Mary, Mother of God, The Greatest of all Her Titles

http://www.catholicchristiananswers.com ^ | August 12, 2015 | Jessie Neace

[WVKayaker]

Hmmmmmm!

Some people think their truth is more important than THE Truth!

"I'm gonna tell mommy!"

[ealgeone]

Oh good grief. To the RM.....again....really? Some catholics are thin skinned to be sure.

[ealgeone]

LOL!

[CommerceComet]

If someone were to want to emphasize how important in the earth’s salvation history that Mary was, they would be hard pressed to find a better way to emphasize that than FORCING people to think about this exact theology.

This is where Protestants start getting nervous about Mary theology. The emphasis should be on Jesus, not Mary or any other. John the Baptist, who also had a very important role as the last of the prophets, the proclaimer of the Messiah, realized his secondary role when he stated "He must increase, I must decrease" (John 3:30). In Luke 11:27, Jesus deflected praise away from Mary which calls to question exactly how important was her role. Why take the scenic by-pass through Mary when you can take the direct expressway to Jesus?

She is important. All generations will call her blessed. The bible reveals that when Jesus’ other followers had fled, that His mom was still there for him. There at every point of conception, life, death, burial, resurrection.

Is Mary important? Yes and no, IMO. Mary had an important role and like others who also had important roles in God's redemptive plan, should be honored. However, like John the Baptist and others, her role is over. Salvation is through her son, not Mary. A Gospel presentation can be done without ever mentioning Mary - see Paul's statement in 1 Corinthians 15.

She was an amazing woman. I have no doubt that Jesus deeply loved His mom.

No disagreement here.

[aMorePerfectUnion]

If you don’t agree, just say you don’t.

“Yet I have told the truth here. Are you accusing personally me of subverting truthfulness and telling falsehoods?”

I do not believe “you told the truth here.” That may be your intent. I cannot read your mind.

I am not “accusing” you or anyone. I am saying that when you string facts together in a way that distorts the meaning, you are creating a beautiful falsehood.

Do you have to make it personal. Can we discuss this objectively, without it being about you?

[Mark17]

And please, don't say catholics don't pray to Mary for there is far too much evidence to the contrary.

I know I did, at one time in my life.

[NKP_Vet]

Christ started the Catholic Church, none other.

[ealgeone]

The bulk of the NT has little to do with Mary. After a brief mention in Acts 1, she disappears from the story.

[ealgeone]

But not the roman catholic church as there’s no pope, worship of Mary, indulgences, etc until corruption set in later on.

[MHGinTN]

In a rational world, your post should put all this harangue to rest. BUT with the religion of catholiciism there is an irrational disconnect from reality, to favor a pagan approach to religiosity.

BTW, thank you for the thorough post.

[MHGinTN]

“5. If each person of the Trinity can be addressed as God, then Mary is the mother of God, that is, the incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity. She is not the mother of the Father or of the Holy Spirit, or even of the pre-incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity.” Well said, Sir. Mary is not the Mother of the Father or the Holy Spirit, or even the pre-incarnate Christ.

[Iscool]

5. If each person of the Trinity can be addressed as God, then Mary is the mother of God, that is, the incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity. She is not the mother of the Father or of the Holy Spirit, or even of the pre-incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity.

Did the pre-incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity cease to exist (who was not Mary's son) when the incarnate 2nd person of the Trinity showed up???

How did Jesus change from not being the son of Mary to being the son of Mary??? And if he didn't, there must have been another Jesus...

Since before Creation Jesus/God never had a mother...Never needed one...And he stil doesn't...

It's like you guys don't understand why Jesus had to be born of a human woman...It certainly wasn't to have a mother to venerate...Jesus never even called her mother, or mom...He called her woman...

Jesus wasn't born of a woman so he could have a mediator between man and God...That's Jesus' role...Jesus wasn't born of a woman so he would have a mother to be the head of a church....

Mary was the human vessel God used to become a human...That's it...

Jesus had to become a fallen man thru a fallen woman to accomplish his purpose...

[BillyBoy]

>> by which logic Elizabeth was the grandmother of God and so forth <<

Ummm, nope. Elizabeth was Mary's cousin, not her mother.

Mary's mother is St. Anne (here's a link to an NON-Catholic site with information of Mary's mother, since the Catholic bashers on this thread continually insist that "the Catholics" made up this stuff, when in reality ALL of Christendom proclaimed it early on in Christianity: http://orthodoxwiki.org/Joachim_and_Anna )

The only "logic" on this thread from people objecting to the basic Christian doctrine that Jesus was God when he was in Mary's womb are making bizarrely illogical arguments with "logic" that would conclude:

President Obama's mother must be "greater" than the President, and he must have gotten his presidency from her, since she's accepted as the President's mother (and not merely "Barack Obama's mother").

A fireman's mother must have existed "before there were firemen", since she's recognized as the mother of one.

Angie Jolie must have "created" her Cambodian son that she adopted, she since is universally accepted as his mother.

In short, none of the "logic" objecting to the use of the term "Mother of God" is used in the real world for any motherhood. Contining to make up straw man arguments whose "logic" falls apart in when applied to any other situation isn't helping their cause.

[BillyBoy]

>> "Mother of God" which is seen in paganism and cults (Mormonism) <<

Wrong again. Mormonism does not use the title "Mother of God" at all, and the Mormon belief about Mary is FAR closer to Protestantism than Catholicism. (see http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/sep/08/mormons-mary-christians )

Mormons and Protestants agree that Mary is not special, sinned like everyone, should NOT be venerated and is just an ordinary women chosen to be the vessel to bring Jesus into the world. This Mormon/Protestant teaching (which came about in the 1600s for protestants and the 1800s for Mormons) is very far removed from early Christianity, which never taught that.

The main difference between Mormon and Protestant theology on Mary is that Mormons make the bizzaro claim that God the Father had sex with the Virgin Mary and impregnated her with Jesus (similar to Greek mythology on Hercules). Protestants, on the other hand, pretty much accept the traditional account of a miraculous pregnancy and virgin birth. I guess they think God the Father played Eeny-meeny-miny-moe and picked out some random woman for this extraordinary task.

[Arthur McGowan]

You can keep repeating the faces-in-the-clouds metaphor all you want, but unless you cite the SPECIFIC Scripture passages Staples discusses, and show EXACTLY HOW he is misinterpreting them, you are merely making gratuitous assertions.

And the principle is: What is gratuitously asserted may be gratuitously denied.

Here is where you can get the book you are afraid to read:

http://www.amazon.com/Behold-Your-Mother-Historical-Doctrines/dp/1938983807/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1440050350&sr=1-1&keywords=behold+your+mother

[Mark17]

Place maker

[ealgeone]

Can you cite a specific verse that clearly says Mary was without sin.....or she was an eternal virgin.....or that she was assumed?

[ealgeone]

What seminary did staples attend? Did he graduate? What specifically are his qualifications in this area that you place so much faith in?

[ealgeone]

You cite the liberal Guardian as your source.....a newspaper article?? LOL!

[daniel1212]

Jesus deflected praise away from Mary

This is true. Provided with a perfect opportunities to elevate Mary even to a small degree that Catholicism does beyond what is written - which simply presents Mary as a holy reverent, worshipful Spirit-filled surrendered instrument of God - the Lord did not but equated all who likewise did the Father's will to being like His mother.

While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him. Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. (Matthew 12:46-50)

And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it. (Luke 11:27-28)

Note that to be consistent with what pervades in Catholicism the Lord in the first instance would have left immediately to give heed to Mary, or at least it would be recorded that He therefore left the people to hear His mother, or said something that prioritized Mary. But instead of making it clear that Mary had a special priority as His Mother, as well as His brethren, the Lord reacts by asking "who is my mother, and who are my brethren," and answering it by declaring all who did the will of His Father in Heaven were His mother and brethren.

In so doing it is the Father in Heaven that is exalted, while Mary is placed with all His other brethren who did His will, which is how Mary became the mother of the incarnated Son of God.

Likewise in the second instance the consistent with Catholicism the Lord would have affirmed something like, "Yea, Mary is indeed blessed above all women, and blessed are all who hear the word of God, and keep it."

Note that the word "rather" (menounge) in Lk. 1:28 can mean "indeed" (Rm. 10:18; Phil. 3:8) (but "nay" in Rm. 9:20 KJV) though even the Douay-Rheims has "yes, rather" here, but which still does not render Mary to being blessed above women, but instead the Lord is careful to state that all who hear the word of God and keep it are also blessed.

Note also that Scripture nowhere says that Mary is blessed above women, though some Caths wrongly render Lk. 1:28,42 to say, and it is also said of another mother,

Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be, blessed shall she be above women in the tent. (Judges 5:24)