Munificentissimus Deus
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Munificentissimus Deus (Latin for "The most bountiful God") is the name of an Apostolic constitution written by Pope Pius XII. It defines ex cathedra the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is one of a small number of infallible statements by a Pope. The decree was promulgated on November 1, 1950.
The decree surveys the history of the belief in the Catholic Christian tradition, citing such writers as John of Damascus and Francis de Sales, among others. It also cites the popular acclaim and "nearly unanimous" approval of contemporary bishops, following a papal appeal of 1946 for evaluation of the doctrine by the Catholic faithful.
It then reaches the dogmatic statement in section 44:
- By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.
In this dogmatic statement, the phrase "having completed the course of her earthly life" is carefully written to leave open the question of whether or not Mary died before her Assumption, or whether, like the Assumption of the Prophet Elijah, Mary was assumed before death; both possibilities are allowed in the formulation.
The entire decree (and the title itself) is also worded to suggest that Mary's Assumption was not in any sense a logical necessity, but rather a divine gift to Mary as Mother of God.
