“the Dormition of the Mother of God is not simply a translation to heaven, but above all, a transition from earthly life, which is subject to decay or corruption, to an incorruptible existence. It is her grace-filled translation to the right hand of her Son in heaven, in the light and peace of the Holy Trinity.
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“the Dormition is not simply a translation to heaven, but a passage from earthly, perishable life to an incorruptible existence
“Today, the Church does not mourn a death, but celebrates a translation from death to life; the Church does not lament a separation, but rejoices in the passage from the temporal to the eternal, from earth to heaven, from corruption to incorruption, and from the vanity of this world to the true life. For this reason, the Dormition of the Theotokos is for all of us a feast of hope, consolation and joy, since we feel that, through her translation from death to life, Panagia is even closer to us and remains beside us. As the Apolytikion of the feast proclaims: ‘In your Dormition, O Theotokos, you did not abandon the world.'
“while death ordinarily brings sorrow, the Church celebrates the Dormition with joy because the Mother of God, having been translated to heaven, continues to intercede with her Son for all humanity
“His Beatitude explained that the feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God calls every Orthodox Christian to prepare for the passage, or translation, to heavenly life.
“The Mother of God remains present in the world through her prayers even after her Dormition and translation to heaven
“the Dormition should not be understood simply as the conclusion of the earthly life of the Mother of God.
“In this sense, the icon of the Dormition of the Mother of God is placed above the doors of a church in the narthex, so that when the faithful leave the church, they may think about the final days of their lives on earth. For whatever spiritual state death finds them in, when the soul is separated from the body, in that state they will be judged or spiritually assessed.
“the Dormition calls every Orthodox Christian to prepare for the passage from earthly life to heavenly life