Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

by Agnes White, Catholic Evidence Guild of Guam

              "You, Catholics, worship Mary. You pray to her, kneel before her statue, and even kiss it! That's idolatry!" Have you ever been accused of this before? How little some of our brethren appreciate Our Blessed Mother! With a bit of study, and a lot of patience and prayer, we might begin to share the rich treasure that we have in Mary.

              The Fourth Commandment. Let's start with why we should honor Mary. The Fourth Commandment directs: "Honor your father and mother." Jesus, during His life on earth, carried this out perfectly. After His parents found Him in the Temple in serious discussion with the Jewish teachers, He went back to Nazareth with Mary and Joseph and was "obedient to them" (Luke 2:51). As Christians, we look to Jesus' example. He honored Mary perfectly. So, does it not follow that we too must honor her? Jesus didn't stop after His Resurrection and Ascension. He continues to do the same today.

              The Annunciation. The honor given to Mary comes from God. Saint Luke lets us in on this little family secret by telling us about Mary's encounter with the Angel Gabriel. She was greeted with: "Rejoice, O highly favored daughter! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women" (Luke 1:28). Mary was set apart from all others.

              The Visitation. When we read further in the chapter, her cousin, Elizabeth, who probably was much older than she was, paid her much honor. She echoed what the Angel Gabriel said: "Blest are you among women and blest is the fruit of your womb ...Blest is she who trusted that the Lord's words to her would be fulfilled" (Luke 1:42-44). Mary accepted this blessing and later said, "All ages to come shall call me blessed" (Luke 1:48). Some ages? Dark Ages? No, ALL ages. How succinct and scriptural is our reference to her as our Blessed Virgin Mary. How Catholic!

              In Jewish culture, the younger must pay respect to the older, but we can see how Elizabeth honors Mary. She knew and her baby as well, for it "leapt in her womb" upon hearing Mary's greeting, that Mary is "the splendor of an entirely unique holiness" (CCC 492). This honor does not draw away from God's majesty. Rather, God is magnified and given even more honor. For example, when someone speaks highly of your child, you don't insist that they stop immediately and give you the credit instead of your child. On the contrary, when your child is honored, you are honored even more. It's the same way with God. Mary is His great masterpiece and by showing reverence and deep respect for her, God receives all the glory.

              The Mother of God. What about this "Mother of God" and "Queen of Heaven" stuff? Mary's "Divine Maternity" or the fact that she is called the "Mother of God" is something some of our friends might find difficult to accept. Jesus took on a human nature, which allowed Him to be born of a woman. Mary is the mother of the person Jesus, who has two natures: human and divine. Hence, she is called the "Mother of God." Similarly, if Jesus is truly a King of the line of David, then Mary must be the Queen Mother!

              All that "theology" sounds good but is it contrary to Sacred Scripture? Absolutely not! In fact, Saint Luke tells us that Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, asks, "How does this happen that the mother of my Lord should come to

me?" (Luke 1:43) In the New Testament, "Lord" is a name given only to God. Saint Luke also tells us that "the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). Saint Matthew is even so bold as to remind us of Jesus' Davidic Kingdom by quoting the prophet Isaiah: "Behold the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel, which means, `God is with us"' (Matthew 1:23).

              Since the earliest times, the honor of this title has been given to Mary. St. Ignatius of Antioch (110 AD) and St. Irenaeus of Lyons (180-199 AD) both affirmed this. Church history shows that it wasn't until 429 AD that Mary's title as "Mother of God" was questioned. During this time a bishop named Nestorius advocated a false doctrine, known as Nestorianism, that Jesus was two distinct persons (human and divine) and that Mary was the mother of only the human person.

              The Council of Ephesus two years later condemned Nestorianism and declared that those who misunderstand Mary really misunderstand Jesus. Indeed, Mary is quite contrary to some of our friends' unscriptural idea that she is no better than the rest of us. As God's masterpiece and the most perfect example of faithful discipleship, she reigns in Heaven as our visible and lasting model for the Church and the whole world.