In a homily on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Pope urged the faithful to reject “consumerist” standards in favor of love.
Pope Leo XIV on Aug. 15 called on Catholics to look to Mary, the Mother of God as an example of “true beauty,” with the Holy Father pointing to her youthful appearance in sacred art as a sign of “love that never ends.”
The Holy Father delivered the homily during Mass at the Pontifical Parish of Saint Thomas of Villanova in Castel Gandolfo, directly adjacent to the papal summer residence there. The small chapel was full for the 10 a.m. liturgy of the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
In his homily reflecting on Mary’s assumption into heaven, Leo noted that “many works of art depict her as a beautiful young woman physically rising from the earth toward the heavens at the end of her earthly life.”
These depictions of a youthful Mary at the end of her life offer a contrast with “our experience of what the passing of years does to us,” the Pope said. He asked rhetorically: “What do we have in common with the beautiful
