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To: Blogger

The Holy Fathers (as an Orthodox Christian, for me that includes a whole lot more folk than the Bishops of Rome) point out that one can fall off of the Royal Road on the right side as well as the left.

That the demons have led some astray by inducing them to pass beyond the honor and veneration properly due to the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, and vainly name her 'Co-Redemptrix' or more foolish still declare her to be God, is not an argument to leave the path of truth on the opposite side by dismissing the judgements of the Holy Ecumenical Councils that calling her Theotokos, not Christotokos, is necessary to the defense of a sound understanding of the unity of Christ's person (on which equally with His full humanity and full divinity our salvation depends), or that she was and is virgin.


2,320 posted on 12/19/2006 7:49:40 PM PST by The_Reader_David (And when they behead your own people in the wars which are to come, then you will know. . .)
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To: The_Reader_David

As a Non-Catholic Christian, I don't see why, other than mentioning that she is Jesus' mother, Mary has to play into a sound understanding of Christology. You know the councils well. People went back and forth between is He all God and no man? Is He part God and part man? Is He all man carrying the Attributes of God? Etc., etc.,

At that time, using the term Theotokos MAY have helped clarify somthing - though I still believe Mother of Jesus suffices. Today, with Mary as Co-Redemptrix, Mediatrix, Advocate, Savior, and Creator of the Sabbath (as many Catholics believe), calling her Mother of God is just one more loaded term we could do without. Look at the discussion! We have folks denying that she ever felt pain when Jesus was born. She felt pain during His lifetime. A sword pierced through her heart too as His mother. But, we can't even let her be a normal human being and have to ascribe things to her that the Bible never does.

Such is a horrible injustice to God. To think that the God of the Universe, who sanctifies us, couldn't use a vessel like us (with original and other sin), sanctify it and bless her as the bearer of His Son? No. We have to have Mary not only being sinless but being immaculately conceived as well. It isn't right and it takes glory away from God by creating an alternate object of devotion. We are never told to be devoted to anyone other than God Himself. The Holy Spirit, when he came wouldn't even testify of His person but of Christ alone. And we are supposed to sanctify things to Mary's honor and glory?

She was a woman. A beautiful and holy woman. But just a woman. She wasn't higher than the rest of us. She wasn't sinless. She was blessed and faithful and we should admire her but not to the point that she becomes the object of our devotion.


2,323 posted on 12/19/2006 8:01:19 PM PST by Blogger
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