|
|
|
The Immaculate Conception
Mary, redeemed from the moment
of her conception.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church says:
491 Through the centuries the Church
has become ever more aware that Mary, "full of grace"
through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception.
That is what the dogma of the Immaculate
Conception confesses, as Pope Pius IX proclaimed in 1854: The
most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception,
by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue
of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, preserved
immune from all stain of original sin.
Dogma of the Immaculate
Conception
The Immaculate Conception refers
to Mary's conception, when she was formed in her mother's womb.
It means that Mary did not inherit the original sin of Adam and
Eve, which we all inherit. Hence, her son, who did not have a
human father could not inherit original sin from her. In this
way, Mary was a proper "vessel" to carry Jesus in her
womb. Mary was conceived in the normal human way through sexual
intercourse, but all that was missing was the inheritance of
the weakness we have to commit sin and turn from God (known as
Original Sin). Pope Sixtus IV approved the Feast of the Immaculate
Conception in 1476.
December 17, 1830, St. Catherine Labouré
clamed to have a vision of the Immaculate Conception, standing
on a globe, rays of light emanating from her hands spread out
toward the earth. The vision was surrounded by and oval frame
on which appeared the words: " O Mary, conceived without
sin pray for us who have recourse to thee." A voice commanded
Catherine to have medal created depicting the vision. This medal
was named the miraculous medal because of the miracles attributed
to it.
Pope Pius IX officially pronounced this
teaching in 1854 AD, but it has been professed by many of the
early Church Fathers from St. Ambrose and St. Augustine to St.
John Damascene, and was celebrated in the Eastern Church from
as far back as the 7th Century AD.
In 1858 Mary appeared many times near Lourdes
to Bernadette Soubirous, a simple girl of fourteen. The officials
asked Bernadette to seek the lady's name. "I am the Immaculate
Conception" was the reply.
Divine Motherhood
At the Council of Ephesus (A.D. 431), the Blessed Virgin Mary was proclaimed Theotokos, a Greek term that literally translates, "Birth-giver of God." (cf. CCC ß 495)
In the Gospel of Luke, Elizabeth greets Mary as "the mother of my Lord" (1:43). Since the earliest days†of Christianity, it has been acknowledged that the Blessed Virgin conceived and gave birth to a Divine Person, Jesus, the Son of God. Hence, Mary is rightly venerated as the Mother of God. Only by acknowledgment of Divine Maternity of Mary can faith in the Divinity of Jesus be upheld.
Perpetual Virginity
The Gospel narrative of the Annunciation states: "the angel Gabriel was sent from God, to a virgin, and the virgin's name was Mary" (cf. Luke 1:26-27). The Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, foretold the virginal conception of the Messiah as well: "the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel" (7:14). Matthew's Gospel repeats this prophecy (cf. 1:23). The Church confesses the real and perpetual virginity of Mary even in the act of giving birth to the Son of God made man. The birth of the Christ "did not diminish his mother's virginal integrity but sanctified it." (Lumen gentium, ß 57) Therefore, the Church celebrates Mary as the "Ever-virgin." (See CCC, ß 499-501).
Bodily Assumption into Heaven
The Church has never issued a definitive declaration about the end of†the earthly life of Mary. Eastern Christianity celebrates the Dormition (falling asleep) of Mary; theologians in the West conclude that Mary died in imitation of the bodily death of Jesus. In 1950, Pope Pius XII confirmed a belief held and observed for more than a millennium and solemnly proclaimed that Mary was taken body and soul into heaven.
God accorded Mary this privilege in honor of her Divine Maternity, her complete sinlessness, her spotless chastity, and for her share in her Son's redemptive work in the world. Maryís bodily assumption also anticipates the glorified body and place in heaven to be awarded to the faithful at the end of time.
|
|