Holy Days and Seasonal Info

Friday, August 15, 2025

Holy Day of Obligation

Mass at 9:00 a.m. & 12:00 p.m. in English; Mass at 6:00 p.m. in Spanish

This significant feast day recalls the spiritual and physical departure of the mother of Jesus Christ from the earth, when both her soul and her body were taken into the presence of God.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a Catholic doctrine and a dogma of faith that Mary, the Mother of God, was taken body and soul into Heaven at the end of her earthly life. This belief is a major part of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of Anglicanism. 

The feast day of this holy and momentous event stems from the middle of the 5th Century when the Commemoration of the Mother of God was celebrated each year on 15 August in a shrine located near Jerusalem. The Assumption was officially declared a dogma of faith by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950. It is now celebrated as a solemnity on August 15 and is a Holy Day of Obligation. This year, it is celebrated on Friday, August 15, 2025.

The belief in Mary's Assumption is rooted in the Church's oral and written traditions, passed down through generations. Mary's role as the mother of God and her immaculate conception (being free from original sin) make her a unique figure in salvation history. Mary's Immaculate Conception, being conceived without sin, is seen as a prerequisite for her Assumption. If she was conceived without sin, it would follow that her body would not be subject to the corruption of death. 

Mary's Assumption is seen as a reflection of Christ's own Ascension and a sign of God's ultimate victory over death. The Assumption is understood as a foreshadowing of the resurrection of all believers, who will also be raised to glory, body and soul, at the end of time.