But it wasn't Jesus who conquered them, nor bestowed the titles on anyone, nor co-opted their birthdays and holy days, nor implemented their rituals. That was an alter-christ.
In any case, in a fashion to which I am used, rather tan acknowledge that the fact I adduced refutes the false statement from your side that only “Roman Catholics” hold Mary to be holy (and what does your side hold “saint” to mean anyway?) you change the subject.
It doesn't change the subject at all. It is evident that the Roman church is not the only group that holds Mary to be holy. I am merely pointing out the fact that the title the Greeks give to Mary (again, not a title given to Mary by Christ) derives from an earlier time - as does everything having to do with her (and all your 'saints') elevation. And I assert that any calling Mary holy, need only to look to paganism to find the origin of the "Queen of Heaven", and the "Panagia".
It doesn't matter what the Greeks call her, or what you call her. What matters is that there is *no* evidence in all the Bible, nor in Hebrew tradition for this ascended female figure who is called "the Mother of us All". It has *no place* in what YHWH put in place from the very beginning. It DOES however, find reams... many volumes of evidence among the Pagans, in the 'mother goddess' which has forever been evident in the profane.
How very frightened and weak must be the faith in Truth of those who will change the subject to preserve the illusion of victory!
The heart of the matter will always be the syncretism which adopted this female goddess into the House of YHWH, along with many of her fellows, and a good many of their rituals and holy days to boot... That one would point to the Greeks and whine that 'they do it too,' sounds exactly like a recalcitrant child pointing to his fellows to lessen the culpability of his own crimes. *YOU* are responsible for what *you* believe:
We are to worship in spirit and in TRUTH. Those who are 'frightened and weak' are those who *will not* throw their faith upon the altar at any given moment to determine it's veracity, letting those things which are false burn away, so that the truth they hold is made more pure. Those who hold tradition to be equal to the Scriptures have the hardest time with this as 'truth' can be altered to suit the fancy of their organization - Which is one of the (if not "the") primary reasons that the concept of sola-scriptura is so vitally important. ANYTHING which takes away from what YHWH has placed from the foundations of the earth (Torah, Prophets, Yeshua, and the Kingdom) is *not* of YHWH, and must be, therefore, a distraction from the truth.
YHWH is not made that He should conform to the people. The people are made to conform to YHWH.