[Forest Keeper]

While the Orthodox Church certainly considers Theotokos to be immaculate in every others way, by her own choice to obey God, she is as human and capable of sinning as any one of us.

You're right, Kosta, I wasn't clear on your take. Thanks for the info. And, just to be sure, you are saying that Mary could have sinned, but all through her life she chose not to, so she was sinless in terms of "performance"?

[annalex]

Mary could have sinned, but all through her life she chose not to

I don't believe the Catholic Church teaches any different in that regard; in fact Mary's free will is a very important part of Catholic mariology. It is a misunderstanding of the doctrine of Immaculate Conception to say that Mary was incapable of sinning. Right, Jo?

[kosta50]

you are saying that Mary could have sinned, but all through her life she chose not to...

Correct, that is the teaching of the Gree Church and the Latin Church, the details of which are a source of one of the major theological disagreements between us and the Latins and its roots are in +Augustine's concept of the "original sin."