Is Mary the mother of all moms?
“The best thing about Mary is that her son turned out so well.”
—Inscription on a Conception Abbey greeting card
They didn’t give out Mother of the Year awards in 33 AD.
But if they did, Mary of Nazareth would have taken the prize.
Certainly, she’d have the whole “Mother of God” thing in her favor. But she was also a real woman who sewed her son’s clothes, faithfully followed his career and stayed at his side when he was suffering.
For some Christians, Mother’s Day serves as a reminder of the woman from Nazareth who became the most revered mother of the past 2,000 years.
But different denominations have different responses to Mary, ranging from benign neglect to veneration.
Throughout May, Catholics celebrate the woman they call “Queen of Heaven,” “Star of the Sea,” “Seat of Wisdom”, “Comforter of the Afflicted” and a variety of other poetic and spiritual appellations.
The Catholic Church’s reverence for Mary has earned it the scorn—and occasionally the derision—of Protestant denominations of all stripes.
At best, Catholics are mocked for worshiping statues.
At worst, they’re damned to hell for idolatry.
But Catholic theologians argue the church’s devotion to Mary is rooted in a fundamental belief of God’s love and Christ’s redemption.
All you need is love
Here’s one thing Christians agree on: Mary’s life was about love—relentless, continuous, undiminished, Mother-of-the-Year kind of love.
Any honor of her own, any grace she received, she gave away, said the Rev. John Laurance, associate professor of theology at Marquette University.
“She didn’t say, ‘I’m the greatest mother in the world, so I don’t need you kids,’” Laurance said. “She didn’t hold on to that grace, she spread it around. That’s what a mother is.”
Ideally, the church community should use Mary’s love as a model for their dealings with one another.
“We love God in and through one another,” Laurance said. “That’s what she represents.”
Worship worries
Here’s something all Catholic school children know: You don’t pray to Mary and the saints, you ask them to intercede for you.
“We believe in the power of intercessory prayers,” said the Rev. Randy Timmerman of St. John Vianney Catholic Church, Janesville.
Timmerman points to the story in the Gospel of Mark where a sick man’s friends lowered him through the roof so he could be near Christ. It doesn’t say that the sick man asked for help.
“It was the power of his friends’ faith that brought healing, ” Timmerman said.
Why not just go straight to Christ?
Again, it’s about believing in intercessory prayer and in love of a community united in Christ.
“It’s like if someone asked me to pray for them, and I said, ‘Why don’t you just pray to Jesus?’” Laurance said.
For many Protestants, kneeling in front of a statue and asking Mary to “intercede” is the same as worshiping her.
The problem is the word “worship,” which has been watered down, Laurance said.
But the early church made clear distinctions so believers knew which side their theological bread was buttered on.
In Latin, worship of God is defined as “latria,” while the honor and veneration given to Mary is defined as “hyperdulia” Laurance said. It is a term reserved for Mary alone.
“Jesus is the mediator of grace,” Timmerman said.
May 11, 2009 at 4:43 p.m.
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Oh, justsaynotomath...I just remembered a quote by Florynce Kennedy: "If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament."
May 11, 2009 at 4:41 p.m.
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Wow justsaynotomath...I always assumed you were a man. I wonder who else I'm wrong about...I've got to stop assuming these things, but it's just so easy when communicating anonymously over the internet.
May 11, 2009 at 4:39 p.m.
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Bikerjoe - we should be fair and give you the same opportunity as the others. You are making a claim that there is a supernatural being called the anti-christ, I assume that by the use of that term you are making the claim for god or christ as well.
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Do you have any evidence for such a massive claim?
May 11, 2009 at 3:57 p.m.
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If Mary existed she didn't have the right to choose that's for sure. women didn't have any rights. Religion was made for Man and he is welcome to keep it.
May 11, 2009 at 3:18 p.m.
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I guess it's only fair that I speak to the point of the story:
Mary seemed like a good mom. And except for a lot of interesting things in the New Testament that most chrisitans don't know about, her son's biggest fault was his chronic need to draw attention to himself.
May 11, 2009 at 3:07 p.m.
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Yeah, that trinity thing can be very confusing.
May 11, 2009 at 12:36 p.m.
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Hey~I truly believe that God was here first! Mary came after~she is the virgin Mother of Jesus~but NOT the Mother of God!
May 11, 2009 at 12:30 p.m.
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DrTalk, let's hear why you believe Jesus was produced by virgin birth.
May 11, 2009 at 11:54 a.m.
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DrTalk, I orignally said Greek.
But tell us how the idea of the virgin birth in chrisitanity came about.
BikerJoe, are you familiar with the psychological defense mechanism of projection?
Further, this talk about the anti-christ is proof positive that people gravitate toward christianity because they have a prior need to have enemies.
May 11, 2009 at 10:46 a.m.
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Ever notice the Spirit of the anti Christ will become angry and re-direct when confronted?
Even the Archangel Michael simply said.. “The Lord Rebuke you” ..
May 11, 2009 at 10:45 a.m.
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gazettefan,
The New Testament was written in Greek, not Latin.
May 11, 2009 at 9:17 a.m.
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Yes, it's great Orwellian double-think and double-speak to say that the non-belief in something is proof of the existence of that something.
May 11, 2009 at 9:14 a.m.
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I should have said the Latin word 'almah' was mistranslated to mean 'virgin'. 'Almah' means 'young woman.'
And neither Jesus nor Mary ever mentioned that he was produced by virgin birth.
May 11, 2009 at 8:45 a.m.
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BikerJoe, the mistranslation is but one theory. The theory I really prefer is that the claim of the virgin birth is based in the misogyny of the theologians who made up the whole thing: A woman who has had sex is dirty, even with the benefit of marriage. That belief is the progenitor of the madonna/whore complex.
Also, the story of a god produced by virgin birth was prevalent prior to Christ. Like many stories in the bible, the virgin birth one was pilfered.
And consider the current status of woman in the catholic church: sexless ('undirtied') and obedient to men.
That the virgin birth baloney came up much later in christianity is proven by the fact that Paul never mentioned it.
May 11, 2009 at 8:08 a.m.
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Bikerjoe. Do you think maybe the reason its so hard to prove the existence of the devil is because he really is not real? Maybe they told you that he hides evidence of his existence to help you to hold onto the belief that he is real?
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May 11, 2009 at 7:28 a.m.
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Another example of Gazettefan spreading mistruth and lies to the un-informed.. The Greek word he speaks of is ‘Parthenos” which translates to “A maiden, By implication an un-married daughter, a virgin” … A “Jewish Maiden or un-wed daughter” Would have been a “Virgin” … Thus there was no specific word for “Virgin” in the Early Greek language. ……….. Do you know the biggest lie used by the devil? (anti-Christ) … He tries to convince people he doesn’t exist.
May 10, 2009 at 11:50 p.m.
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I have prayed and asked Mama Mary, our Mother of Perpetual Help, for many things. All of my prayers have been granted thru Jesus. She is in my thoughts every day...
I love Mary and God very much, and hope you can learn to love them also. Your life will be better with more happiness, joy, peace, and love.
John
May 10, 2009 at 9:36 p.m.
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Early christian theologians misinterpreted a Greek word for 'young woman'. They thought it meant 'virgin.'
Paul made no mention of this 'virgin birth' stuff.
May 10, 2009 at 7:51 p.m.
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janesvillean ya what you said
May 10, 2009 at 7:49 p.m.
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Well, biggirl, it actually was in the religion section of the newspaper. I don't have a problem with the Gazette occasionally including feature writing, which is what this is. It certainly lets the reporters spread their arms.
May 10, 2009 at 7:17 p.m.
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Lets not forget the mortals that Zues slept with now, equal time for equal religions please.
May 10, 2009 at 5:58 p.m.
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Unam Sanctam Romanum Catolicam Ecclesiam; Christi Salvator Mundi; Maria, Mater Dei et Regina Coeli. Maria Mater Dei, ORA PRO NOBIS.
May 10, 2009 at 4:34 p.m.
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This should be in the opinion section, not the news section. What is the evidence that there even was a Mary? I know there is limited evidence from contemporaries that someone called Jesus existed, but I'm not sure there's any collaborating evidence that a virgin (a young unmarried woman) named Mary existed.
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