God's Masterpiece Mary

This is the sixth lecture in the 2nd Course for Catechists and the topic is Mary. 

In his book, ‘The World’s First Love’, Bishop Fulton Sheen says that God has within Himself, two pictures of each one of us – one is what we are and one is what we ought to be.  Mary is the only one of God’s creatures that has only one picture – for she is exactly as God intended her to be.  

Fr. F., and Fr. A., both gave us some great insights on different aspects of Marian devotion, its origin in Scripture, Tradition and its development through the centuries.

Fr. A. was assigned to give us this talk in the course on Mary however he was running a little late so Fr. F. filled in the time by speaking about the Rosary.

 He told us that we could make the recitation of this simple and beautiful prayer more meaningful if we remembered that the Rosary is:

1. An act of the heart
2. A glance of the eyes
3. A breath of love
4. Stillness in the Presence
5. Has an attitude of listening
6. Lifts us up to God in close communion (ecstasy) with Mary
7. Saying I love you and being loved in return
8. Joy of communicating with Mary the mysteries of Christ
9. Gives us a sense of belonging through the mysteries
10. An act of surrender

Becoming aware of what this prayer actually conveys both to us and to God, through Mary, is the difference between this prayer being boringly monotonous and repetitive, or a prayer through which we look at Jesus through the eyes and heart of Mary.

Next Fr. F., made us read a passage from the Gospel of John 2:1-11 on the Wedding Feast at Cana, and Mary's role at the wedding.  Father would go on to speak more on this text  a little later. 

By this time Fr. A., had arrived.  In the half an hour that he was able to spend with us he gave us a good bite sized talk on Mariology packed with a lot of important aspects and insights of the Church's doctrine on Mary.

The name Mary in Hebrew is Miriam and means bitter. It means star of the sea in Latin and in Irish/Scot/Welsh it means the perfect one or bitter with sorrow.  As we know, Mary our Mother was familiar with sorrow.

Mariology is the theological study of Mary the Mother of Jesus and our Mother.  Devotion to Mary has it roots in the Bible beginning with  the greeting of the Angel to Mary in LUKE 1:28 at the annunciation and Elizabeth's greeting to Mary as well in LUKE 1:41-45

Devotion to Mary has developed through the study of Sacred Scripture, the Fathers, the doctors and liturgy of the Church, and under the guidance of the Church's magisterium and is part of the magnificent plan of God.  “True Marian devotion rightly illustrates the duties and privileges of the Blessed Virgin which always refer to Christ, the source of all truth, sanctity, and devotion.” (Lumen Gentium, No. 67)

 

A lot of the Church's devotion to Mary is rooted in Tradition beginning with the Church Fathers.  It was Justin Martyr in 145-150 AD who gave us the first insight regarding the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ, as the New Eve.   Later, St. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, (in AD 202) who is considered the first theologian of the Virgin Mary, took up St. Justin's Mary-Eve theme and  wrote, "The knot of Eve's disobedience was loosened by Mary's obedience. The bonds fastened by the virgin Eve through disbelief were untied by the virgin Mary through faith."  

Typology in Christian theology and Biblical exegesis is a doctrine or theory concerning the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. Just as Jesus is considered the new Adam, Mary is considered the new Eve.

Following are a few examples of typology in Scripture: 

Matthew 12:40

In the same way that Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the monster fish, so will the Son of Man spend three days and three nights in the depths of the earth.

John 3:14-15 

As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,  so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Romans 5:14

This is why from Adam to Moses death reigned among them, although their sin was not disobedience as in Adam’s case—this was not the true Adam, but foretold the other who was to come.

Mary as the New Eve

From the very earliest, Fathers of the Church, such as St. Justin Martyr (c. 145-150), we find the  doctrine of  the New Eve doctrine, i.e., that just as the first Eve actually contributed to the damage of original sin, so Mary, the New Eve, truly contributed to removing it. They had in mind her obedient acceptance, in faith, to be the Mother of the Messiah.

In Genesis 3:1-15 we read  the creation narrative.  Here we see how while the first Eve brought death into the world, the Seed of the new Eve will bring life. The first Eve is entirely different from the new Eve, Mary.   

 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel." (Genesis 3:15).

The Church sees veiled references to Mary in the Old Testament that become evident in the New.  When Mary conceived Jesus she became the  Arc of the New Covenant and a living tabernacle.

http://www.nevarez.org/alf/catholic/bible_study/thematic/mary_scripture.html

Mary's Assent

In his general audience on September 18, 1996 Pope John Paul II spoke of Mary as the New Eve, giving special emphasis to the value of Mary's assent to the angel at the Annunciation. "The Father of mercies willed that the Incarnation should be preceded by assent on the part of the predestined mother, so that just as a woman had a share in bringing about death, so also a woman should contribute to life" (Lumen gentium, n. 56).

Mary's Consent

God puts the destiny of all mankind in a young woman's hands. Mary's "yes" is the premise for fulfilling the plan which God in his love had prepared for the world's salvation.

Mary's Obedience

The Second Vatican Council observes, "the Fathers see Mary not merely as passively engaged by God but as freely co-operating in the work of man's salvation through faith and obedience. For, as St Irenaeus says, she 'being obedient, became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race (Adv. Haer. III, 22, 4)" (ibid.). 

http://livingwatercommunity.com/virgin/mary_the_new_eve.htm

There are  3 types of worship as distinguished by the great Saint Thomas Aquinas that are offered to God, Mary and the saints they are:

Latria

Dulia

Hyper-dulia.  

Latria, or adoration, refers to the devotion and total submission a creature owes to the Creator.  Latria is worship that is due to God alone.

Dulia, or veneration, is the reverence due to a creature who lives a virtuous and devout life.  The saints, for example, are worthy of dulia. We venerate them because of their love of God and and we try to follow their examples, but we do not worship them the way we worship God.

Hyper-dulia, is the veneration due to our Blessed Mother.  It is not the same as latria and will never be because Mary is a creature while God is the uncreated Creator.  Yet Mary is owed a special kind of reverence above and beyond what we give the saints because she is the apex of God’s creation: His masterpiece.  Immaculately conceived, full of grace, completely sinless her whole life, and the Mother of God – no saint can compare to this! 

MARIAN DOGMAS

Mary, the Mother of God

The first Marian dogma was “Mary the Theotokos” (Mother of God) defined in the Council of Ephesus called by Pope Celestinus in 431. It states “The Virgin Mary is the Theotokos.” This was based on the faith of the divinity of Christ.

The biblical proofs of this are: 

1. The Annunciation when Angel Gabriel said to Mary: “You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus, He will be great and he will be called Son of the Most High,” 

and 

2. The Visitation when after Mary entered her house, Elizabeth inspired by the Holy Spirit said: “How does this happen that the Mother of my Lord should come to me?” The title Lord used by Elizabeth or kyrios in Greek , was applied only for God.

Perpetual Virginity of Mary – Ever Virgin

In 649 A.D. the Lateran Council declares: “If anyone does not confess, according to the Holy Fathers, that properly and truly the Holy Mother of God the ever Virgin, Immaculate Mary, without seed conceived of the Holy Ghost and brought forth her Son incorruptly, her indissoluble virginity remaining even after His birth, let him be condemned." 

This dogma further declares: “The Blessed Virgin Mary remained a Virgin for the whole of her life.” This implies that Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary, without the intervention of man. 

As prophesied by Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son”. This implies, too, that Mary was a virgin before, during and after the birth of Jesus”.

Immaculate Conception of Mary

On December 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX in his Ineffabilis Deus officially declared this Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary:

We declare, proclaim and define that this dogma is revealed by God and therefore, to be firmly and unremittingly believed by all the faithful, namely, the dogma which holds that the Most Blessed Virgin Mary from the first moment of her conception, by a singular privilege from the Almighty God and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, was kept free from every stain of original sin.”

This dogma is simply a declaration of the traditional faith of the Catholics since the Apostolic times. It originated in Jerusalem as a celebration of the miraculous conception of Mary by her childless parents, Joachim and Anne.

We Catholics believe that Mary had the wonderful gift of total immunity, of complete holiness from the momemt of her conception. In this unique role of Mary in the salvific mission of Christ on earth, we pray: “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.”

Assumption of Mary

On Nov. 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII in his papal bull Munificentissimus Dei officially declared this Dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary:

“Having repeatedly raised prayers of urgent supplication to God and having called upon the light of the Spirit of Truth to the glory of Almighty God, Who has bestowed His signal favors to Mary, in honor of His Son, deathless King of all ages and conqueror of sin and death, to increase the glory of the exalted Mother, and to the joy and exaltation of the whole Church by that authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, by that of the Blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, her Son, declare and define to be divinely revealed the dogma of faith that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary on the completion of her earthly life was assumed body and soul into the glory of Heaven.”

The Bull explained: “The Immaculate Virgin preserved from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen of Heaven over all things so that she might be more fully conformed to her son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death.”

http://www.thenewstoday.info/2010/09/01/marian.dogmas.html

Dogma Under Process

Mary Co-Redemptrix, Mediatrix of All Graces and Advocate.

 “It is important to note that the prefix "co" in the title Coredemptrix does not mean "equal to" but rather "with", coming from the Latin word cum. The Marian title Coredemptrix never places Mary on a level of equality with her Divine Son, Jesus Christ. Rather it refers to Mary's unique human participation which is completely secondary and subordinate to the redeeming role of Jesus, who alone is true God and true Man.”

“Mary is invoked in the Church under the title Mediatrix of all grace. All the graces which flow from the redemption of Jesus Christ are granted to the human family through the motherly intercession of Mary. Mary mediated Jesus Christ, the Author of all graces, to the world when she agreed to be the human mother of God made man (cf. Lk 1:38). And from the cross at Calvary (Jn 19:26) and as the final gift to humanity, Jesus gives Mary as a spiritual mother to us all: "Son, behold your mother" (cf. Jn 19:26). For this reason, Vatican II refers to Mary as a "mother to us in the order of grace " (Lumen Gentium, n. 62) and several twentieth century popes have officially taught the doctrine of Mary as Mediatrix of all graces, quoting the words of St Bernard: "It is the will of God that we obtain all favours through Mary." The Mediatrix performs this task in intimate union with the Holy Spirit, the Sanctifier, with whom she began the drama of our Lord's Redemption at the Annunciation (cf. Lk. 1:35).”

 “Mary is our Advocate for people of God, in that she takes the petitions of her earthly children, especially in times of difficulties, and brings them through her maternal intercession before her Son and our Lord Jesus.”

For more on the Church Teaching on Mary's Cooperation in the Redemption of Mankind here is a compilation of references by Fr. William Most.  

 http://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/marya3a.htm

At this point Fr. A had to leave and Fr. F continued sharing with us his insights on the Wedding Feast at Cana John 2:1-11.

From this Scripture passage we understand that:

Mary is not a stranger at the wedding she is a friend and she is known to the married couple and their family.  We know this because the family approached her and confided  to her their embarrassment that they had run out of wine. She directed them to her Son. 

MARY ALWAYS DIRECTS US TO HER SON.

Mary not only shares in the ups and downs of our life, she also shares in the life of the Church.

Like any good mother Mary is attentive to what is not said and she is sensitive to the needs of her children.

Mary’s advice to us is always, “Do whatever He tells you.”  Until that moment in time Jesus had not revealed His divinity publicly but Mary knew who He was.

Mary helps us to discover who Jesus is and she directs our gaze to Him.  Once we are directed to Jesus, Mary is no longer on the scene, she withdraws to the background giving Jesus center stage.

She believed in Jesus and this miracle in the presence of His disciples led them to believe in Him too.  Our belief in Christ must enable us to lead others to Him too.

New Testament References to Mary.

Pauline Foreshadowing of a Jewish Woman
Mark: The First Gospel Image of Mary
Matthew's Sketch of Mary
Luke's Portrait of Mary, the Mother of Jesus
The Gospel of John and the Mother of Jesus
The Vision of the Apocalypse: A Woman Clothed with the Sun: Revelation 11:15-12:17

http://campus.udayton.edu/mary/resources/bible.html

FLYING SOLO

The last two days have been days of firsts. Yesterday I gave a teaching for the first time to a prayer group other than our own Young Adults in Christ Fellowship. It is the first time that I have been tested outside familiar territory and today I was thrown into the deep end as I took my first Catechism class solo. I am happy to say  that I did not stutter in the first instance and I did not sink in the second, largely due to grace and the prayer support I had received.

The Holy Spirit was in control on both occasions, however, had I known in advance that I would have been left alone to take the Catechism class I would have been chewing my nails in nervous anxiety, uncertain about whether I could handle it.  Until yesterday I honestly believed that it would be a while before I could take a class on my own, now I know I can. There were times during the lesson when all the kids were actually listening attentively to what I was saying and I found that pretty exciting. 

Unfortunately, I did not have the teacher’s manual for Book II and I must frankly confess that I did what Fr. F warned catechists never to do – I read the lesson once just before I went for Mass, quite confident that I would play my comfortable task of class minder – a role I thoroughly enjoy. But God had other plans for me today. The senior teacher called just as class was about to begin and asked me to take the class as she was busy with another project and could not come,  she promised she would drop in later .  Bearing this comforting thought in mind that I would not be alone too long, I asked which of the children would like to say the opening prayer. We have a couple of bright sparks in class who carry a little booklet containing a collection of prayers for kids with them (both boys) which I think is interesting. One of them put up his hand shaking it vigorously so I asked him stand in front of the class and  he led us in the opening prayer. 

The subject for the day’s class was, “ Gifts of Bread and Wine” and ‘The Feeding of the 5000.’  I introduced the subject by asking them to tell me on which occasions they received gifts.  The whole class erupted in excitement as they spoke animatedly for a while on the subject – each one trying to outdo the other.  Then I asked them what was the greatest gift that God had given us. One of them said, “Our parents.”  I said, “Yes, our parents are a great gift, but they are not the greatest gift that we have received.” . I told them that Jesus was the greatest gift that the Father has given us and in turn, the greatest gift that Jesus gave us was Himself, Body and Blood in the Eucharist. 

There is this clever kid who normally raises his hand to answer every question that is asked.  Sometimes it seems that he says the first thing that  pops into his head but a couple of classes ago he told the senior teacher that he had come across the word adultery often in the Bible and wanted to know what it meant. One would imagine that Scripture was liberally sprinkled with this word. For a nanosecond there was pin drop silence as the kids were all ears waiting for the response. Hats off to the teacher who very calmly and briefly explained the meaning of the word. His next question was about divorce.  She looked him straight in the eye and said the Church does not permit divorce. It was said with such absolute finality, I believe the kids will remember this response for life.  Today  however,  this bright spark asked me an intelligent question as Fr. F would say. He wanted to know how it could be one Body when each one received Jesus in a separate round host.  I explained to them how Jesus took the bread, blessed it,  broke it and gave it to His disciples – in the same way  His own body would be broken for us in His Passion, it is this one Body that is broken that we receive in Holy Communion. He nodded his head in assent.

I called out three kids to stand in the front and asked each of them to read 5 verses from the Gospel of John 6:1-15  on the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish.   Mindful of what Fr. F told us during the course about standing up whenever we read the Gospel in class in order to give due reverence to God's Word, we all stood up and listened to the reading.   I discussed the passage with them, stressing on how God always satisfies and how He never runs out of blessings.  He gives to all and there is always plenty left over.  We also discussed the importance of readily giving what we have no matter how small and that God could work wonders with it.

The hour seemed to speed by and it was time to mark the attendance of the children.  I swiftly lost control of the class at this point as almost  everyone wanted to go to the washroom. Once the attendance was taken it was time for the closing prayer.   I did have a few difficult moments with the class clown but managed to keep him in control.  During the closing  prayer I invited him stand in front of the class, made him close his eyes, bow his head, join his hands and then I asked the rest of the class to look at him and assume the same posture while we prayed.  He squirmed a little but having no choice he stood angelically until the short pray was said and it was time to file out of the class.

I rushed down excitedly to meet my colleague, the senior catechist, to let her know that I had survived my solo flight.   I was pretty pleased with myself.  Hopefully my children went home with a greater sense of the wonder of the gift they are preparing to receive.

For my part, I resolve to be better prepared for the next class and to make sure I receive my copy of the teachers’ manual.