A Blueprint for Fullness
Julián Carrón - Today, we celebrate the fulfillment of the life of the Virgin Mary, who said “yes” to the Angel's announcement. Through the fulfillment of her life, we can see the Destiny that has been prepared for each of us.
What we celebrate today is unique. The resurrection of Christ could almost be taken for granted, since He is the Son of the Father, who, for our sake, did not spare Him from death. It was not a foregone conclusion, however, that this same victory over death would be achieved by a woman—by a human being as fragile as we are.
This is why it is a feast for all of us. Not only has the Son of the Father already participated in the victory over death, but in Mary, we too have been shown what awaits us, if we welcome Him as she did. This fulfillment began to take place little by little in Mary's life. Her “yes” immediately introduced into her the newness that Elizabeth recognized: “Blessed are you who believed (who trusted in the announcement that was made to you)” and who, as St. Augustine says, “welcomed (that Presence) into your heart before welcoming it into your body.” Mary thus shows us the way to follow if we want to participate in her victory, even before reaching the final goal of the Resurrection. We too can participate in what she is experiencing today—fulfillment—if we welcome, like her, that Presence that changes our lives.
The entire liturgy today is an exaltation of and a thanksgiving from that woman, prompted by Elizabeth's recognition of what the Mystery has done in her. This gratitude overflows when she realizes what the Mystery has done in her: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked upon the humility of his servant.” This is not simply humility as an attitude, but as “nothingness.” What would humility be if a powerful person did not look upon the humble one and exalt them to such dignity? It would be less than nothing.
Welcoming this Presence makes Mary rejoice—a joy that is also for us! All generations will rejoice at this event and call her “blessed.” We see this in Elizabeth, who felt her son leap in her womb as soon as she perceived the arrival of Our Lady. Today's liturgy tells us that as soon as we welcome Him, life itself rejoices within us. This is a gift given to all, so that whoever encounters us, seeing what the Mystery has done, may in turn leap for joy. Mary has shown us the way, and she did so by simply making room for that Presence, which fills life so much that we cannot help but rejoice, as we see happening in her.
Let us ask for the grace to open ourselves to this gift, so that we may begin to experience a foretaste of what awaits us, and our desire to participate fully in it may grow ever stronger. In fact, only by living this fullness in the present can we understand that what we believe is not a fairy tale, but something so real that we can already experience it here and now. This makes every moment of life a confirmation of the promise she was the first to see fulfilled: “You believed in the fulfillment of what the Lord promised you, and for this you are blessed.”
We will be truly happy, or “blessed,” if we make room for what the Lord has promised us as it is realized within us. Through the experience of this realization, our certainty of being able to achieve what she achieved increases. We believe this now, but only when we experience it in our lives does the certainty of this faith grow, because there is no other way to explain the most powerful gift of the Presence: victory over death.
How strange it would have been if a person like Mary, who lived so fully, had not immediately attained at the moment of death the fullness she had already experienced in advance, thanks to the gift of her Son!
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Notes from the homily of Fr. Julián Carrón August 15, 2025 (1st Reading: Rev 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab; Psalm: 44 (45); Second Reading: 1 Cor 15:20-27a; Gospel: Jn 20:1-2, 11-18)
