that Humanity glorified,
and with the vision of Uncreated Wisdom;
and that the joy of your soul in the direct contemplation of the adorable Trinity
causes your heart to throb with overwhelming tenderness.
And we, poor sinners,
whose body weighs down the flight of the soul,
beg you to purify our hearts, so that,
while we remain here below,
we may learn to see God,
and God alone,
in the beauties of His creatures.
We trust that your merciful eyes
may deign to glance down upon our miseries and our sorrows,
upon our struggles and our weaknesses;
that your countenance may smile upon our joys and our victories;
that you may hear the voice of Jesus saying to you of each one of us,
as He once said to you of His beloved disciple:
behold thy son.
And we who call upon you as our Mother,
like John, take you as the guide, strength,
and consolation of our mortal life.
We are inspired by the certainty that your eyes which wept over the earth,
watered by the Blood of Jesus,
are yet turned toward this world,
held in the clutch of wars, persecutions,
and oppression of the just and the weak.
And from the shadows of this vale of tears,
we seek in your heavenly assistance and tender mercy comfort
for our aching hearts and help in the trials of the Church and of our fatherland.
We believe, finally,
that in the glory where you reign,
clothed with the sun and crowned with the stars,
you are, after Jesus,
the joy and gladness of all the angels and of all the saints.
And from this earth,
over which we tread as pilgrims,
comforted by our faith in the future resurrection,
we look to you, our life, our sweetness, and our hope;
draw us onward with the sweetness of your voice,
that one day, after our exile,
you may show us Jesus,
the blessed Fruit of your womb,
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Pope Pius XII
