HAIL MARY, FULL OF GRACE

Recently, another contributor to this page mentioned “the cult of Mary.”

The many variations of Christianity certainly treat Mary, the mother of Jesus, in very different ways.

In my 53 years as a Protestant, Mary was regarded primarily for her role as the virginal young woman chosen to bear Jesus, but other than that, was mostly a peripheral figure in the stories of Jesus’ life and death.

That is not the case with Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, who together form the majority of Christian believers in the world. Neither of them worship Mary as some kind of goddess.

That is obvious idolatry and a violation of the First Commandment. But Mary is venerated as the Mother of God (the Theotokos in Greek). The term arises from the belief that all true Christians have — that Jesus was both God and man. He had two natures and was born of a human mother.

There was no other person in the entire history of humanity chosen for this great honour. It was Mary alone.

The Archangel Gabriel says to her, “Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with you;

Chris Kempling

You Gotta Have FAITH

blessed are you among women … you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son …” Mary is confused and troubled by this and responds, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

According to Christian tradition, Mary had made a vow of perpetual virginity to God. It was likely for this reason that she was chosen by God for such a holy purpose.

Gabriel says, “With God, nothing is impossible,” and Mary responds in complete obedience, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word.”

Most Christians believe Jesus was not born in the traditional way. They believe he was miraculously delivered and that Mary never once had her virginity compromised.

This “freedom from labour pains” blessing was a sign that Mary was specifically spared the curse of Eve. After Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden, God said, “I will greatly multiply your pain and your groaning, and in pain you shall bring forth children.”

The entire tradition of the early church was that Mary remained a virgin her whole life. Protestants like to point to Matthew 1:25, which says, “[Joseph] did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn son.”

Well, I don’t think anyone would presume to know the exact nature of Joseph and Mary’s physical intimacy.

Nevertheless, they assert their point by citing verses that say that Jesus had siblings, (which they assume are younger siblings born to Joseph and Mary). But there are problems with this point of view.

Joseph was most likely a widower who had other children, Jesus’ older stepsiblings. It’s probably why he was betrothed to Mary in the first place — he needed help with his family.

These siblings thought Jesus was crazy and tried to get him to stop his preaching (to keep him from being killed by the Jewish leaders of the day). But when he refused, they abandoned him to his fate.

Mary didn’t leave him, though. Jesus made a point of commending his mother to his disciple John, who took her into his household from that day forward.

If Jesus had younger siblings, he would not have had to do that because the obligation to one’s parents is a commandment of God. Mary’s stepchildren did not feel any such obligation because they didn’t regard her as their mother.

The other issue Protestants have with Catholic/Orthodox regard for Mary is that they pray to her, asking for her intercession.

Christians often ask pastors and other Godly people to pray for them — because we believe they are closer to God than we are.

Christians also believe people who die and become saints are “alive in Christ.”

The 12 elders around the throne of God hold bowls full of “the prayers of the saints” — all the saints, past and present.

And who better to intercede for us than the one who, with a mere look, persuaded Jesus to change his mind to perform a miracle at Cana? Mary is deserving of our respect and veneration.

Kamloops.ca

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