Mary is present at almost every
major event in the life of Jesus Christ:
Jesus conception (Luke 1:31)
Jesus development in the womb, including the fetal development of John the
Baptist (Lk 1:43)
Jesus birth (Lk 2:7)
Offering Jesus to God (Lk 2:22)
Early childhood (Lk 2:22-38)
Jesus confirmation at age12 (Lk 2:49)
Jesus start in public ministry and the first of his miracles, which she
instigated. (Wedding at Cana Jn 2:3)
Jesus death on Calvary (Jn 19:26)
The birth of the Church at the Pentecost (Acts 1:14).
What does Mary say about herself in the
Bible?
Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, says "Who am I that the
mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Lk 1:43) This passage gives us a
title for Mary. She is "mother of my Lord." Some Evangelicals ask "why do you
call Mary the Mother of God?" It is because Scripture says so and simply because
Jesus was God and she was his mother.
Mary clearly spells out her role in eternity in Luke 1:46-49
My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in
God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of his maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
So her role is to magnify the Lord and rejoice in God her Saviour.
In Scripture Mary says, "My soul magnifies the Lord." A soul is
eternal. It is forever. I think it is important that she said "my soul." It is
an eternal statement. Mary reinforces this in the same Bible passage by saying
"all generations will call me blessed."
If Jesus is the Word made flesh, then we could consider
Mary as the Ark made flesh.
Let us now compare the Ark of the covenant in the old testament to Mary, who
Catholics believe is the new Ark.
The Ark of the Old Testament
Mary - The New Testament Ark of the New
Covenant
The Word was written by God on Tablets of Stone
(Ex 25:10)
The Word became Flesh (John 1)
The Ark carried the Word of God (Deut 10:1) The Ark
carried the Old Covenant.
Mary carried the Word of God (Lk 2:38) Mary carried
the New Covenant
David says "Who am I that the Ark of my Lord should come to me?"
(2 Sam 6:9)
Elizabeth says "Who am I that the mother of my Lord should come to me"
(Lk 1:43)
(Mary, was pregnant with Jesus)
When the Ark returned "David was leaping and dancing
before the Lord" (2 Sam 6:14)
The baby leaped for joy in Elizabeth's womb when Mary
came into Elizabeth's presence carrying Jesus in her womb. (Lk 2 38)
There I have set the ark in which is the covenant of
the Lord that he made with his people Israel (2Ch 6:11)
Jesus is the new Covenant and he is in Mary's womb, which makes Mary
the ark of the New Covenant. Elizabeth's husband Zachariah said "He has
remembered his holy covenant (Lk 1:72) ...The cup that is
poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood (Lk
22:20)
Joshua summoned the twelve men from the Israelite,
whom he had appointed, one from each tribe. Joshua said to them "Pass on
before the ark of the Lord your God." (Josh 4:4) There
were 12 stones like the 12 stars in Rev..
The ark of his covenant was seen within his temple;
... 12 :1 A great portent appeared in heaven: a woman ...and on her head a
crown of twelve stars. (Rev 11:19) representing the
tribes of Israel.
In Joshua Chapter 6, the Israelites circle Jerico with the Ark of the
Covenant and blowing horns for seven days before their
victory.
In Revelation Chapter 8-11 before the introduction the Ark of the
covenant (Chapter 12) the angels blow seven trumpets to
herold the victory over Satan.
The Ark of the Lord is a blessing to the house (2 Sam 6:11)
Mary goes into the hills and blesses Elizabeth's house (Lk 2 38)
The Ark is captured (1 Sam 4:11) and brought to a foreign land and
later returns (1 Sam 6:13)
Mary is exiled to a foreign land (Egypt) and later returns (Mat 2:14)
The Ark disappears (Jer 3:16) never to return until the New
Testament Revelation story
The Ark reappears as a lady who bears a son who is seated at the right
hand of God . Her children are Christians. (Rev 11:19)
It will not be like the covenant that I made...that they broke
though I was their husband (Jer 31:31)
The Holy spirit shall overshadow you; therefore the son to be born to
you ...will be called the Son of God (Lk 1:35) (The Holy
Spirit was Mary's spouse)
Catholics believe that their relationship to Mary is very biblical. They feel
it would be unbiblical to ignore her place in Scripture.
Mat 1:16, 18-25 (Mary to be found with Child), 2:11,
13-14, 20-23 (Maji flight to Egypt), 12:46-50 (Who is my mother?), 13:55 (is
his mother not Mary?)
Mark 3:31-35 (Your mother is outside), 6:3 (is he not son
of Mary?)
Luke 1:26-56 (Annunciation, visitation magnificat),
2:5-7, 16-19, 22, 33-35, 39, 41-51 (Nativity, shepherds, presentation, finding
in the temple), 8:19-21 (Your mother outside) 11:27-28 Blessed is the womb
that bore you
John 1:14 (incarnation), 2:1-5 (Cana), 6:42 (Do we not
know his mother), 19:25-27
Acts 1:14 (Gathered in prayer with Mary), Gal 4:4 (God
sent son born of woman)
Col 1:15, 18 (first born, Head of body)
Rev 11:19 (Ark in Heaven),12:1-17 (Woman clothed with the
sun)
Chart comparing Mary to Eve
The Fall
The Redemption
The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will
make a helper suitable for him." (Gen. 2:18)
"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. (Luke
1:38)
a servant is a helper
The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my
flesh. She shall be called 'Woman', because she was
taken out of Man...(Gen. 2:23)
And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does that have to
do with us? My hour has not yet come." (John 2:4)
"woman" is
an odd title for his Mother, and unusual for the day, Catholics think
there was a reason Jesus used that word
Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of
the man, and he brought her to the man. (Gen. 2:22)
Eve came out of Adam
But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a
woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might
receive the full rights of sons. (Galatians 4:4-5)
Jesus,the new Adam (1 Cor 15:22) came out of Mary (the new
Eve)
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD
God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say,
'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" (Gen.3:1)
his mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do
it." (John 2:5)
on one level she is amending the disobedience of Eve
Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The
woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." (Gen.
3:13)
And Mary said, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be
done to me according to your word." And the angel departed from
her. (Luke 1:38)
Mary's obedience vs. Eve's
disobedience
Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother
of all the living. (Gen. 3:20)
When Jesus then saw his mother, and the disciple whom He loved
standing nearby, He said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your
son!" Then He said to the disciple, "Behold, your
mother!" (John 19:26-27) Catholics believe at that moment Mary
was given as mother to all Christians. (As per Rev 19:26, explained
below)
This chart adapted from Catholic Apologist John Pacheco
of Catholic Legate
What is 'Veneration' ?
Veneration of the saints is the way in which the Catholic Church
honours and respects those who it regards as deserving of such action.
Catholic theology draws a clear distinction between veneration and
worship. Three Greek terms illustrate this point:
Latria ('Worship') - The adoration that is due to God alone.
Dulia ('Servitude') - The respect given to the saints.
Honouring the saints is seen is honouring God, because of his presence
and holiness in their lives.
Hyperdulia ('Higher Servitude') - The special veneration
given to the Virgin Mary, on account of her role as Mother of Christ.
Mary is also called the 'Mother of God' in the sense that the Son she
bore was truly God and part of the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy
Spirit.
We noted above that Mary commands a special role in Catholic theology. From her position as the Theotokos
(Greek: 'God-Bearer'), she is seen as having special intercessory gifts
and influence with her son.
Apart from the belief that Mary retained her virginity throughout
her whole life, the Catholic church has proclaimed two Marian dogmas:
The Immaculate Conception - In a papal encyclical Ineffabilis Deus (The Ineffable God) issued in 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed that:
"The
most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception,
by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the
merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, preserved immune
from all stain of original sin."
The word 'Immaculate' derives from the Latin Macula,
i.e. a mark or stain. To support this dogma, attention is drawn to Luke
1:28, in which the Angel Gabriel greets Mary with the words "Hail Mary, Full of Grace." (Latin: Ave Maria, Gratia Plena.)
The Assumption - First proclaimed in 1950 by Pope Pius XII in the encyclical Munificentissimus Deus (The generosity of God). This states that:
"...the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary having completed
the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul to heavenly
glory."
A distinction is drawn between the Ascension i.e. Christ rising to Heaven by his own divine power and Assumption,
which happens through divine intervention. For example, the Old
Testament includes the assumptions of Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) and Enoch
(Genesis 5:24). The question of whether Mary actually died remains an
open one within the church.
