"Never apologize for the
Blessed Virgin Mary!"
~~Mother Angelica
Posted on 02/10/2011 7:57:12 AM PST by Christian Engineer Mass
Jesus said that the truth will set us free. (John 8:32) However, He did not say that the truth would necessarily be easy to accept. It was painful for me to learn the information that I am about to share with you, but it was also liberating and it led to a closer relationship with God.
As a faithful Catholic, and later as a nun, I practiced Mary worship for many years without realizing it. The prayers and practices were so familiar. They were taught to me by good people, sincere people that I trusted. I prayed rosaries and wore a scapular and engaged in other “devotions” which I honestly thought were good and pleasing to God. Because of my lack of knowledge of the Bible and of Church history, I honestly had no idea that I was actually worshipping Mary.
If modern Catholic teachings and doctrines about Mary are true, then they will not be contrary to Scripture, the writings of the Early Fathers, or the decrees of past popes. For a devout Catholic to question these issues and put them to the test can be painful. It certainly was for me. However, it would be far more painful to have God correct us when we face Him on Judgment Day.
LETTING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH SPEAK FOR ITSELF
I believe in letting people speak for themselves. Therefore my primary sources about Catholic doctrines and history come from the Catholic Church.
First and foremost is the official Catechism of the Catholic Church which was written for the purpose of summarizing the essential and basic teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. It was approved by Pope John Paul II in 1992 and the English translation was released in 1994.
(Excerpt) Read more at parkviewgospelhall.com ...
WHAT was “written”?
And, Jesus may well have been speaking of the Hebrew Bible.
You know, the Hebrew Scriptures he found in the Jewish Temple, along with Maccabees and other Books that Protestants now reject?
Actually there is a woman visionary who lives outside Atlanta, GA that was having visions throughout the mid to late 1990's. I went up with some friends to experience one of the many prayer vigils and just before the prayers started - on a crystal clear blue cloudless sky, there appeared a perfectly formed cross of clouds. There was no mistaking it or interpreting it. It was very distinctive.
While there are no longer any organized prayer vigils on the property, I understand that she still does have visions in private.
And it wasn't Mary worshiping. My belief is that we Catholics pray to the saints (and Mary) for intercession before the Lord.
>>Troll.
Nothing but a troll.
To all posters. Do not feed the troll.
This troll is posting this because of this post: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2671531/posts
A simple troll.<<
Actually the OP already gave that post as the reason for this thread. This is not trolling. It is something that really does stimulate good discussion.
And, FWIW, the post just above yours cuts to the core of one of the problems with this “Mary was perfect. Mary was ever virgin.” baloney.
I don’t get into these arguments much. I used to but I found that arguing with the people that really believe this stuff about Mary is very similar to arguing Man Made Global Warming AlGore followers.
A friend of mine once said that the average person, when they first become a Christian, spends the first few years studying scripture to form their understanding of God and their relationship with God, and then the rest of their life using scripture to defend that position, no matter how overwhelming the evidence against a particular belief might be.
This “Mary Worship” thing is an excellent example. You can pull out huge amounts of scripture supporting the fact that Mary was just a woman that was indeed blessed by being the mother of Jesus. But I think too many people don’t fully grasp the meaning of the word “blessed”. It is not a divine word. It means “bringing great happiness or good fortune”. You, know, just as any mother is blessed by having a child they want, Mary was blessed, but even moreso because her child was to be the Son of God.
You do display Bible Worship if you do not believe that the Bible is a work of man, and not a work of God.
The Bible is not perfect. The Bible is inspired, but not Divine in its own right.
The Bible is a work of man.
Catholics do NOT worship Mary. Instead we ask her to pray for us.
Haven’t you ever asked anyone to pray for you?
Very interesting.
I agree with you.
Asking the Saints to pray for us is really no different from asking the living to pray for us.
>>Even so, a proper understanding of the Saints, including Mary, clearly makes the distinction between Deity and Saintly members of the Faithful.<<
I think the rub is the word “proper”. For starters, I believe that the bible uses the word “saints” to describe all followers of Jesus.
I agree with you about Bible worship. I think both sides (and I point a finger at myself when I say this) are guilty, from time to time, of complaining about the sliver in the other side’s eye while ignoring the log in their own.
I will say this though: What is written in the bible takes precedent over what any man says - even “early church fathers.”
Really? So the writings of Moses, Isaiah, David, etc. aren't the Bible in your view?
"Never apologize for the
Blessed Virgin Mary!"
~~Mother Angelica
>>Mary rather is to be honored and her intercession with Jesus and God sought.<<
That is no better, since the bible clearly teaches that Jesus is our untercessor. And where in the Bible does it say she is to be honored? Yes, I understand she was blessed, but that was in the vein of how our wold today would consider a lotto winner “blessed”. I am “blessed” that my wife consented to marry me. I am “blessed” by my children. I was “blessed” when I got a job a few years ago when the rest of the guys in my position didn’t. None of these mean I am to be “honored” more than any other flesh and blood human.
I wonder how large a subset of the Church it is since it seems very ethnic in nature. I grew up around mostly first and second generation immigrants from all over Europe, the Ukraine, Russia, etc. Focus or over focus on Mary seemed to be concentrated in a few parishes or areas. Some places there were statues everywhere and in others, right around the block, you couldn't find one. These folks were all in the same parish, though, because their kids with to the same parish school right across the street from the public school.
Locally, I don't know anyone who is anything like this woman although it wouldn't shock me to run into someone any more than it shocks me to run into someone who is Protestant and wants to prove that 2012 is the end of all things (with or without a Rapture depending on I don't know what). There are also a lot of Adventists around here who run the gamut of beliefs, all of which they're able to prove at the drop of a hat as well as telling you why they don't associate with those Adventists who are all wrong.
Hmm?
Mormons weren’t at all indian. ;) It’s a honkey religion.
They claim an angel called Moroni came to Joseph Smith, and told him to go west to Salt Lake.
Then the Angel gave him a new gospel carved on tablets of Gold, that no one has seen except Joseph Smith.
And that’s not even the insane part. The insane part is what was on those tablets.
Hi RobRoy,
hope you’re doing well. No “Mary Worship” in the Catholic Church, actually. As to the definition of “blessed” being the sole reason for Catholics venerating Mary, nope, FRiend. And, if truth be told, there is greater support for veneration of Mary, as the mother of Our Lord, than there is for the protestant doctrine of sola scriptura. Not that I wish to argue the rest of my lunch away. I’m content, as you said, that this will stimulate good discussion. Regarding the purported author of the linked piece, she could, if the story is accurate, be called a former Catholic Novice, but not a former Catholic Nun. Either way, regards.
Who’s asking you to?
Saying that one cannot be saved without a bible *is* bible worship. Saying that by scripture alone you are saved, *is* bible worship.
Who’s doing the saving, God or the bible? The Bible is God’s word, not the other way around.
Oh, and don’t get me started on the fact that they use a different canon. Cause they don’t like books that say, ‘hey, bible worship, not kosher’.
No, they did not.
I did not say that separate Books, separate Scripture did not exist.
What you are doing with your twisted argument, is like saying a photo album of an entire family existed, when, actually, the only phontoe at the time were Grand Dad and Grand Mother, since no other photos existed, of those who were not yet BORN!
“Honor thy Father and Mother”
pretty clear, huh?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.