Why should we pray to Virgin Mary? The reasons are many.
Why do Catholics pray to Mother Mary? Is Rosary really powerful?
The intercession of Mother Mary is very powerful as Jesus cannot neglect His mothers commands.This can be proved by the first miracle Jesus did at the wedding at Cana. – (John 2:1-11). Mother Mary told Jesus “They have no more wine.” And what was the final result? He turned water into wine.
In “The Poem of the Man-God” by Maria Valtorta, she says that Jesus told her about this incident as “I did it for Mary”. This proves that the intercession of Mother Mary is very very strong.
Mother Mary was blessed with Holy Spirit abundantly. We can see this as we read “At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Luke 1:39-41) ; just by Virgin Mary’s greeting.
Listen to the talk from Apologetics on Mary, Purgatory and The Bible
What the angels thought on this matter:-
When angel appeared before Zechariah,father of John, angel just greets him by his name ,nothing more although he was “upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly.” – (Luke 1:6)
When angel appeared before Joseph, the greeting was like this: “an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” – (Matthew 1:20). Angel greeted him ‘son of david’, thats all.
Now let us see how did the angel greet Virgin Mary. It goes like this: “The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” (Luke 1:28). See the difference….
Also read the article Mary, The Mystical Rose
I believe that Mary is an Angel in heaven now an we should pray to her she is one of Gods greatest gifts to us.
Love and Blessings,
AngelBaby
Yes, Mary is not just an angel in heaven. She is the queen of angels. Hail Mary.
I agree that Mary holds a special place being the handmaid of the Lord unto which she accepted her role to be the Mother of Jesus while still a virgin. Mary is necessary as part of the plan for salvation. Sin entered the world through one man (Adam) and one woman (Eve). As such it is necessary that the Messiah (true God and true man) enters the world as a child born of a woman(Mary)for Grace to enter into the world to save all.
However, just because she was highly favoured in the greeting of the angel does not mean we have to pray to her! Many great man (and women) were also highly favoured and even walked with God, e.g. Enoch and Noah. In fact, God took Enoch – And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.(Genesis 5:21) Then there is also Elijah who was also taken up into heaven. Even Moses (And He buried him [Moses]in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth Peor; but no one knows his grave to this day. Deut.34:6). Many men and women were chosen and filled with the Grace of God and they too where handmaids of the Lord to carry out His will. Should we pray to them too? Should we also pray to Abraham, our father in faith? God chose him over all the inhabitants of the earth to make His covenant and choose His people.
When we pray we only pray to Our Father in heaven as the Son (Jesus) commands us – Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4. For anything we ask the father in Jesus’ name, it will be granted to us. Jesus is our only way to the Father (John 14: 6, 10 -11, 28; 16:32). Why do we need any other thing or person to get us to God? (Rom. 10:9) . St. Paul explicitly mentions in Galatians 1:6-10 – 6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, 7 which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed. 10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
Cease all prayer to Mary for she is only human and has passed on. Salvation is only in Jesus. Amen. Come Lord Jesus.
I think you missed an important thing.
JOHN 19:26-27 — When Jesus saw His mother there, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,†and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.â€
Thus just before dying, Jesus gave all of us ‘a new mother’, Mother Mary. This means she holds the place of our Holy Mother and we can approach this Holy Mother for intercession.
Rosary is very powerful. It has done many wonders. John Paul II said, “The best prayer I like is the Rosaryâ€.
And above all, my personal experience with this powerful prayer is just enough for me, to keep praying for Virgin Mary’s intercession.
This is the facts: How many times is Mary mentioned in the bible order than relating to the birth and raising of Jesus? ZERO! There are more references to King David and Abraham but no one prays to them. God had favor by choosing Mary even though He could have chosen anyone else. THERE IS ONLY ONE KEY PLAYER IN GOD’S SALVATION – JESUS CHRIST. EVERYONE ELSE, INCLUDING MARY WAS/IS REPLACEABLE.
Rosary??? I don’t remember Jesus or his disciples praying the rosary!! Paul, John or Peter never prayed the rosary (according to scripture anyways). God, thru His Spirit, lives in the heart of true believers by the blood of Jesus… it’s has nothing to do with Mary. Mary was human like you and me and when you die, you can’t do anything for anyone.
I pray the Lord opens your eyes to his truths.
XDdMn
THE ONLY WAY TO THE FATHER IS JESUS CHRIST
THATS IT JESUS SAID IT DEAL WITH IT. IT IS THE FATHER SON AND THE HOLY SPRIT. GOD does not share his glory with no one. you should focus on GOD and no human. please dont pray to a man made statue i know you have read the 10 ten commandments–thou shall have no other GOD BEFORE ME.
I think that is absolutely truth to pray to The Virgin Mary, SHE asks to the people to pray the rosary.
To pray the rosary gives us a big strength for confronting all the bad situations in the life and peace in the heart.
The Virgin Mary is the most special, She is The Mother of Jesus.
The Virgin Mary and Jesus are the best examples for accepting the will of God with absolutely love.
Honor and Glory to God , The Virgin Mary and Jesus.
Catholic doctrine commands members to pray to the virgin Mary:
“By asking Mary to pray for us, we acknowledge ourselves to be poor sinners and we address ourselves to the ‘Mother of Mercy,’ the All-Holy One… May she welcome us as our mother at the hour of our passing to lead us to her son, Jesus, in paradise.†Pg. 644, #2677
It is imperative that you know whether these statements are from God or merely traditions of men. Therefore, we will examine each statement:
Asking Mary to pray for us: A tradition of men, not found in the Bible.
Mother of Mercy: Another tradition of men.
Mary is the All Holy One: A tradition of men. We’ve already shown that God is the only “All Holy One.â€
Mary welcomes us at death: A tradition of men, not taught in the Bible.
Mary leads us to Jesus: Another tradition of men, not found in God’s Word.
Please understand, Catholic friend, God never said any of these things. They are all traditions that came from the minds of early Catholic leaders:
“From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title of `Mother of God,’ to whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs…†Pg. 253, #971
That people should pray to Mary in their times of trouble is another tradition of men concocted by Catholic leaders of the past and handed down to Catholics today. Never does Jesus or anyone else in the Bible instruct people to pray to Mary.
Who should we pray to?
The Bible directly contradicts the Catechism by directing people to pray to God alone:
“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.†Jeremiah 33:3
“And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.†Psalm 50:15
When trouble comes, call upon God, not Mary:
“Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer… In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.†Psalm 86:6, 7
“He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.†Psalm 91:15
Literally hundreds of Scriptures teach us to flee to God when trouble comes our way. Not a single verse encourages us to pray to Mary:
“But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble.†Psalm 37:39
“O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.†Isaiah 33:2
“Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.†Psalm 41:1
Should you cast your burdens on Mary?
“Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.†Psalm 55:22
King David prayed all through the day… to God:
“Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.†Psalm 55:17
The psalmist proclaimed:
“The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.†Psalm 145:18
In the New Testament we read:
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.†Philippians 4:6
Who will you pray to?
God’s Word says pray to God. Catholicism would rather have you pray to Mary. Again, one must wonder why the Catechism demotes Jesus and exalts Mary. It seems the Catholic church does not want its members going to Jesus for anything. Yet, Jesus issued this invitation:
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.†Matthew 11:28
Either the Bible is wrong, or Catholicism is keeping you away from the One who is ready and willing to meet your every need.
Conclusion
Here is another critical decision you must make. Will you follow the Catholic traditions of men and pray to Mary?
Or will you obey the Holy Scriptures and direct your prayers to God?
“As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me.†Psalm 55:16
Hey there..
To all you people..
Just tell me one thing..
Is there anywhere written in the Bible, that we need to pray to Mary??
This was just created by early Christians..
Tell you what, I was born catholic.
But I dnt believe in Catholic church anymore.
Coz they Catholic church is the Antichrist, Who worship idols. they worship the SUN god.which the Egyptians did.
The satan has fooled everyone of us.
I’m just a comman man.
You need to listen to the people who were priest & cardinals in the vatican.. Listen to what they have to say..
Very much inspiration for the Ex-Jesuit priest Dr.Alberto rivera,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zDHxhUJLnQ
Revelation is clearly reveled…
St. Paul reminds us that we are more alive in Christ when we are dead. You must first understnd how the body of Christ works, how powerful the cloud of witnesses are above us. They are not concerned of earthly things any more, but only God’s kingdom. Thus being still united to Christ (even more so in death) they can pray for us! How valuable are the prayers of those connected to Christ, we are one body and death does not seperate us. This is why Mary can pray for us, but we do not pray to Mary.
These posts contain anger or disagreement to what people think they know about the Catholic faith, yet none actually argured against the truth of what is taught. For it is far easier to argue a false understanding than actually look at what is taught, for that might reveal facts anti catholics do not want to know. I know this becaus I persecuted the Catholic faith for decades until God in his mercy brought me to His Catholic Church 2 years ago.
Every position I oppossed was due to a gross misunderstanding and misrepresentation like perpetrated above.
Remember Chirst came for Salvation and to start a Church. That Church is still in existence and has grown from 12 men to 1.6 billion, praise God.
Peace to everyone on here seeking God.
For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.
The pray is with the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT in Jesus name.
God is our creator and he wants we adore him with all our heart.
So according to the bible we shouldn´t pray to Virgin Mary, graven image or something like that because they don´t have power.
I pray in Jesus name to God with the power of HOLY SPIRIT and his presence is the best in my life.
From the inside out!!
“Other than”? :) lol. The birth and raising of Jesus is a big deal. I guess St. Joseph is way way way down on the list of important Biblical persons, according to the logic you see to be espousing.
There are more references to King David and Abraham but no one prays to them.
Catholics and Orthodox do. We believe they are saints as well.
God had favor by choosing Mary even though He could have chosen anyone else. THERE IS ONLY ONE KEY PLAYER IN GOD’S SALVATION – JESUS CHRIST. EVERYONE ELSE, INCLUDING MARY WAS/IS REPLACEABLE.
We are all God’s children. As the best of fathers, do you really think God sees any of us as “replaceable”? Of course not! He wouldn’t be going through so much trouble to try and save us. Christians collaborate in the work of salvation, not because Christ is lacking and *needs* our help, but because He loves us! It is that love, the same love that makes us irreplaceable in His sight, that same love which eternally saves– that longs–yearns even to have His beloved (us) right there next to Him, sharing in His love and joy.
Rosary??? I don’t remember Jesus or his disciples praying the rosary!! Paul, John or Peter never prayed the rosary (according to scripture anyways).
Question. Should Christians only pray the prayers recorded in Scripture, should they not also pray from their own hearts?
God, thru His Spirit, lives in the heart of true believers by the blood of Jesus… it’s has nothing to do with Mary. Mary was human like you and me and when you die, you can’t do anything for anyone.
Then I wish never to die! I want to live forever, if death signifies the end of my love for others! But, no! Love is stronger than death. And love acts.
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Vince THE ONLY WAY TO THE FATHER IS JESUS CHRIST
THATS IT JESUS SAID IT DEAL WITH IT. IT IS THE FATHER SON AND THE HOLY SPRIT. GOD does not share his glory with no one. you should focus on GOD and no human. please dont pray to a man made statue i know you have read the 10 ten commandments–thou shall have no other GOD BEFORE ME.
But where does the Holy Spirit reside? In creatures. No mere creature has a right to call God Father, but it is the Holy Spirit, who has raised us up, beyond mere creatureliness and sits us with Jesus in the heavenly realms, where we cry out, “Abba! Father!”
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Travis Richardson The bible doesn’t say anywhere that we are to pray to Mary, this is an addition to The Holy Bible, which God forbides, no one should add or take away from the Word of God.
Well, then it would seem, allowing for no other argument in defense either way, that this is one of those things which Christians are free to do or not do. If the Bible truly does not say we should pray to Mary, then a Christian should be forced too. Likewise, if the Bible does not say we shouldn’t pray to Mary, then a Christian shouldn’t be forced not too. The not adding to Scripture (as you defined it) cuts both ways. Of course Catholics have a different understanding of what adding to Scripture implies.
Jesus never prayed to Mary and we are to immitate Him, also he says that anyone who does God’s will are His brother, mother, and sister,(Mathew 12:43-50)
And Mary became His mother precisely for that reason, Elizabeth cried out, “Blessed is she who believed that what the Lord said to her will be accomplished!” Jesus was not rebuking his mother, He wasn’t even addressing her, but the person who said, “Your mother and brothers are waiting outside to speak with you”.
Mary was an ordinary human being that succomb to sin just as any other sinner:
What does ordinary mean? No one is ordinary. There’s no such thing, each person is a one of a kind, never to be repeated—individual with their own one of a kind relationship to God. My relationship to Christ cannot be compared to yours, neither can yours be compared to mine and neither of us can be compared to Mary, whether regarding sin, growth in grace, or anything else belonging to our own particular relationship with God. Even if Mary was born with a propensity toward sin (I’m not saying she was, just saying “if”), that still doesn’t mean that she ever actual sinned. If this be the case, she wouldn’t be the first, babies, although they may be born with the “sin nature” cannot actually sin (according to Catholicism), because they have yet to reach the age of reason. BTW, within Catholic tradition, there are many saints who are said to have been born without the propensity to sin, St. Joseph and John the Baptist being two. The most pertinent difference to our discussion, is that Mary’s purification occured at conception, whereas St. Joseph’s and John the Baptist’s occured after conception.
There is only one who will help us to pray, which is in the Holy Spirit, Mary is not part of the Trinity; The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Salvation is in Christ and Christ alone. God Bless you all!
We are not a part of the Trinity according to the Divine nature. However, humanity has been assumed up into the Trinity, by virtue of Christ having taken on flesh.
Vincent
We should not pray to Mary or anyone else who has died.The Bible tell us that ALL who die in Christ are saints and “normal†people are no acception.
I fail to see where the Catholic Church would disagree with this.
The Scriptures also tell us that ALL has sinned including Mary so why pray to one who has sinned equal to one who hasn’t.
Even is she did sin (which we need to define ‘sin’ here), Mary will never be equal to God. The Catholic Church doesn’t claim that she is.
Mary cannot give the Gift of Salvation but only recieve it just as we do.
She did receive it, but she also gave it. A woman very much gives her child to the world. She conceives and carries it, delivers it, nurses and weans it, educates it, suffers, cries, and rejoices over it, and prepare it for it’s vocation in the world.
The ONLY one who should be prayed to is the one who payed the price for our sin who is the Lord Jesus.We have the same exact rights as Mary to pray to God but remember that there were Prophets before mary who spoke on behalf of God Most High that actually spoke for God.Though they [both mary and the prophets] were great Spiritual Giants we should not pray to any of our brothers or sisters in heaven and Mary or the Apostles are no acception.Hope this helps, God Bless
This isn’t about “rights” No one has to talk to anyone. You don’t have to call your mom on mother’s day or bring her flowers. We talk to our “heavenly” family, because they’re our family and we enjoy their company and even a sister can provide a shoulder to lean on, without taking anything away from God. And while Jesus did “pay the price”, let’s not forget all the sufferings, prayers, even deaths, of so many Christians, who went through what they went through to bring us the good news of salvation so that we would believe and thus be saved.
——————–
Flora
.1 Timothy 2:5 (New International Version)
For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.
The pray is with the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT in Jesus name.
God is our creator and he wants we adore him with all our heart.
So according to the bible we shouldn´t pray to Virgin Mary, graven image or something like that because they don´t have power.
Not of themselves, but the power they possess, they possess by their union with the Holy Spirit.
I’m always amazed at people who sit back and say their not Catholic anymore because the Catholics pray to Mary and the Saints. That is way off base. Mary is the Mother of Christ period. She intercedes for us to her Son. Many people misconstrude the love people have for Mary. It’s basically like the love our children have for us. She is our Mother and who would be better for us to go to when we want something from our Father or Brother? Our Mother because she wants to help us! Also, Mary wasn’t a Virgin from the moment she conceived the Child. Mary herself was conceived without sin. God chose her to be the Mother of his Son before she was born. Mary was born without sin. She also gave birth to Jesus without sin. Stop wasting so much energy on arguing about how important you think Mary is, and put all your energy in Christ Jesus! Nothing could be more full filling.
Many blessings are received by the rosary prayer. WE pray the “Our father” prayer that Jesus taught us to pray. The Hail Mary is written at the bible in Luke 1. Through this prayer we contemplate the whole life of Jesus through this prayer.WE worship Jesus through the rosary, and that’s why it is so powerful. Our Lady teach us to worship Jesus through this prayer and take us to his arms! We don’t worship Mary! that’s the real meaning. Of course that Jesus is the only way to Heaven , but Our Lady is the bridge ! God Bless everyone!!!
God bless you in the name of Jesus!Mary is the mistery of Christ. Mary is not above Jesus, but she is the Mother of Jesus. A sinner could never be the Mother of Jesus, our ONLY Lord and Savior. She was chosen because God found Grace in Her. How would you feel if someone say bad things about your mother? How do you think Jesus feel when people disrespect her? Does the Holly Spirit have blood? Of course not. But Jesus needed blood , and this blood was 100% donated by Mary when He was in he womb. Jesus’s blood heals, Jesus blood saves, Jesus’s blood frees! Jesus’s blood is Mary’s blood. Mary’s blood is Jesus blood.. Jesus’s cells are Mary’s cells. It is impossible to separate them. This is very deep. If you say Mary is a sinner, you say Jesus is a sinner. And this is a sin! Because He himself created Her to be His mom. He wanted it to be like this. Mary is not saint through her own power, but through God’s. She is perfect because God made her perfect, blessed, saint. And that’s what we can see in… Luke 1-40-42 Moved by charity, therefore, Mary goes to the house of her kinswoman. When Mary enters, Elizabeth replies to her greeting and feels the child leap in her womb, and being “filled with the Holy Spirit” she greets Mary with a loud cry: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (cf. Lk. 1:40-42. Elizabeth’s exclamation or acclamation was subsequently to become part of the Hail Mary, as a continuation of the angel’s greeting, thus becoming one of the Church’s most frequently used prayers. But still more significant are the words of Elizabeth in the question which follows: “And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Lk. 1:43) Elizabeth bears witness to Mary: she recognizes and proclaims that before her stands the Mother of the Lord, the Mother of the Messiah.
Mary is the mistery of Christ
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:3). These words of the Letter to the Ephesians reveal the eternal design of God the Father, his plan of man’s salvation in Christ. It is a universal plan, which concerns all men and women created in the image and likeness of God (cf. Gen. 1:26). Just as all are included in the creative work of God “in the beginning,” so all are eternally included in the divine plan of salvation, which is to be completely revealed, in the “fullness of time,” with the final coming of Christ. In fact, the God who is the “Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”-these are the next words of the same Letter-“chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
The divine plan of salvation-which was fully revealed to us with the coming of Christ-is eternal. And according to the teaching contained in the Letter just quoted and in other Pauline Letters (cf. Col. 1:12- 14; Rom. 3:24; Gal. 3:13; 2 Cor. 5:18-29), it is also eternally linked to Christ. It includes everyone, but it reserves a special place for the “woman” who is the Mother of him to whom the Father has entrusted the work of salvation.19 As the Second Vatican Council says, “she is already prophetically foreshadowed in that promise made to our first parents after their fall into sin”-according to the Book of Genesis (cf. 3:15). “Likewise she is the Virgin who is to conceive and bear a son, whose name will be called Emmanuel”- according to the words of Isaiah (cf. 7:14).20 In this way the Old Testament prepares that “fullness of time” when God “sent forth his Son, born of woman…so that we might receive adoption as sons.” The coming into the world of the Son of God is an event recorded in the first chapters of the Gospels according to Luke and Matthew.
Mary is definitively introduced into the mystery of Christ through this event: the Annunciation by the angel. This takes place at Nazareth, within the concrete circumstances of the history of Israel, the people which first received God’s promises. The divine messenger says to the Virgin: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you” (Lk. 1:28). Mary “was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be” (Lk. 1:29): what could those extraordinary words mean, and in particular the expression “full of grace” (kecharitoméne). If we wish to meditate together with Mary on these words, and especially on the expression “full of grace,” we can find a significant echo in the very passage from the Letter to the Ephesians quoted above. And if after the announcement of the heavenly messenger the Virgin of Nazareth is also called “blessed among women” (cf. Lk. 1:42), it is because of that blessing with which “God the Father” has filled us “in the heavenly places, in Christ.” It is a spiritual blessing which is meant for all people and which bears in itself fullness and universality (“every blessing”). It flows from that love which, in the Holy Spirit, unites the consubstantial Son to the Father. At the same time, it is a blessing poured out through Jesus Christ upon human history until the end: upon all people. This blessing, however, refers to Mary in a special and exceptional degree: for she was greeted by Elizabeth as “blessed among women.”
The double greeting is due to the fact that in the soul of this “daughter of Sion” there is manifested, in a sense, all the “glory of grace,” that grace which “the Father…has given us in his beloved Son.” For the messenger greets Mary as “full of grace”; he calls her thus as if it were her real name. He does not call her by her proper earthly name: Miryam (= Mary), but by this new name: “full of grace.” What does this name mean? Why does the archangel address the Virgin of Nazareth in this way?
In the language of the Bible “grace” means a special gift, which according to the New Testament has its source precisely in the Trinitarian life of God himself, God who is love (cf. 1 Jn. 4:8). The fruit of this love is “the election” of which the Letter to the Ephesians speaks. On the part of God, this election is the eternal desire to save man through a sharing in his own life (cf. 2 Pt. 1:4) in Christ: it is salvation through a sharing in supernatural life. The effect of this eternal gift, of this grace of man’s election by God, is like a seed of holiness, or a spring which rises in the soul as a gift from God himself, who through grace gives life and holiness to those who are chosen. In this way there is fulfilled, that is to say there comes about, that “blessing” of man “with every spiritual blessing,” that “being his adopted sons and daughters…in Christ,” in him who is eternally the “beloved Son” of the Father.
When we read that the messenger addresses Mary as “full of grace,” the Gospel context, which mingles revelations and ancient promises, enables us to understand that among all the “spiritual blessings in Christ” this is a special “blessing.” In the mystery of Christ she is present even “before the creation of the world,” as the one whom the Father “has chosen” as Mother of his Son in the Incarnation. And, what is more, together with the Father, the Son has chosen her, entrusting her eternally to the Spirit of holiness. In an entirely special and exceptional way Mary is united to Christ, and similarly she is eternally loved in this “beloved Son,” this Son who is of one being with the Father, in whom is concentrated all the “glory of grace.” At the same time, she is and remains perfectly open to this “gift from above” (cf. Jas. 1:17). As the Council teaches, Mary “stands out among the poor and humble of the Lord, who confidently await and receive salvation from him.”22
Peace be with you ! read part 2!
Part 2 -Mary Mistery of Christ.The election of Mary is election is fundamental for the accomplishment of God’s salvific designs for humanity, and if the eternal choice in Christ and the vocation to the dignity of adopted children is the destiny of everyone, then the election of Mary is wholly exceptional and unique. Hence also the singularity and uniqueness of her place in the mystery of Christ.
The divine messenger says to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High” (Lk. 1:30-32). And when the Virgin, disturbed by that extraordinary greeting, asks: “How shall this be, since I have no husband?” she receives from the angel the confirmation and explanation of the preceding words. Gabriel says to her: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God” (Lk. 1:35).
The Annunciation, therefore, is the revelation of the mystery of the Incarnation at the very beginning of its fulfillment on earth. God’s salvific giving of himself and his life, in some way to all creation but directly to man, reaches one of its high points in the mystery of the Incarnation. This is indeed a high point among all the gifts of grace conferred in the history of man and of the universe: Mary is “full of grace,” because it is precisely in her that the Incarnation of the Word, the hypostatic union of the Son of God with human nature, is accomplished and fulfilled. As the Council says, Mary is “the Mother of the Son of God. As a result she is also the favorite daughter of the Father and the temple of the Holy Spirit. Because of this gift of sublime grace, she far surpasses all other creatures, both in heaven and on earth.”
During the years of Jesus’ hidden life in the house at Nazareth, Mary’s life too is “hid with Christ in God” (cf. Col. 3:3) through faith. For faith is contact with the mystery of God. Every day Mary is in constant contact with the ineffable mystery of God made man, a mystery that surpasses everything revealed in the Old Covenant. From the moment of the Annunciation, the mind of the Virgin-Mother has been initiated into the radical “newness” of God’s self-revelation and has been made aware of the mystery. She is the first of those “little ones” of whom Jesus will say one day: “Father, …you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes” (Mt. 11:25). For “no one knows the Son except the Father” (Mt. 11:27). If this is the case, how can Mary “know the Son”? Of course she does not know him as the Father does; and yet she is the first of those to whom the Father “has chosen to reveal him” (cf. Mt. 11:26-27; 1 Cor. 2:11). If though, from the moment of the Annunciation, the Son-whom only the Father knows completely, as the one who begets him in the eternal “today” (cf. Ps. 2:7) was revealed to Mary, she, his Mother, is in contact with the truth about her Son only in faith and through faith! She is therefore blessed, because “she has believed,” and continues to believe day after day amidst all the trials and the adversities of Jesus’ infancy and then during the years of the hidden life at Nazareth, where he “was obedient to them” (Lk. 2:51). He was obedient both to Mary and also to Joseph, since Joseph took the place of his father in people’s eyes; for this reason, the Son of Mary was regarded by the people as “the carpenter’s son” (Mt. 13:55).
Jesus was obedient to His mother.
From this point of view, particularly eloquent is the passage in the Gospel of John which presents Mary at the wedding feast of Cana. She appears there as the Mother of Jesus at the beginning of his public life: “There was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples” (Jn. 2:1-2). From the text it appears that Jesus and his disciples were invited together with Mary, as if by reason of her presence at the celebration: the Son seems to have been invited because of his mother. We are familiar with the sequence of events which resulted from that invitation, that “beginning of the signs” wrought by Jesus-the water changed into wine-which prompts the Evangelist to say that Jesus “manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (Jn. 2:11).Mary is present at Cana in Galilee as the Mother of Jesus, and in a significant way she contributes to that “beginning of the signs” which reveal the messianic power of her Son. We read: “When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘O woman, what have you to do with me? My hour has not yet come'” (Jn. 2:3-4). In John’s Gospel that “hour” means the time appointed by the Father when the Son accomplishes his task and is to be glorified (cf. Jn. 7:30; 8:20; 12:23, 27; 13:1; 17:1; 19:27). Even though Jesus’ reply to his mother sounds like a refusal (especially if we consider the blunt statement “My hour has not yet come” rather than the question), Mary nevertheless turns to the servants and says to them: “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn. 2:5). Then Jesus orders the servants to fill the stone jars with water, and the water becomes wine, better than the wine which has previously been served to the wedding guests.
What deep understanding existed between Jesus and his mother? How can we probe the mystery of their intimate spiritual union? But the fact speaks for itself. It is certain that that event already quite clearly outlines the new dimension, the new meaning of Mary’s motherhood. Her motherhood has a significance which is not exclusively contained in the words of Jesus and in the various episodes reported by the Synoptics (Lk. 11:27-28 and Lk. 8:19-21; Mt. 12:46-50; Mk. 3:31-35). In these texts Jesus means above all to contrast the motherhood resulting from the fact of birth with what this “motherhood” (and also “brotherhood”) is to be in the dimension of the Kingdom of God, in the salvific radius of God’s fatherhood. In John’s text on the other hand, the description of the Cana event outlines what is actually manifested as a new kind of motherhood according to the spirit and not just according to the flesh, that is to say Mary’s solicitude for human beings, her coming to them in the wide variety of their wants and needs. At Cana in Galilee there is shown only one concrete aspect of human need, apparently a small one of little importance (“They have no wine”). But it has a symbolic value: this coming to the aid of human needs means, at the same time, bringing those needs within the radius of Christ’s messianic mission and salvific power. Thus there is a mediation: Mary places herself between her Son and mankind in the reality of their wants, needs and sufferings. She puts herself “in the middle,” that is to say she acts as a mediatrix not as an outsider, but in her position as mother. She knows that as such she can point out to her Son the needs of mankind, and in fact, she “has the right” to do so. Her mediation is thus in the nature of intercession: Mary “intercedes” for mankind. And that is not all. As a mother she also wishes the messianic power of her Son to be manifested, that salvific power of his which is meant to help man in his misfortunes, to free him from the evil which in various forms and degrees weighs heavily upon his life. Precisely as the Prophet Isaiah had foretold about the Messiah in the famous passage which Jesus quoted before his fellow townsfolk in Nazareth: “To preach good news to the poor…to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind…” (cf. Lk. 4:18).
Part 3- Peace be with you!
Is Jesus thereby distancing himself from his mother according to the flesh? Does he perhaps wish to leave her in the hidden obscurity which she herself has chosen? If this seems to be the case from the tone of those words, one must nevertheless note that the new and different motherhood which Jesus speaks of to his disciples refers precisely to Mary in a very special way. Is not Mary the first of “those who hear the word of God and do it”? And therefore does not the blessing uttered by Jesus in response to the woman in the crowd refer primarily to her? Without any doubt, Mary is worthy of blessing by the very fact that she became the mother of Jesus according to the flesh (“Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked”), but also and especially because already at the Annunciation she accepted the word of God, because she believed it, because she was obedient to God, and because she “kept” the word and “pondered it in her heart” (cf. Lk. 1:38, 45; 2:19, 51) and by means of her whole life accomplished it. Thus we can say that the blessing proclaimed by Jesus is not in opposition, despite appearances, to the blessing uttered by the unknown woman, but rather coincides with that blessing in the person of this Virgin Mother, who called herself only “the handmaid of the Lord” (Lk. 1:38). If it is true that “all generations will call her blessed” (cf. Lk. 1:48), then it can be said that the unnamed woman was the first to confirm unwittingly that prophetic phrase of Mary’s Magnificat and to begin the Magnificat of the ages.
Another essential element of Mary’s maternal task is found in her words to the servants: “Do whatever he tells you.” The Mother of Christ presents herself as the spokeswoman of her Son’s will, pointing out those things which must be done so that the salvific power of the Messiah may be manifested. At Cana, thanks to the intercession of Mary and the obedience of the servants, Jesus begins “his hour.” At Cana Mary appears as believing in Jesus. Her faith evokes his first “sign” and helps to kindle the faith of the disciples.
God Bless you !