Dispelling Misunderstandings about Our Lady

Mark S. Roberti, Director of Stewardship

Heartland Parishes of Ellis County

Today, we are going to address misunderstandings about Our Lady.  We will start with the Book of Genesis, chapter three, the story of the fall.  It is called the Proto-evangelium, the first Gospel.  Within it – in seed form – is the basis for all Marian doctrine.   We will then respond to some of the objections and conclude by explaining how understanding Mary’s role in salvation history help us understand our own role and responsibility in bringing people to Christ.  This article is very much about our stewardship of the Christian faith. 

After the fall of man, what does God say to the serpent?  “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and hers; he will strike at your head, while you strike at his heal” (Gen 3:15).  God is foreshadowing Mary in this passage.  This “enmity” He speaks of is absolutely complete and total opposition. 

There is absolutely no good within Satan.  He is sheer evil.  Likewise, there is absolutely no evil within Mary.  Any participation of Mary in sin, or Satan in good, would have rendered that “enmity” less than total and absolute.  They would, at least -- in some degree -- have been in collaboration with one another.   God deals with Satan in Genesis 3:14, reveals Mary’s role in this drama in Genesis 3:15, and punishes Eve and Adam, respectively, in Genesis 3:16 – 19.  The remainder of the Bible is a chronicle of hope in salvation fulfilled in Jesus Christ.      

Mary’s immaculate human nature is confirmed in the Gospel of Luke 1:28.  The angel Gabriel says, “Hail full of grace.”  The angel does not say “Hail Mary.”  He says, “Hail, Full of Grace.” He is explaining her very nature.  There is no room for sin.  The Greek word used for “full of grace”, kecharitomene, is a perfect passive participle.  That means the action is considered to have been completed before the time of the speaker.  Mary’s cleansing from original sin is a result of the redemptive power of Jesus’ death on the cross working backwards over time.  God is out of time.  His actions are not constrained by time.     

The “woman” of  Genesis 3:15 could not have been Eve.  Eve had sin.   God is referring to Mary, the new Eve, who is presented as being in the same state as Adam and Eve before the fall.  She is the new Eve who cooperates with the new Adam (Jesus) in repairing mankind.  Just as Eve cooperated with Adam in the fall, Mary cooperated with Jesus in the restoration.        

So let’s address some contentions.  We will do it in question/answer form to save space:

Q.  Don’t Catholics worship Mary? 

A.  In Greek, there are three words for worship.  The worship of latria is a worship given only to an uncreated being, God.  Dulia is a type of worship (veneration) given to kings, presidents, judges…and these days, even to movie stars and sports stars.  Hyperdulia is worship (veneration) given to a created being who is infinitely less than God, but far superior to any other created being.  We give the last type of veneration to Mary, alone.

Q.  All have sinned (Rom 3:23), how can it be said Mary did not have sin? 

A.  Has a baby who dies at birth sinned?  No; by definition sin requires capacity.   Therefore all have not sinned.  Yes, original sin has been imputed to all.  But Mary was cleansed, by Jesus’ saving act, in advance of her birth.  The rest of us are redeemed after our birth, through our Baptism (John 3:5).  Again, God is out of time.  He can do this.

Q.   How could Mary have been a virgin throughout her life?  Scripture says, “Joseph knew her not till she brought forth her first born son (Mt 1:25).  Scripture also speak of Jesus’ brothers and sisters in several places, indicating Jesus was Mary’s first born.  

A.   The words “till” or “until” do not have the same meaning today as it did then.  Scripture also says “Michal, the daughter of Saul, did not have children until the day of her death (2 Sam 6:23).  Are we to assume she had children after she was dead?   Likewise, regarding brothers and sisters, in the original Hebrew and Aramaic there was no word for “cousin.”  Close relatives, even kinsmen, were called brothers and sisters.”  In Genesis 11:26, Lot is describes as Abraham’s brother when he is, in fact, Abraham’s nephew.  Jacob is called the brother of his uncle Laban (Genesis 29:15).   Under Jewish law, the “first born”   meant the child who opened the womb.  First born sons had to be ritually sanctified.  Parent did not wait until there was a “second born.”  Likewise, women in those days often died giving birth to their first born.  That generally prevented a “second-born.”    

Q. Scripture says, “For there is one God.  There is also one mediator between God and man…. (1Tim 2:5) Why do Catholics pray to Mary and the saints?

A. The Greek word “eis” (or heis) used to describe mediator in this page means “one”, “first” or “primary.”  St. Paul could have used “monos,” which by definition means “sole”, “only,” or “exclusive one” if he wanted to refer to Christ’s mediation as exclusive.  Thus, read in the proper context, this passage would say one primary mediator between God and man.  That there is a primary mediator would indicate that there are other mediators.

That he chose “eis” for the oneness of God in this passage could also indicate that there is a full participation and ownership of God’s divine nature from all eternity by the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Jesus is one but we, likewise, participate in his sonship which gives us a share in him as mediators in Christ.  Thus, that “eis” is used for oneness does not harm this line of thought but could be construed as Trinitarian.    

Q.  Catholics call Mary, the Mother of God.  How could God have a mother?

A.  Some early heresies broke Jesus’ person down into human and divine nature.  But Jesus is not a nature.  He is a person, the Second Person of the Trinity, fully human and fully divine.  His human and divine natures cannot be separated.  Mary is the mother of the person, Jesus, who is God.  Mary is, therefore, the mothers of God. 

Q Where in Scripture does it say Mary was assumed into heaven?

A.  It doesn’t, but that certainly does nothing to negate the possibility.  Elijah and Enoch were taken into heaven body and soul.  Likewise, in Matthew 27:52-53 it states, “...tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints who had fallen asleep were raised.”  If Col 15:23 says “…all will be brought to life, but, but each one in their proper order…”why not Mary?  Why would/could not Jesus afforded his own mother such a privilege?

Q.  Why do Catholics pray repetitive prayers like the Rosary?  Scripture rails against repetitive prayer.

A.  Jesus taught us to pray the Our Father.  We have all prayed that prayer repeatedly throughout our lives.  There are profound reflections to be garnered from the Our Father, just as there are profound reflections to be garnered from the Rosary.  When prayed meditatively, the Our Father is a whole school of theology.  Likewise, the decades of the Hail Mary are like Scripture on a string.  They walk us through the very life of Jesus providing tremendous food for reflection.    

In conclusion, Catholic teachings on Mary are widely attacked, not so much out of malice as much as misunderstanding.   As Catholic stewards we need to help bridge the divide.  Stewardship is about time, talent, treasure, trust, truth, and teachings. 

The kernel and core of the Gospel message is that, out of love for us, Jesus Christ -- the only Son of God -- took flesh and died for our sins.  Everything else is secondary.  But secondary does not mean unimportant.  Jesus is also, human, flesh, the son of Mary.  In understanding Mary’s role in salvation history, we come to better understand our role.  God’s will is that we are participants, not spectators, in our salvation and that of the world.  We, like Mary, must offer up our fiat… then engage in the unfolding drama of salvation history.