Dear Parents and Carers,

This week we celebrated The feast of The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary which was defined by Pope Pius XII in 1950. He declared that after her death, Mary was assumed into heaven, body and soul.

It was a response to the horrible human carnage of two world wars and the horrors of concentration camps. The church wanted to reaffirm the dignity of the human body and rekindle faith in the resurrection of the body. This feast, affirms that our human bodies are not mere shells but created in God’s image and likeness.

The Church wanted to say something not only about the body of Mary, but about the body of each of us. The feast of The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary shows God’s love for all of us and of God’s reverence for the body of those created in the divine image.  In Mary, human nature is glorified and God desires it to be glorified in every person.  It is for this reason that Jesus became human flesh and dwelt among us in our world.

The celebration of Mary's Assumption celebrates the bodily presence and dignity of every person in our school community. Even in our differences, our challenge is to be aware that every one of us is made in the image and likeness of God. Our care and respect for the bodily presence of each other in turn glorifies God.

This is why, as a school community, we place a great emphasis on the respectful relationships that the students have with each other and the adults who work with them. The Love of Learning value of empathy helps the children, and adults, understand how we can interact with one another. This is reinforced by the social norms of the playground and classrooms. 

The Assumption of Mary helps us to remember the importance of recognising the dignity of each individual and perhaps Pope Pius XII knew that society would need this reminder each year. 

The feast of Mary’s Assumption is a preview of what our lives will be. At the end of her earthly life, Mary was assumed, or taken up, into heaven body and soul. She did not have to wait for the end of the world, as we do. God granted her this special privilege because of her sinlessness and her fullness of grace.

The Church has always believed in Mary’s assumption into heaven. But on November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII focused the attention of the whole world on the Assumption of Mary as a mystery of our faith.

Let us continue to celebrate this important feast and recognise that by thinking about Mary’s Assumption, people all over the world would develop a deeper respect for their own lives and their own bodies. He also hoped that people would grow in respect for the lives of others. As Mary was assumed into heaven, a place in heaven awaits us. Her openness to God allowed God to work through her so that salvation might come to all. Mary is a model and symbol of the Church. May we be like Mary, open and cooperative in God's plan of salvation.

Let us continue to Seek Wisdom and Love God, just as Mary did.

CAMP AUSTRALIA

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