The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-08-15

SttHef, ana the nigh priest, being seized
with fury, laid his hands upon the
bier, intending to overturn it on the
earth, but boil his arms were suddenly
dried up, so that he could not move
them, and he was overcome with fear,
and he prayed to st. Peter for help,
and Peter said: Have faith in Christ
and his mother, and thou shalt be zeal,
ed n it "a so. Then they went on
and laid the virgin in a tomb in the
valley of Jehoshaphat.
And on the third day Christ said to
the angels: What honor shall l con-
fer upon her who was my mother upon
earth?' And they answered: Lord
suffer not that body which was thy
temple and thy dwelling to see corrup-
ton, but place her beside thee on thy
throne in heaven
, And Christ consented, and the arch,
angel Michael brought unto the Lord
the glorious soul of our lady. And
the Lord said: Rise up, my dove, my
undefled, for hou shalt not remain
i'll the darkness of the grave nor shalt
thou see corruption And Immediately
the soul of Mary rejoined her body
and she arose up glorious from the
tomb, and assembled into heaven, sur
rounded and welcomed by troops of
angels, blowing their silver trumpetS,
touching their golden lutes. singing and
rejoicing as they sang; Who is she that
rlseth IS the morning, fair as the moon,
clear as the u and terrible as an
army with banners
But one among the apostles was
absent, and when he arrived soon after
he would not believe in the resurrection
of the virgin, and this apostle was the
same Thomas who had formerly been
slow to believe in the resurrection Of
the Lord. And he desired that the
tomb should be opened before him, and
when it was opened it was ound to
be full of lilies n roses. Then
Thomas looking up to heaven beheld
the virgin bodily, in a glory of light,
Slowly mounting toward heaven, and
she, for the assurance of his faith,
flung down to him her girdle. the same
which is to this day preserved in the
cathedral at Prato. And there were
present at the death of the Virgin
Mary, besides the twelve apostles,
Dionysius the Areopagite, Timotheus
and Hierotheus. And of the women,
Mary Salome, Mary CleophaS and a
faithful handmade whose name was
Savia."
Such is the ancient legend of the as
sumption of the blessed virgin, the
festival of Aug. Is. Tradition has in
terwoven the dogmatic facts with a
tracery of delicate ornamental figures,
to be accepted or rejected at will. The
dTllCle VI IdllH pIOcldlIIleu ny lIS
Catholic church maintains the asSump-
ton into heaven of the ~incorruptible
body of the mother of Christ, not
through the power of her own sinleSS
personality, but through the will OF
her beloved son. The resurrection Of
Christ was active; the assumption of
Mary passive.
The French story of the assumption
of the blessed virgin conforms general
ly to the legend of the Orient, but di-
verges in a few minor details. Ac-
Cording to it's history, it is the Arch
angel Michael instead of Christ who
conducts the departing sou to the
throne of the most high, and it is the
same valiant angelic warrior who cuts
of the hands of the Jew who endeav-
ored to deSecrate the holy bier. 1t
also includes among the company in
the little home of John, surrounding
the deathbed of the sinless mother, the
Mary Magdalene of the gospel, to
whom many things were forgiven be-
cause she a loved much, and that
busting housewife, Martha, mindful
of little things"
The feast of the assumption is cele-
brated with great pomp and ceremony
in Catholic countries and in the Catho-
lie congregations of the United States.
Unnecessary servile work is forbidden
and the day is observed like Sunday.
This year the festival comes on Sun
day and will be kept with special de-
votion. Flowers and lights will deco
rate the affairs of the virgin, music and
hymns will esoun her praises and
sermons will be preached eulogizing
the holy purity of a life that, full of
joy, vas ais tragic in the intensity
of its grief.
The doctrine of the assumption has
proved a favorite subject for the
brushes of artists. Over and over again
Murillo painted the withdrawal of the
virgin into heaven, surrounded by null
titudes of angels. Raphael, Correggio
and Titan have left examples of the
same inspiration. RubenS painted at
least twelve assumptions and Albrecht
Durer represented both the scene at
the vacant tomb when doubling Thorn
as discovers the flowers n the en-
trance Of the virgin into heaven. Guido
eXcelled as an artist of the assumption
and PouSsin's attempts are majeStical-
ly impressive.
Perhaps the most satisfactory story
of the entrance of Mary into heaven
is told by that dual genius of painting
and poetry, Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
The southern fire of his imagination
as touched his Ave with a pathetic
tenderness, a human n~aturalness and
an impressive awe that makes the
mother and the virgin a child of earth
without the spotless purity of heaven.