Dear brothers and sisters,
This evening’s vigil has led us through the entire life of the Virgin Mary: from the Annunciation to her blessed passing and her glorious Assumption into heaven.
There is one phrase that runs through her whole life and sheds light on our own vocation as well. It is the angel’s greeting: ”The Lord is with you” (Lk 1:28).
In Sacred Scripture, this is not simply a greeting or a wish. It is the formula God uses when He calls someone to a mission. It is spoken to Moses, to Joshua, to Gideon, to Jeremiah. Whenever God says, ”The Lord is with you,” He is saying: ”I have chosen you, I am sending you, and I will remain with you to accomplish through you what I desire to do.”
So it was with Mary. Her vocation did not rest on her own abilities, but on the presence of the Lord. It is He who brought about the mystery of the Incarnation in her; He who sustained her at the foot of the Cross; He who remained with her in the Upper Room together with the Apostles. And it is He who accompanied her to the completion of her earthly pilgrimage, in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, leading her into the glory of heaven.
The Assumption is the seal of the promise first spoken at Nazareth. The words ”The Lord is with you” did not fail her, not even at the hour of her death. The One who had called her remained faithful until the end, bringing her vocation to its perfect fulfillment.
This is our hope as well. Every authentic vocation begins with that same promise. The Lord never calls us only to leave us on our own. The One who sends us walks beside us, sustains us in every trial, and brings to completion the work He has begun.
As we contemplate Mary assumed into heaven, let us ask for the grace to believe, every day of our lives, in the words that transformed her life and continue to sustain ours:
“The Lord is with you.”
