Welcome, God and All...
In my most recent post, i pondered: If you'd told a peasant teenager 2000+ years ago that she would be more a source of misunderstanding and division to Christians, would she still say 'yes' to God?
Mary, if you knew that your baby boy would one day save the nation, would you still...?
Wait a minute.
There are some things that Mary absolutely knew ahead of their time. When the Archangel Gabriel announces that Mary is to be the mother of Jesus, he clearly states that "great will be his dignity, and he will be called Son of the Most High" (Luke 1:32ab). Further, when the infant Jesus is first brought to the Temple, Simeon prophecies that "this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed" (Luke 2:34bc-35).
As also stated in my previous post, I've been watching the internet sensation The Chosen. Of great interest is how the character of Mother Mary (as opposed to Mary Magdalene) is portrayed. I am rediscovering something I set aside many years ago but is staring me (and many Catholics) in the face. You see, many of the doctrinal differences between Catholics and other Christian denominations is wrapped up in Mariology. The latter group looks at Mary being just another ordinary (and peasant) Jewish girl/woman who had an extraordinary part in salvation history; and that the birth of Jesus was not unlike any other birth in that era. Mary, already stressed out at the circumstances of having to deliver her child far from home and under far from ideal circumstances, would have experienced labor pains and would have had to clean the baby immediately after birth. And a significant number of Catholics would probably agree. But early Church fathers state that in order to preserve Mary's virginity, the holy infant miraculously emerged from her womb, with no labor pains or other discomforts of childbirth.
Trying to wrap my arms around this has not been easy. Simeon's prophecy indicated that she would know sorrow. She surely must have suffered emotional pain watching her Son dying an excruciatingly painful death. There is no reason to believe otherwise. Surely someone who suffered this kind of trauma could endure pain associated with childbirth.
Infallible teaching of the Catholic magisterium is rare. The top two are related to Mary. In 1870, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the dogma surrounding Mary's immaculate Conception. She was spared the stain of original sin so that she would be a proper vessel to bear the Christ child. Pius IX wrote, “From the very beginning, and before time began, the eternal Father chose and prepared for his only-begotten Son a Mother in whom the Son of God would become incarnate and from whom, in the blessed fullness of time, he would be born into this world." The second infallible teaching came eighty years later, when Pope Pius XII proclaimed the dogma of the Assumption of Mary into heaven, body and soul.
It's a good thing I'm not afraid to bring up this conundrum, especially among men who are taking steps to broaden their sense of spirituality. In the course of a few brief discussions, I came to understand a new (to me) phrase. I almost want to avoid using it, because it has negative implications in today's 'cancel' culture. (Indeed, statues of Mary have been vandalized; the most recent happening at the National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC. It is now that I can truly understand "atrocities" committed against the Virgin Mary and Jesus.)
The Blessed Virgin Mary was singularly privileged by God. One should easily see this, for when the archangel Gabriel greets her, she is called "favored" (Luke 1:28). When she visits her cousin Elizabeth, she acknowledges that "all generations will call me blessed; the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name" (1:48b-49).
Saint Bonaventure (1221-74) listed seven privileges of the Virgin Mary which can be read here. It's an excellent summation of how we should view the woman who followed the Lord's calling for her life. Centuries removed from this kind of teaching, I'm willing to bet that many average Catholics don't know all these particulars; or if they do, they misinterpret Mary's place in salvation history and attribute 'goddess' status to her. The Catholic Church points out that she is not, but it's not too difficult to take all that she has been to a higher level. And thus lies the source of debate - often heated - over a very special yet, to all outside appearances, otherwise ordinary young woman.
Mary was truly filled with the Holy Spirit, and the effects of this continue to this day. Otherwise, she could not have appeared in Lourdes, Fatima, Guadalupe, or any of the other places that have experienced Our Lady's presence. It's one of the deeper mysteries of Christianity, or so I've been told. Mary has received grace upon grace. Somehow, it's much easier for me to understand this complexity than to make sense of the intricate electronic systems and programming in my SUV.
Of course Mary knew. She pondered and treasured all of this and kept it - for all eternity - in her heart. Mary, Mary, how contrary we are. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God; that we may be worthy of the promises of Christ.
Until we meet again, May the Lord bless you and keep you...
+the Phoenix
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