Posted on 05/31/2011 11:53:33 AM PDT by marshmallow
The Protoevangelium of James
“And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by [St. Anne], saying, ‘Anne! Anne! The Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive and shall bring forth, and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world.’ And Anne said, ‘As the Lord my God lives, if I beget either male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God, and it shall minister to him in the holy things all the days of its life.’ . . . And [from the time she was three] Mary was in the temple of the Lord as if she were a dove that dwelt there” (Protoevangelium of James 4, 7 [A.D. 120]).
“And when she was twelve years old there was held a council of priests, saying, ‘Behold, Mary has reached the age of twelve years in the temple of the Lord. What then shall we do with her, lest perchance she defile the sanctuary of the Lord?’ And they said to the high priest, ‘You stand by the altar of the Lord; go in and pray concerning her, and whatever the Lord shall manifest to you, that also will we do.’ . . . [A]nd he prayed concerning her, and behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him saying, ‘Zechariah! Zechariah! Go out and assemble the widowers of the people and let them bring each his rod, and to whomsoever the Lord shall show a sign, his wife shall she be. . . . And Joseph [was chosen]. . . . And the priest said to Joseph, ‘You have been chosen by lot to take into your keeping the Virgin of the Lord.’ But Joseph refused, saying, ‘I have children, and I am an old man, and she is a young girl’” (ibid., 8–9).
“And Annas the scribe came to him [Joseph] . . . and saw that Mary was with child. And he ran away to the priest and said to him, ‘Joseph, whom you did vouch for, has committed a grievous crime.’ And the priest said, ‘How so?’ And he said, ‘He has defiled the virgin whom he received out of the temple of the Lord and has married her by stealth’” (ibid., 15).
“And the priest said, ‘Mary, why have you done this? And why have you brought your soul low and forgotten the Lord your God?’ . . . And she wept bitterly saying, ‘As the Lord my God lives, I am pure before him, and know not man’” (ibid.).
Origen
“The Book [the Protoevangelium] of James [records] that the brethren of Jesus were sons of Joseph by a former wife, whom he married before Mary. Now those who say so wish to preserve the honor of Mary in virginity to the end, so that body of hers which was appointed to minister to the Word . . . might not know intercourse with a man after the Holy Spirit came into her and the power from on high overshadowed her. And I think it in harmony with reason that Jesus was the firstfruit among men of the purity which consists in [perpetual] chastity, and Mary was among women. For it were not pious to ascribe to any other than to her the firstfruit of virginity” (Commentary on Matthew 2:17 [A.D. 248]).
Hilary of Poitiers
“If they [the brethren of the Lord] had been Mary’s sons and not those taken from Joseph’s former marriage, she would never have been given over in the moment of the passion [crucifixion] to the apostle John as his mother, the Lord saying to each, ‘Woman, behold your son,’ and to John, ‘Behold your mother’ [John 19:26–27), as he bequeathed filial love to a disciple as a consolation to the one desolate" (Commentary on Matthew 1:4 [A.D. 354]).
Athanasius
“Let those, therefore, who deny that the Son is by nature from the Father and proper to his essence deny also that he took true human flesh from the ever-virgin Mary” (Discourses Against the Arians 2:70 [A.D. 360]).
Epiphanius of Salamis
“We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of all things, both visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God . . . who for us men and for our salvation came down and took flesh, that is, was born perfectly of the holy ever-virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit” (The Man Well-Anchored 120 [A.D. 374]).
“And to holy Mary, [the title] ‘Virgin’ is invariably added, for that holy woman remains undefiled” (Medicine Chest Against All Heresies 78:6 [A.D. 375]).
Jerome
“[Helvidius] produces Tertullian as a witness [to his view] and quotes Victorinus, bishop of Petavium. Of Tertullian, I say no more than that he did not belong to the Church. But as regards Victorinus, I assert what has already been proven from the gospel—that he [Victorinus] spoke of the brethren of the Lord not as being sons of Mary but brethren in the sense I have explained, that is to say, brethren in point of kinship, not by nature. [By discussing such things we] are . . . following the tiny streams of opinion. Might I not array against you the whole series of ancient writers? Ignatius, Polycarp, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and many other apostolic and eloquent men, who against [the heretics] Ebion, Theodotus of Byzantium, and Valentinus, held these same views and wrote volumes replete with wisdom. If you had ever read what they wrote, you would be a wiser man” (Against Helvidius: The Perpetual Virginity of Mary 19 [A.D. 383]).
“We believe that God was born of a virgin, because we read it. We do not believe that Mary was married after she brought forth her Son, because we do not read it. . . . You [Helvidius] say that Mary did not remain a virgin. As for myself, I claim that Joseph himself was a virgin, through Mary, so that a virgin Son might be born of a virginal wedlock” (ibid., 21).
Didymus the Blind
“It helps us to understand the terms ‘first-born’ and ‘only-begotten’ when the Evangelist tells that Mary remained a virgin ‘until she brought forth her first-born son’ [Matt. 1:25]; for neither did Mary, who is to be honored and praised above all others, marry anyone else, nor did she ever become the Mother of anyone else, but even after childbirth she remained always and forever an immaculate virgin” (The Trinity 3:4 [A.D. 386]).
Ambrose of Milan
“Imitate her [Mary], holy mothers, who in her only dearly beloved Son set forth so great an example of material virtue; for neither have you sweeter children [than Jesus], nor did the Virgin seek the consolation of being able to bear another son” (Letters 63:111 [A.D. 388]).
Pope Siricius I
“You had good reason to be horrified at the thought that another birth might issue from the same virginal womb from which Christ was born according to the flesh. For the Lord Jesus would never have chosen to be born of a virgin if he had ever judged that she would be so incontinent as to contaminate with the seed of human intercourse the birthplace of the Lord’s body, that court of the eternal king” (Letter to Bishop Anysius [A.D. 392]).
Augustine
“In being born of a Virgin who chose to remain a Virgin even before she knew who was to be born of her, Christ wanted to approve virginity rather than to impose it. And he wanted virginity to be of free choice even in that woman in whom he took upon himself the form of a slave” (Holy Virginity 4:4 [A.D. 401]).
“It was not the visible sun, but its invisible Creator who consecrated this day for us, when the Virgin Mother, fertile of womb and integral in her virginity, brought him forth, made visible for us, by whom, when he was invisible, she too was created. A Virgin conceiving, a Virgin bearing, a Virgin pregnant, a Virgin bringing forth, a Virgin perpetual. Why do you wonder at this, O man?” (Sermons 186:1 [A.D. 411]).
“Heretics called Antidicomarites are those who contradict the perpetual virginity of Mary and affirm that after Christ was born she was joined as one with her husband” (Heresies 56 [A.D. 428]).
Leporius
“We confess, therefore, that our Lord and God, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, born of the Father before the ages, and in times most recent, made man of the Holy Spirit and the ever-virgin Mary” (Document of Amendment 3 [A.D. 426]).
Cyril of Alexandria
“[T]he Word himself, coming into the Blessed Virgin herself, assumed for himself his own temple from the substance of the Virgin and came forth from her a man in all that could be externally discerned, while interiorly he was true God. Therefore he kept his Mother a virgin even after her childbearing” (Against Those Who Do Not Wish to Confess That the Holy Virgin is the Mother of God 4 [A.D. 430]).
Pope Leo I
“His [Christ’s] origin is different, but his [human] nature is the same. Human usage and custom were lacking, but by divine power a Virgin conceived, a Virgin bore, and Virgin she remained” (Sermons 22:2 [A.D. 450]).
I understand. Perhaps so.
However, I’m happy to extend peace and graciousness where I can with those calling themselves “Christian” regardless of our differences . . . at least to a point.
I last read whoever he is in 1970. I had him — okay, a BOOK of his —in my backpack in the Colorado Rockies.
As far as your book goes, include some recipes. That always draws a crowd. Do you have a title yet? Perhaps I can help:
Repetition Recipes and Rituals.
The Rosary and Sacred Scripture
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
Luke 1:28 “And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.”
The Greek kecharitomene means favored by grace, graced. Its tense suggests a permanent state of being “highly favored,” thus full of grace. Charity, the divine love within us, comes from the same root. God is infinite Goodness, infinite Love. Mary is perfect created goodness, filled to the limit of her finite being with grace or charity.
Blessed art thou among women
Luke 1:41-42a “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women...”
Luke 1:48 “For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.”
Among all women is a way to say the highest/greatest etc. of a group in Semitic languages (these words would likely have been spoken in Aramaic). Mary is being called the greatest of all women, greater than Ruth, greater than Sarah, greater than EVE! Since Eve was created immaculate (without original sin), Mary must have been conceived immaculate. And, although Eve fell into sin by her own free will, Mary must have corresponded to God’s grace and remained sinless. She could not otherwise be greater than Eve. Thus, as the Fathers of the Church unanimously assert, Mary is the New Eve who restores womanhood to God’s original intention and cooperates with the New Adam, her Son, for the Redemption of the world.
Blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus
Luke 1:42b “and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”
Jesus is Mary’s fruit. Good fruit does not come from anything but a good tree (Mt. 7:17-18)! The all-holy Son of God could not be the fruit of any other tree than the Immaculate Virgin.
Holy Mary, Mother of God
Luke 1:43 “And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Kyrios is the Greek word used by the Jews in the Septuagint Bible (Greek translation) for Yhwh, the Divine Name of God. In her greeting of Mary, Elizabeth is saying: “How is it that the mother of my God should come to me.” Against the heresies of the 4th and 5th centuries which tried to split the Person of Jesus into two, divine and human, denying one or the other, the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD proclaimed Mary Theotokos (God-bearer, i.e. mother of God). Jesus is a single Person, a Divine Person, the 2nd Person of the Most Holy Trinity. To be mother of the Person Jesus is to be mother of a Person who is God. Mary’s title protects this truth against errors which emphasize or deny, either the divinity or humanity of the Lord.
Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Luke 2:35 “...and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
John 2:5 “His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Mary sees a need and appeals to Her Son to satisfy it. He does. We turn to Mary to ask her to intercede with her Son in our daily spiritual and material needs, but especially at the hour of our death. At that moment our salvation hangs in the balance as the devil makes his final foray to deter us from the path to God (Rev. 2:10). It is not surprising, therefore, that both the Hail Mary and the Our Father conclude with an appeal to be delivered from the evil one.
LOL
Maybe I’ve forgotten that you were colorblind.
There might be a version using a different color. I don’t recall.
I know some use a variety of colors for Christ’s words, prophecy etc. Though I suspect that red is always reserved for Christ’s words.
Hey, Bro, someone asserted at lunch the other day that there are more OT prophecies about Christ’s 2nd Coming and/or rapture than there are about His first coming.
Have you discovered that in your studies?
I came across and odd claim the other day . . .
That Elvis had made a pact with the devil or the PTB or some such that resulted in his fame.
He started out an Assembly of God preacher’s son.
Sigh.
In a rush.
Won’t read that mass of text unless you ask me to.
What part of the Rockies?
On of the great phrases from the OT that rolls around my alleged mind I haven’t reckoned up the mentions but much of the OT is very “pointed” toward the eschaton, methinks.
Thanks. And PTB? Not sure what that is ...
Around Maroon Bells, does that sound right? We started a 4 week trip (with resupply) at Marble and, well, it was a gas.
I motorcycled fromLong Island to Colorado to go to Outward Bound. I wanted to gain self-confidence. About halfway through I realized “If you motorcycle from New York to Colorado, self-confidence probably isn’t your problem.”
You don’t have to read it if you PROMISE to buy my book — I should get a dog and a pipe for the picture on the back cover, right?
Darn, now I HAVE to write it ...
On of the great phrases from the OT that rolls around my alleged mind
Shoud have ended is "In that day," vaYom haHu.
As in, "In that day all typos will be cleared away, and the righteous will no longer need to proofread."
But, I say again, you may be risking judging by the outward appearance and not as the Lord judges. You seem only to hear the drone of the little old ladies and to forget that they have an interior.
If Salvation posted the "Recipe" then it's a safe bet that the context included the meditation on the mysteries. So you posted an incomplete description of the Rosary. So an opinion of what the Rosary actually is is incomplete if it is confined to what you posted.
As I don't believe saying a rosary can help me out if I lie ....
What is this "help me out" stuff? Do you guys only pray to get stuff? Don't you ever just enjoy being with God and thinking about him? That's why I pray the Rosary, to enjoy God and to spend time with him. That's pretty much the same reason I pray the LOTH.
Christianity is more than a matter of the bottom line, you know. It's about "the delights at his right hand forevermore." It's about one day in his courts being better than a thousand elsewhere, and so forth.
I'll stick with "bitter mockery," a bitterness so sharp that it seems to prevent responding to what is written in reply to your posts.
Did you ask this question for it to be answered? I answered, or tried to.
Is this not how the rosary works? That would CERTAINLY be a "help me out father" circumstance. And I would assume that a lie is a sin. Which would require at least half a rosary being said for absolution.
It doesn't matter. Complete Rosary. Incomplete Rosary. They are your repetitions, not mine.
"Get stuff"?? Too ludicrous for my time.
You pray the Rosary to enjoy God and spend time with him. Guess what, MD, there's another way to enjoy God and spend time with him. It's called Going Directly to God, where Christ is our Mediator. Not a bracelet of Mary.
Have a good one.
Similarly, to say,"The Rosary is....," and then give a description of a method of the recitation, is is to miss what the Rosary is in favor of what it looks like to someone not praying it.
Lovers, spouses, make love not just with certain bodily organs but with their hearts and minds. People praying the Rosary are engaging their hearts and minds in a way which cannot be seen and is entirely missed if all one notes is the prayers.
I hope that's clearer.
That is NOT how the Rosary works. It is also NOT how confession works. Penance does not earn or 'get' absolution.
Confession, IF one uses the rite, begins "Bless me father for I have sinned," which is an appeal for a prayer to help one make a good confession.
And not every penance includes Aves. Once the priest told me to pick a psalm (I picked ps 32) and spend some time with it. Other times it has been a suggestion to change a behavior.
In any event I don't do a penance to get stuff, or to be forgiven. I do a penance to live into the experience of sin, contrition, and forgiveness. God isn't impressed by my penances, such as they are. And Penance is not given "for absolution." This is a LOT of misinformation and foreign to my experience.
And I would assume that a lie is a sin. Which would require at least half a rosary being said for absolution.
You would assume mistakenly. Certainly a lie is a sin, but a penance is not REQUIRED for absolution and the penance does not work off sin. Sometimes I'll discuss with my confessor what a helpful or appropriate penance might be. Might be a Psalm, might be any number of things.
"Get stuff"?? Too ludicrous for my time.
Well maybe you are more important than I and your time more valuable than mine. I do try, when I make an accusation, to have the time to listen to the defense. But you seemed to insist that one prays the Rosary to 'get' something. That's what prompted the question. Even the post to which I am responding seems to insist on a quid pro quo approach to prayer, while it displayed a misunderstanding of nearly everything about "reconciliation".
Guess what, MD, there's another way to enjoy God and spend time with him.
Again assumptions. One is that I do not enjoy God in other ways or do not know of other ways. Another is that the Rosary is not going to God directly -- from someone who knows that the Lord's Prayer is part of the Rosary.
"bracelet of Mary"? You are just confirming my remark about "bitter mockery".
And you have not responded to my example of "meditating" on mystery.
I say to many atheists that I do not believe in the God they say they don't believe in. I say to many Protestants that I am not a member of the Catholic Church they describe. And I will say to you that, so far, what you have called the Rosary is not what I pray.
But it seems that you have already made up your mind about what the Rosary is or what it is to pray the Rosary or when it is prayed. (And you also have some bad information about confession and penances.)
So I don't know what you are attacking, but it's not the Church I go to.
In addition to being taken to task for the LOTH and our reliance on frequent reading of the Psalms, now a practice in which 18 of the prescribed areas of meditation are taken directly from Scripture is also, if imprecisely, attacked. Catholics are first told we do not rely enough on Scripture and then told that their prayerful time with the Bible or stories from the Bible somehow doesn't count or, even, doesn't even exist.
It's always interesting.
Does the Catholic Church offer a partial indulgence, the removal of part of the temporal punishment due to sin, to Catholics who pray the Rosary?
Sorry, I did not include the Catechism paragraphs when I asked you the RC101 question. They would be 971, 1674, and 2708.
However just because eating peanut butter makes me fat does not mean I eat to in order to get fat. Similarly just because praying the Rosary may get me an indulgence does not mean I pray the Rosary to get an indulgence.
Indulgences do not loom large in my legend. I don't think about them.
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