Notes about Feast of Dromition

 Two things I learned along the way I want to pass on:

 1.  Dormition is not the same as Assumption.  The Dormition is the death and burial which took place on a Friday afternoon, when Christ came and took Theotokos' soul as it was released from her body; and He handed it over to the Archangel Michael's protection.  The Assumption is 3 days later when the Lord translated her body from earth to heaven, however so this was done.  Then the Holy Apostle Thomas discovered her tomb was empty, only her clothes left behind.   
     The Great Synaxaristes explains that this is where the Roman Catholics got their idea for "immaculate conception," because immaculate conception is the only way they can figure how a body could get into heaven.  They figure it had to be purified before hand.  And these mental gymnastics they have mistaken for revelations from the Holy Spirit.  
     Apparently world-Orthodox can be confused by the Roman Catholic error.  I have the choral sheet music of a very beautiful version of the Exapostilarion for the Dormition that I received from an OCA convent in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, 1998.  The nuns hand-printed the sheet music customized for their small female choir and kindly gave me a photocopy of four pages.  The title at the top of the first page is "Svetilen for the Assumption," and on subsequent pages:  "Assumption – Svetilen" also written by hand.   The words of the exapostilarion clearly are all about her burial, the gathering of the apostles, and Christ taking her soul, and nothing about her body being taken by Christ 3 days later.

Sheet Music
   https://www.podoben.org/files/pdf/male/Folk%20Songs/1-11-2017--Dormition---Svetilen.pdf
The sheet music I have the nuns raised the tenor an octave (2nd soprano) to accommodate female voices.  They raised the bass an octave also.  It was particularly beautiful even with just a small handful of nuns in the choir.

other recordings:
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6d1EHbfR5k  (mixed choir)
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02-rQ2Z2Dxk  (monks)


2.  The Gospel Reading at Liturgy — "...Mary has chosen that good part which will not be taken from her..."  What will not be taken away might sound like Mary's leisure, her sitting at His feet and listening to Him speak.  But actually what will not be taken away from Mary are the things gained by her soul.  Mary has chosen eternal things over temporal things.   And while all temporal things get taken away in the end, eternal things never get taken away from us.  Mary has chosen those things that do not get taken away in the end.

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