Munificentissimus Deus
Munificentissimus Deus Latin for 'The most bountiful God'Ex cathedra definition of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a dogma | |
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Munificentissimus Deus (
Dogma of the Assumption
On 1 November 1950, invoking his dogmatic authority, Pope Pius XII defined the dogma:
By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.[2]
Historical background
Pope Pius XII's previous encyclical Deiparae Virginis Mariae (1 May 1946) to all Catholic bishops stated that for a long time past, numerous petitions had been received from cardinals, patriarchs, archbishops, bishops, priests, religious of both sexes, associations, universities and innumerable private persons, all begging that the bodily Assumption into heaven of the Blessed Virgin should be defined and proclaimed as a dogma of faith.[3] This was also fervently requested by almost two hundred fathers in the Vatican Council (1869–1870).[3]
Following the example of Pope Pius IX, who canvassed Catholic bishops before proclaiming the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, Pius XII asked all bishops for their opinion.
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Actually God, who from all eternity regards Mary with a most favorable and unique affection, has "when the fullness of time came" put the plan of his providence into effect in such a way that all the privileges and prerogatives he had granted to her in his sovereign generosity were to shine forth in her in a kind of perfect harmony. And, although the Church has always recognized this supreme generosity and the perfect harmony of graces and has daily studied them more and more throughout the course of the centuries, still it is in our own age that the privilege of the bodily Assumption into heaven of Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, has certainly shone forth more clearly.[4]
At issue was not the belief in the Assumption, but its dogmatisation. By August 1950, 1191 bishops had responded.[5] Munificentissimus Deus reports popular acclaim and "nearly unanimous" approval of the contemporary bishops. The names of the bishops attending the dogma celebration in 1950 are listed at the entrance of St. Peter's Basilica.
Review of Catholic beliefs
Reflecting on the history of this belief in
Relevance to the faithful
Written not long after the devastation of World War II, the encyclical conveys the hope that meditation on Mary’s assumption will lead the faithful to a greater awareness of our common dignity as the human family.[9] In the dogmatic statement, the phrase "having completed the course of her earthly life" was carefully written to leave open the question of whether or not Mary died before her Assumption, or whether, like the Assumption of the Prophet
The entire decree (and the title itself) is also worded to suggest that Mary's Assumption was not in any sense a logical necessity, but rather a divine gift to Mary as
Thus, while the illusory teachings of materialism and the corruption of morals that follows from these teachings threaten to extinguish the light of virtue and to ruin the lives of men by exciting discord among them, in this magnificent way all may see clearly to what a lofty goal our bodies and souls are destined. Finally it is our hope that belief in Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven will make our belief in our own resurrection stronger and render it more effective.
Marian seers and the dogma of Assumption
On 1 May 1950
Non-Catholic opinion
Among the
Carl Jung, in the final chapters of his 1952 book Answer to Job, called the dogma "the most important religious event since the Reformation".[13] He chastized its Protestant critics for overlooking its real psychological significance. Namely, Jung saw it as the manifestation of a culminating desire for completion in the Christian psyche; recognizing the feminine side of the divine would ease the inevitable incarnation of the Holy Ghost in humanity.[13]
See also
- Assumption of Mary
- Dormition of the Theotokos
- Papal infallibility
- Marian papal encyclicals and Apostolic Letters
References
- ISBN 0-8160-5455-Xpage 267
- ^ Munificentissimus Deus, 44
- ^ a b "Deiparae Virginis Mariae (May 1, 1946) | PIUS XII". w2.vatican.va. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
- ^ Munificentissimus Deus, §3
- ^ Pius, XII, "068 - Munificentissimus Deus" (1959). Marian Reprints. Paper 48
- ^ Munificentissimus Deus, 14
- ^ Munificentissimus Deus, 15
- ^ Tavard, George H., The Thousand Faces of the Virgin Mary, Collegeille, Minnesota: Michael Glazier Books, 1996, p.198
- ^ Howell, Dr Kenneth (2011-09-01). "Why Did Pius XII Proclaim the Dogma of Mary's Assumption?". The Coming Home Network. Retrieved 2020-07-02.
- ^ "Gilles Bouhours". Santiebeati.it. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
- ^ Ferreira, Postado por Állyssen. "Guilles Bouhours, O menino que revelou ao Papa o Dogma da Assunção" (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2023-08-15.
- ISBN 0-671-21426-8. p. 224.
- ^ a b C. G. Jung. "Answer to Job" (PDF). politiko.al. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 November 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
Further reading
Literature before the definition
- Pope Pius XII, Apostolic Constitution, Munificentissimus Deus Defining the Dogma of the Assumption, Acta Apostolicae Sedis, vol. XXXXII (1950), n. 15, pp. 753–773
- C. Balic, Bibliotheca de Assumptione BVM ex Omnibus Saeculis, Rome, 1948, 2 Volumes
- Otto Faller, De Priorum Saeculorum Silentio circa Assumptionem BMV, Rome, 1946
- G. Hentrich et R.G.de Moos, Petitiones de Assumptione Corpora BVM in Caelum Definiendae ad S.Sedem Delatae, Vatican City, 1944; 2 Volumes
- G. Hentrich, Assomption de la Sainte Vierge, in Manoir, I, pp 621–658
- J.M. Bover, La Asuncion de Maria, Estudio teologico historico, Madrid, 1947
- J. Ernst, Die leibliche Himmelfahrt Mariens, Paris 1925
External links
- Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus (Complete text on the Vatican website)