There is no such thing as “Mary Worship.”
Catholics have told protestants this time and time again.
We ask Mary to intercede with her Son and pray for us. That’s it.
PS. Have you ever asked anyone to pray for you? Same thing.
I had never prayed to someone to pray for me.
I believe ‘Intercessory Prayer’ is a mainstay of Fundamentalist Protestantism. It is considered one of the gifts of the Spirit.
(I’m Anglican so all of y’all hate me :-> )
I’m a CATHOLIC!!! Of course we don’t do MARY WORSHIP> you really misread what I said.
But that's not it...You bow to a statue of Mary...You don't bow to a statue or picture of your uncle Willard...
You don't plant a bathtub in your front yard and decorate it all up with an icon of your aunt Harriet inside as a temple or altar...In fact, I have yet to see one of these tubs with a statue of Jesus in it...Not a single one...
You guys pray to Mary and ask her to provide you with grace, because she is the dispenser of all graces...
You ask your saints to supernaturally find your car keys, to protect you while you drive down the road and to keep an eye on your cat so he doesn't have an accident in your house...
Protestants don't blindly make these accusations that you worship Mary and your saints...Of course you deny it but you provide the visible evidence...
We see and hear you guys worshipping these things...You just like to call it what is isn't...
The praises heaped upon the Blessed Mother by we Catholics go far beyond simply asking for prayers. They are a form of worship (and so is praise heaped upon the rest of the cloud of saints and angels), they simply are not equal in any way to the worship owed and given to Almighty God.
We even have terms for this - dulia - the worship given the saints - and latria - the worship given to Almighty God. Dulia is also extended to sacred persons who are living - we show this by genuflecting before a Bishop or Royalty, the reverential attention given to a judge and his commands, and of course, the respect owed to our elders and parents.
Dulia = piety, latria = adoration.
I know this is very complex for an American Protestant, involving as it does words in foreign languages.