The Theotokos, then, died and was buried in the Garden of Gethsemane. But what happened next? That is what we will explore now.
The Apostle Thomas was not present at the funeral of the Virgin Mary, although we do not know exactly why. Divine Providence had arranged it in this way (Saint John of Damascus, PG 96:749).
Thomas learned of her burial three days later. He implored the Apostles to open the tomb so that he might receive the consolation of venerating her holy body. When they opened it, however, they were astonished. The tomb was empty. Inside, they found only the burial cloth that had covered her body.The undefiled body that had given birth to God was not to remain in the grave. Following her natural death, the Theotokos was translated into heaven, body and soul.
When Saint Juvenal, Patriarch of Jerusalem, came to Constantinople for the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, he was told:“Bring the body of the Virgin to Constantinople, so that she may protect us. We have heard that she was buried in a place called Gethsemane.”The Patriarch replied:“Yes, the Theotokos was buried in Gethsemane. But we know from the most ancient and trustworthy Tradition that, when her tomb was opened three days later, it was found empty”(Saint John of Damascus, PG 96:748).
Her soul had been reunited with her body, and her body had been restored to life. It was no longer subject to corruption and mortality but had become a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:44). It was now endowed with qualities beyond those of our present earthly existence. According to this tradition, she departed from the tomb without the stone having been removed.
Where Is the Theotokos Now?
Saint Andrew, who was known as a Fool for Christ, was once granted a vision of Paradise. While there, he searched eagerly for the Mother of the Lord but could not find her. The inhabitants of Paradise told him: “The Theotokos does not remain in Paradise. She is in the world, helping its people.”
This account should not be understood as meaning that the Theotokos is separated from heaven or absent from the presence of her Son. Rather, it expresses the mystery of her unceasing intercession and her spiritual presence among those who call upon her. The Apolytikion of the Dormition proclaims:“In giving birth, you preserved your virginity. In falling asleep, you did not forsake the world, O Theotokos.”Just as her perpetual virginity is a mystery, since she conceived, gave birth, and remained a Virgin, so too is it a mystery that, after her Dormition and translation into heaven, she did not abandon the world.
According to tradition, when the Archangel Michael guided her through Hades and she witnessed the torments of the suffering souls, she pleaded to be allowed to remain and suffer alongside them. She was told that this was not possible, for her place was beside her Son in His Kingdom, and He did not permit her to remain in Hades. Yet, in another sense, she did something even greater: although she dwells in the glory of Paradise, she continually turns towards us in our suffering and remains spiritually present among us.
Have we truly realized what this means?What is Paradise?
Saint Paul writes: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9).The holy martyrs willingly endured imprisonment, hunger, torture, dismemberment, and unbearable suffering in the hope of receiving the joy of Paradise.The Virgin Mary, however, does not keep the indescribable sweetness of Paradise for herself. In her immense love for humanity, she remains close to us. She shares in our sorrows and bitterness and continually intercedes for the world. Her love for humanity overcomes even the desire to rest in the joy of Paradise:“Rejoice, tender love that conquers every longing.”(Salutations to the Theotokos, Third Stanza)
This is the continuing sacrifice of the Virgin Mary, a sacrifice of maternal love that has endured throughout the centuries.
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Νext in this series: Does the Theotokos ‘Quarrel’ with Her Son?
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