
The mystery of the Assumption reveals that everything God promised to Mary was fulfilled. Fr. Mark-Mary emphasizes that we can place our hope in this: if God’s faithfulness was true for Mary, God’s faithfulness will be true for us. We, like Mary, are invited to share in the blessedness of salvation as heirs of the works of God. Today’s focus is the mystery of the Assumption and we will be praying one decade of the Rosary. For the complete prayer plan, visit https://ascensionpress.com/riy.
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Foreign Father Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the Renewal and this is the Rosary in Year podcast. We're through prayer and meditation. The Rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is day 87. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a year, visit ascensionpress.com forward/rosary in a year or text RIY to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast is in the Ascension app. There are special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full Rosary. I encourage you to pick up a copy of the Rosary in your Prayer Guide, a book published by Ascension that was designed to complement this podcast. You'll find all the daily readings from Scripture, Saint reflections and beautiful full page images of the sacred art we'll be reflecting on. For today's Lectio Divina, we'll be praying with the fourth glorious mystery, the Assumption of Mary. Luke chapter one, verses 46 through 56. And our point of emphasis is going to be it's all true. It's all true. And for our Alexio and Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed, for he who is mighty has done great things for me and holy is his name and his mercy is on those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of low degree. He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity forever. And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home. So now let's go ahead and engage our Gospel passage here for our meditatsu. So we're going to connect a couple of themes or a couple of threads. We're coming to the Magnificat right in the context of meditating on Mary and Mary's Assumption. A reminder of Mary's Assumption. It's Mary being assumed body and soul into heaven. She goes to heaven. She's united with her Son in a beautiful way, as well as the Father and the Holy Spirit. It's the fulfillment, right, of the promises made to Mary and God's goodness and love and care for her. And so what we have here the church gives us, or what we often go to as the gospel passage to reflect on the assumption of Mary is Mary's magnificat. The time of the magnificat. It happens right as she is still pregnant with Jesus. So it's early on in her life. Here it's really broken up into the two parts. It's Mary rejoicing about what God has done and will do in her life. And it's a movement to what God has done and will do for all of the people of Israel and for all of us. Right. And so Mary says, like my soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior. And this is really important for us. We come to this remembering that as we come to Mary and engage her and allow her to be a mother to us, like the Lord is not minimized, but magnified. And Mary has this disposition of rejoicing why God has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. Is that true? Yes, that's true. Behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. Is it true that all generations call her blessed? Yes, that is true. Right. And in a particular way, we. We celebrate her blessedness and her assumption at this moment. For he who is mighty has done great things for me. Is that true? Yes. Holy Name, true? Yes. He has mercy on those who fear him. True. Yes. He has shown strength of his arm. True? Yes. He scattered the proud. True. Yes. Put down mighty from their thrones. True. Yes. Exalted those of low degree. Yes. Filled the hungry. Yes. The rich, he sent empty away. Yes. Remembered his promise of mercy. Yes. So the point of meditation, one of the gifts of Mary's assumption is that is this. I think we go back to the words of Elizabeth just a little bit before this. Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord. And so blessed are we who believe that was true for Mary will be true for us. If, like Mary, we are faithful, if, like Mary, we say yes to the Lord, we offer our ongoing fiat. Let it be done unto me according to your word. Last little point of meditation. Right. Like, there's a lot of commotion and discussion of, like, some of the relics of St. Paul, of St. Peter, some of these early apostles, but there's none of this right for Mary. Right. There's no one claiming to have Mary's body, like Mary is truly body and soul assumed into heaven. And so the assumption is this reminder of how God keeps his promises, how he does it, firstly in Mary, in a most beautiful and privileged way, but that it is going to be true for us as well. So we're going to come with, yes, it's all true. It's all true. The Father is faithful. So let us, like Mary, trust. Let us, like Mary, offer our fiat. And so we'll go to Alexia one more time. Behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed, for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. We here participate and give witness to that this is real, that this is true as we come, you know, thousands of years after the life of Our lady, still calling her blessed, the Blessed Mother. He who is mighty has done great things for me and holy is his name. And we too are invited, we like Mary, to share in the blessedness of those who share in Jesus's resurrection in heaven for all eternity. We too are heirs of the mighty works of God. So we're gonna, we're gonna really ask for this to increase our hope, our confidence in the Lord and His faithfulness, and increase our capacity again for this total, yes, this imitation of Mary's fiat. One more time for Alexio. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed, for he who is mighty has done great things for me and holy is his name. Okay, we're going to transition now to our oratu, our prayer falling, our template. Receive, respond, request, rejoice, receive. What is the good news being offered? What is God revealing about Himself? Like his fidelity, his faithfulness? God has kept his promises. We've seen it again and again in salvation history. We celebrate it in a particular here in the Assumption of Mary. And so we have confidence that he will continue to keep his promises. What's the invitation? What's the response? Let's begin with adoration and praise and our own magnifying of the Lord. Lord, we just love you. We bless you, we trust you. We thank you for your goodness. We thank you for your particular care and love for the Blessed Mother. We thank you, Lord, for fulfilling your promises made to her. And we rejoice in her assumption, Lord, her share in your resurrection. And Lord, we just praise you for your fidelity. We praise you for your faithfulness. We praise you, Lord, for being a father who always keeps his promises. And so then, what's the next level of response? How about imitation? Right, so it's as we celebrate here What Mary has experienced, as we celebrate here the Lord's fidelity in her life, let us also experience the invitation to imitate her. Yes, to imitate her fiat. And now we're going to ask for this grace, Lord. We're just going to ask for the continued grace of the Holy Spirit to be poured into our hearts through the prayers and the intercession of the Blessed Mother, that like Mary, we may have total trust in you and your fidelity, Father, that like Mary, we may share in the riches of the beatific vision, the riches of being with you in eternity, for all the great wealth of. Of being with you, of praising you, of adoring you, of magnifying you for all eternity in heaven with all the angels and the saints. May this be the source of the good news. Maybe this be the source of our trust and our confidence and bear fruit in a deeper surrender and a deeper. Yes, a deeper imitation of Mary's fiat. Now we rejoice. Thank you, Jesus, for this time of prayer. Thank you for the gift of the most Holy Gospel. Thank you for Mary's magnificat. Thank you for this time of prayer, of encouragement, an opportunity to rejoice in the good things you've done in the life of Mary. May this give us hope, authentic theological sure hope in the good things and the mighty works you desire to do in our lives as well. Now we'll conclude our time of lectio by our contemplatu praying the one decade of the most holy rosary, really asking to receive just this grace of rejoicing, of confidence that it's all true. It's all true in a particular way. We see it true in Mary's life. It was true for Mary, it will be true for us as well. So we're gonna ask to receive that grace as we pray with the Blessed Mother. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but. But deliver us from evil. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. All right, that's going to conclude our time of praying. Lectio divina together. Certainly. If you've been able to get to a place of prayer and conversation, rejoicing in the Lord, and if you're able to continue that, very much encourage you to do so. But that's going to end our time together. So thank you so much for joining me and praying with me today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow. All right? Poco. Poco. Friends, God bless you all.
Date: March 28, 2026
Host: Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR | Podcast by: Ascension
In this episode, Fr. Mark-Mary Ames guides listeners through Day 87 of "The Rosary in a Year," focusing on the fourth Glorious Mystery: the Assumption of Mary. The central theme is the reliability and truth of God’s promises, especially as manifested in the life of Mary, and how believers are called to trust, hope, and imitate her faithfulness. Through scripture (Mary’s Magnificat), reflection, and prayer, Fr. Mark-Mary emphasizes: “It’s all true”—God’s fidelity, Mary’s blessedness, and the invitation for all to share in this reality.
[01:13 – 02:32]
[02:40 – 04:02]
The Assumption is explained as Mary being taken body and soul into heaven—a culmination of God’s promises.
This event is the Church’s witness to God’s faithfulness and Mary’s unique participation in salvation history.
“It’s the fulfillment...of the promises made to Mary and God’s goodness and love and care for her.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [03:06]
[04:07 – 06:20]
Fr. Mark-Mary methodically affirms the statements of the Magnificat as true, making it a prayer of personal affirmation for listeners.
Each line (“He who is mighty has done great things for me”, “He has filled the hungry...”) is reflected upon, with the refrain:
Listeners are encouraged to embrace Mary’s example and echo her fiat (“yes”) to God.
“Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord. And so blessed are we who believe what was true for Mary will be true for us.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [06:29]
[07:00 – 07:49]
Unlike other saints and apostles, no one claims relics of Mary. This absence is a testament to the belief in her Assumption.
“There’s no one claiming to have Mary’s body—like, Mary is truly body and soul assumed into heaven.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [07:12]
[08:00 – 09:30]
The Assumption highlights God’s fidelity first in Mary, but also encourages hope for all who are faithful.
We, too, are invited to “share in the blessedness” and trust in the mighty works of God:
“It was true for Mary, it will be true for us as well.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [09:13]
[09:40 – 12:30]
Receive: Recognize God's faithfulness demonstrated in the Assumption.
Respond: Begin with adoration and magnifying the Lord, as Mary did.
“Lord, we just love you. We bless you, we trust you. We thank you for your goodness.” [10:18]
Request: Pray for grace to imitate Mary’s trust and total “yes” to God.
Rejoice: Rejoice in Mary’s Assumption and the hope it gives for our future sharing in Christ’s Resurrection.
“May this be the source of our trust and confidence and bear fruit in a deeper surrender and a deeper…yes.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [12:26]
[12:35 – 16:48]
The episode wraps with a decade of the Rosary, specifically asking for the grace of rejoicing and confidence in God’s promises, united with Mary’s intercession.
“We’re going to really ask for this: to increase our hope, our confidence in the Lord and His faithfulness, and increase our capacity again for this total yes—this imitation of Mary’s fiat.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [09:47]
“We come to this remembering that as we come to Mary…like, the Lord is not minimized, but magnified.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [03:39]
“So, the point of meditation: one of the gifts of Mary’s Assumption is that…Blessed are we who believe what was true for Mary will be true for us.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [06:16]
“The Assumption is this reminder of how God keeps his promises…firstly in Mary, in a most beautiful and privileged way, but that it is going to be true for us as well.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [07:32]
“We too are invited, like Mary, to share in the blessedness of those who share in Jesus’s resurrection in heaven for all eternity.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [09:13]
“May this give us hope—authentic theological, sure hope—in the good things and the mighty works you desire to do in our lives as well.”
— Fr. Mark-Mary [12:05]
Listen to the full episode for a meditative and uplifting prayer experience led by Fr. Mark-Mary, strengthening your trust in God’s faithfulness through the example of Mary’s Assumption.