Writing this article is daunting! Writing about Mary is complex, but I hope that this exploration of the subject will dispel some of the confusions some Christis readers might have. Contrary to some claims, Catholics do not worship Mary! Like all Christians, we only worship God. We do consider Mary to be significant, because of her relationship with Jesus, and the origins of ‘Marian devotion’ are ancient, grounded in scripture, and stem from the earliest Christian traditions.

It was common in the early Christian communities to ask the ‘saints’ (those who had died and were thus already with God) to intercede for the ‘saints’ left on earth (us!), not because Christians can’t communicate with God directly — we can — but because it is natural to ask our ‘family’ who are already with the Lord, to pray for our needs. The saints in heaven are living, and asking for their prayers is the same as asking our friends or church to pray for us. The 1994 Catechism of the Catholic Church (Note 956) states: “Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness … they do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus (cf. 1 Tim 2:5) … So by their fraternal concern is our weakness greatly helped.” Asking Mary to pray for the church became common, since she was seen as still being part of the living Christian community, even after her death. Some say that addressing Mary detracts us from Christ. For me, this isn't true at all. Loving Mary does not mean we love God less. As Karl Rahner says: “God is not diminished by our becoming greater”. God is not loved less if we praise Mary, who is held in esteem not for herself, but because she points us towards Jesus. She isn't a distant figure, or some super-holy super-woman we can’t imitate. The Annunciation shows Mary as a woman of simple holiness who said YES to God and His plan of salvation. She had a unique and vital role to play in God’s plan of redemption, but instead of fearing God, Mary trusted Him. She sets an example for all Christians — if we allow God to carry out his plan in us, Jesus is spiritually conceived again. Like Mary, we can bring Jesus into the world.

Even after being told of her role in the most astonishing event ever to hit mankind, Mary thinks of another — her pregnant cousin Elizabeth (Lk 1:39–45). Elizabeth is the first person to honour Mary as the mother of God: “Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? … Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made by her Lord would be fulfilled.’” Clearly, Mary is blessed because she trusts in God’s promises.

Mary always points to Jesus, like at the marriage at Cana(Jn 2:1–11). Her message, “Do whatever he tells you” also applies to us. Jesus performed a miracle because Mary interceded, and he began his public ministry at his mum’s request! Even though his time had not yet come, Jesus did as Mary asked because he loved her. Mary prays that God’s will be done, never for anything which would displease him. To deny that Christ has a special affection for his mother is to deny his humanity. Most of us have reason to love and praise our mothers.

Mary's role in God’s plan does not end with the Incarnation. Mary was the person closest to Jesus from his birth till his death, and when she accepted to be the God’s mother, she also accepted suffering. Simeon warned Mary that “a sword will pierce your soul too” (Lk. 2:33–35). Mary stays close to her son, even as far as Calvary. She, and John (who symbolizes the Church) stood by the cross, where Jesus made her the mother of all Christians: “Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.” (Jn 19:26–7). Like John, we must make room for Mary as our mother.

As well as being the mother of God, Mary is the daughter of God. This makes her our sister. When Jesus asked “Who is my mother?” (Mat. 12:48–50) he was not denying his natural family ties nor his affection for Mary, but was asserting the primacy of the ties between his followers. Thus, we can all be mothers, brothers, sisters of God. Mary is Jesus’ mother not only naturally, but spiritually, because she was the first person to follow him and accept him. We also read in the Gospels: “It happened that as he [Jesus] was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Blessed the womb that bore you and the breasts that fed you!’ But he replied, ‘More blessed still are those who hear the word of God and keep it!’” (Lk. 11:27–28). Mary is blessed, because she did just that. As we can see, the Church's recognition of Mary’s importance comes largely from scripture. Tradition has also influenced Marian piety, an example being the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. This is the idea that Jesus was born of a woman who was preserved from original sin, so that he himself could be sinless. This idea began in the fourth century with St. Ambrose’s teaching that Mary was theotokos (God-bearer). This title was confirmed by the entire Church at the Council of Ephesus in AD 431. When Mary’s Immaculate Conception was officially declared as Church teaching in 1854, it was seen as the fruit of centuries’ thought and debate. Some of the ideas concerning Mary’s life derive from tried and tested tradition, reason, apocryphal sources (such as the second century Protoevangelium of James), as well as from scripture.

The Church’s attitude today is the result of centuries of thought and prayer. The first church in England, built at Glastonbury, sometime in the first century, was dedicated to the Virgin Mary. In the second century, St. Justin described Mary as a “second Eve”, whose obedience countered Eve’s disobedience, and she was soon described as “Mother of the Church”. After the Council of Ephesus, every major city had a church dedicated to Mary. The first prayer to Mary “Sub tuum praesidium” was written in the third century. The Hail Mary is an eleventh century scriptural prayer based on the salutations of Gabriel and Elizabeth. The Rosary prayer leads us to meditate more deeply on the life of Jesus. Mary is a marvellous exemplar for prayer. Her great praise, the Magnificat (Lk 1:46–55) shows her love of God. She was filled with the Spirit whilst praying with the apostles in the upper-room (Acts 1:14).

During the Middle Ages, devotion to saints became overly ornate. It became common to ‘honour’ Mary with grand titles and doctrines. I don’t think we need do this. It’s Mary’s humility which made her pleasing to God. As John Newman once observed: “people sometimes wonder that we call her [Mary] the Mother of life, of mercy, of salvation; what are all these titles compared to that one name, Mother of God?” Mary is real and human, not just a woman of symbols (though her symbolic significance in scripture is also striking). Mary did the washing up, suffered, loved, and gave birth to God! She lived life to the full by combining her humanity with the divine.

Despite Henry VIII’s personal affection for her, devotion to Mary was swept aside at the Reformation. Marian devotion was rejected, not for theological reasons, but because her ‘cult’ was bound-up with ritual and extravagance instead of real devotion. Luther accepted the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception for many years, and Bullinger believed in her Assumption. I believe that today, Mary can be a source of unity rather than division. The Anglican and Orthodox churches still observe her major feasts, and she appeals not only to Catholics, but to some Lutherans, Evangelicals, and many other groups.

Sadly, people often only associate the Blessed Virgin with apparitions. The Church has always been sceptical about visions, and Catholics are not obliged to accept them. We do not need, or expect any new revelation. At such places as Lourdes however, Mary never puts herself on a pedestal and says “look at me!”. She simply draws us back to her son through the gospel. Jesus can use his mother to spread the gospel, just as he can use us. 2,000 years ago, Mary undertook the task of bringing Jesus to the world. She continues to do that today.

Mary is the ultimate radical, because she gave her whole existence to love, not violence and repression. The Apocalypse describes her as the woman clothed with the sun, crushing sin, crowned as queen of the apostles. For many people, Mary is the archetypal powerful woman, yet her power is attained through humility, service and love. All Mary wants to do is bring the power of Jesus into our lives.

Sadly, some Christians have promoted devotion to Mary to the point of idolatry, whilst others have rejected her significance altogether. The figure of Mary can be misunderstood, and the Catholic Church has been wrongly excessive in some of its piety. However, the basis for Marian devotion is scriptural, reasonable and traditional. Why should we encourage devotion to Mary? Because of her exemplary life of following Jesus. The impetus for writing this article is that many people don’t understand what Mary is about. I would ask anyone who has any further questions to contact me, rather than pass-on ill-informed prejudice. Alternatively, I would advise anyone interested in the topic to read “How to Understand the Virgin Mary” by Jacques Bur (SCM Press Ltd, 1994), which can be borrowed by anyone from More House Library.

Karl Rahner described Mariology (the study of Mary’s place in the church) as “the most beautiful part of the doctrine [of grace]”. Simultaneously, it has been the cause of misunderstandings. Some people blindly state that simply because Catholics honour Mary, Mary herself must be bad. That is ridiculous! She is important for all Christians. Anyone who denies the significance of Mary is not reading his/her Bible. After all, she herself once said: “from now onwards all generations will call me blessed.” (Lk 1:48).

Johan Bergstrom-Allen