Victory on earth as in heaven

Christelle Javary

So many battles on this earth… Is heaven, at least, peaceful and harmonious? No, according to the Book of Revelation, which unveils a striking vision: a mysterious Woman, clothed in splendor by the sun and stars, whose newborn child narrowly escapes the ferocious dragon come to devour him. Despite appearances, this is neither a horror film nor a nightmare; on the contrary, it is good news and an encouragement. Heaven is not the refuge of a God deaf or indifferent to human affairs. The great battle that takes place there is the battle between good and evil. We may get the impression that on earth, nothing stops evil when it runs rampant: wars, rivalries, injustice, oppression, poverty, blindness to the real issues—so many disastrous fruits with which current events overwhelm us. Yet God opposes evil, always and everywhere. The psalmist already had an intuition of this: On high, an army fights for me (Ps 55:3). And the good, the excellent news, is that evil is already defeated: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ!” The Feast of the Assumption invites us precisely to contemplate the triumph of the Virgin Mary, raised “to the glory of heaven, in body and soul,” that is, in her entire humanity (opening prayer).

Treasure under good guard

The Woman of the Apocalypse is a well-guarded treasure (too bad for the dragon). In return, the Christian people have long since made it a habit to entrust to Mary's care the humble treasure of their joys and sorrows, their faith and their hope. Pope Francis was not mistaken in this. Did he not choose to begin his apostolic journey to Marseille with a visit to the Basilica of Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde on September 22, 2023? As Cardinal Aveline reminded us, the people of Marseille, of all faiths and religions, come to present themselves before "the Good Mother" and seek her protection in the face of life's perils and struggles. The Pope invited us to welcome and imitate "the Virgin's merciful gaze," a source of peace, and then her "intercessory gaze," so that our lives might reflect "the splendor with which she radiates." The Virgin Mary is neither privileged nor an exception; she is our model so that we may learn to embrace, as she did, the fullness of the wonder of God's love: "Mary, model of the Church, in presenting her Son to us, also presents us to Him, like a bouquet of flowers in which each person is unique, beautiful, and precious in the eyes of the Father." Evil is conquered by love, heaven bends tenderly toward earth, Mary accompanies us and awaits us. Alleluia!

in Magnificat