Not replying to anyone in particular. I haven’t been on FR in quite a while. It amazes me that this discussion is still/always going on.
Simply...as high as you want to put Mary up on the temple, she will never be higher then Jesus. So any focus on her, is simply focus away from HIM.
Your break is SURELY over by now; as it's been almost 12 years...
Glad to have you on board.
I hope you can be with us a bit more often.
LOVED your testimony!
No one sees Mary higher than Jesus; however, it is silly to say that veneration of any saint takes something away from the focus on Jesus. That is why they are saints: because they “hear the word of God, and keep it”.