The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most important and most revered holidays in the Orthodox tradition. And in Cyprus and in Greece - it is also a state weekend.
In the new style, the holiday falls on August 15, hence its Greek name “Decapendavgustos”. The holiday is preceded by a period of strict fasting. The Assumption post is the shortest in the Orthodox Church, it lasts two weeks (from August 1 to 14).
The history of the Assumption festival is rooted in early Christian traditions. The Mother of God, Maria, having lived a long and pious life, died in Jerusalem surrounded by the apostles. Shortly before her death, the apostles, who then preached in different parts of the world, were miraculously transferred to Jerusalem to say goodbye to the mother of Jesus. Only the Apostle Thomas did not get to the last meeting.
Three days after the death of Mary, he also wished to say goodbye to the Virgin. But when her coffin was open, it turned out that Maria's body disappeared. That is, the Mother of God was in the body ascended to heaven, where Jesus crowned her as a Queen of Heaven.
The holiday of the Assumption has a deep spiritual meaning. First of all, this is hope for the Sunday. The Assumption of Mary and her subsequent capture to heaven symbolize the transition from earthly life to heavenly. It resembles believers that death is not considered the end of life, but only by the transition to eternity with God. Mary's accession to heaven without bodily flows reminds that the history of our world will end with the second coming of Jesus Christ and the universal resurrection of people in transformed bodies. The first person who received a new transformed body, not subject to the laws of the material world, was Maria.
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not so much a historical event as an important spiritual guideline that resembles believers of the eternity and ultimate goal of Christian life. He teaches humility, hope and faith in divine fishing, strengthening the connection between the earthly and heavenly.
