<P>The Catholic Church does believe there is support in Scripture showing that Mary is in Heaven:</P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman"><FONT size=3>As we see in Rev 11:19-12:1 <STRONG>"Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, voices, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail. And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; " </STRONG></FONT></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3>The Church sees that the woman clothed with the sun is a continuation of 11:19. 12:1 describes the new Ark of the Covenant, Mary. Until the 12th Century, there were no chapters and divisions in the Bible. The appearance of the Ark immediately precedes the appearance of the woman. </FONT></P>
<P>St. Luke also draws a parallel between Mary and the Ark of the Covenant in the account of the Visitation (Luke 1:39-52). Compare it to 2 Samuel 6:4-16, where David tries to bring the original Ark into Jerusalem. Both the Ark and Mary are on a journey. David dances before the Ark; John leaps in his mother's womb. David says "How shall the Ark of the Lord come to me?" (2 Sa 6:9); Elizabeth says "Who am I, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Lk 1:43). The Ark stayed in the house of Obededom for three months (2 Sa 6:11); Mary stayed in Elizabeth's house for three months (Lk 1:56) </P>
<P>Examining Revelations 12 further, we see:</P>
<P><A name=re_12_13><STRONG>12:13</STRONG></A><STRONG> When the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.</STRONG> </P>
<P>and</P>
<P><A name=re_12_17><STRONG>12:17</STRONG></A><STRONG> The dragon grew angry with the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, who keep God's commandments and hold Jesus' testimony.</STRONG></P>
<P>Who is the rest of her seed? Not Israel. While they keep God's commandments, they reject Jesus' testimony. The rest of her seed are Christians--us. Yesterday, today, and tomorrow.</P>
<P>So those who "don't want to know Mary," do you not want to know Matthew, Mark, Luke or John? Are we to ignore them? Are we to ignore David, Solomon, Noah, Abraham? They, along with you all, are all part of the family of God--the Body of Christ. </P>
<P>The Assumption of Mary does not glorify Mary. Rather, it glorifies Christ. She partakes in the promise of eternal life. And there is only one way to do that--faith in Jesus Christ. When a Catholic celebrates the Assumption of Mary, we are celebrating our belief in the resurrection. And, as I stated before, there is only one way to eternal life--Jesus Christ. Mary is an example, an excellent example, to the rest of us. By her faith, she shows us the way to heaven, Jesus. The Assumption is much deeper than saying Mary is in heaven. It is echoing what the Bible and the Church teach:</P>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000000 size=2><STRONG>Acts 4:12</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000000 size=2><STRONG>"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.'' </STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG></STRONG> </DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000000 size=2><B>John 3:16</B></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000000 size=2><STRONG>"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. </STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG></STRONG> </DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>John 14:6</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, </STRONG><STRONG>the truth</STRONG><STRONG>, and the life: no man cometh </STRONG><STRONG>unto the Father, but by me.</STRONG></DIV><STRONG></STRONG></DIV>
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<DIV><BR></DIV></STRONG></DIV>
