So when I stand up and put my hand over my heart for the national anthem at a football game, isn't that "worship," too?
BTW, the word "worship" is ambiguous. It means "to greatly honor" (in the antique form of the wedding vows, the groom promised to "worship" his wife!)
Theologians call the worship due to God, "latria". We do not offer "latria" to Mary or anyone else except God. From our point of view, bowing to someone or singing a song about them is not necessarily latria. Latria involves offering sacrifice, for one thing.
It could be. There are a lot of objects of worship. Football can be an object of worship. Money, a car, a rock star.
What I see objectively in all this Mary worship is the same thing I see in those who worship rock stars or movie stars.
BTW, the word "worship" is ambiguous. It means "to greatly honor" (in the antique form of the wedding vows, the groom promised to "worship" his wife!)
True, it is ambiguous. So why do you recoil when I say it sure looks like you "worship" Mary?
Quite honestly I don't see much difference in the way you "worship" Mary and the way you worship her Son.
When you pray to Mary and your prayer is answered, do you thank God or do you thank Mary?