>>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.
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.
You do grasp the meaning of ‘full of grace?’
RobRoy,
If you look at the history of this thread, and the thread it refers to, you will see that the “Troll” comment is an echo of an identical post in that other thread by the originator of this thread.
At first, I also thought it was a harsh comment, but after looking I realised it was just a recipricol comment, so I let it go.
There is another word that is not often fully grasped. It is a Greek word. It is kecharitomene, often translated in English "full of grace".
It means, literally, "she who has been graced", and it's in the perfect passive tense which in Greek is used for a completed action.
Let that concept of completed action sink in for a moment.
How is it possible that when the Angel Gabriel addressed Our Lady, her endowing of grace had been completed? Is my endowing of grace completed? Is yours? Not while we're alive it ain't.
It is no accident that the Greek Orthodox Church--whose native language the New Testament is in--still to this day calls her "Panagia" = the All-Holy One.