Virgin Mary?

Question

I am a Baptist that has married into a catholic family and I so totaly don't get this Virgin Mary obsession. I would like to hear from all parties as to the importants of Mary and if the catholic worship of her is founded and why. I want Biblical text to back up what you have to say.

Alot of you say that you don't worship her but you pray to her? Hows that work and can you give me some Bible verses to back it up.

As to the person who said that I should not try to change my wife's faith, we are both exploring the others faith because we need to be a house hold with ONE religous faith so as to not confuse our daughter when she gets big enough to ask these questions. Two faiths in one house is a bad combo for a child.

Answer 1

The Blessed Virgin Mary is important to Catholics because the Bible says she is important to God.

+ Mary is the handmaid of the Lord (Luke 1:38), a servant of God just like us.

+ Mary is the first Christian. All other Christians follow her on the road of faith. She is the model for all of us because she actively cooperated with the Will of God by saying "Yes" to God in the plan of salvation.

+ Mary is the model of faith. Mary's faith never wavered throughout Jesus' life, even while watching him die on the cross when most of the Apostles ran away.

+ Mary is full of grace. The angel Gabriel called her, "Full of grace" and said, "The Lord is with you." She is full of grace at that moment; the Lord is with her at that moment, before she says "yes" to the angel's question. Catholics believe the state of grace was with her since her Immaculate Conception. God prepared her for her later role as the mother of Jesus.

+ Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ, of God the Son.

+ Mary is a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, a tabernacle. The angel Gabriel says to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow." (Luke 1:35)

+ God praised Mary through His messenger, the angel Gabriel, "Rejoice, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you." If God and his angels praise Mary, shouldn't we?

+ Jesus honored Mary. Jesus kept the Commandments and did not sin. Jesus fulfilled the Commandment to honor both his father and his mother. WWJD? What would Jesus do? Jesus would and did honor Mary, his mother.

+ The Holy Spirit inspired praises of Mary. 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," and "Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." (Luke 1:41-45)

+ The Scriptures tell of Mary's place with Jesus. Mary gives birth to Jesus, presents him to the shepherds, to the wise men, to God in the Temple. She lived with him for many years in Nazareth, intercedes with Jesus in Cana, suffers with him at the foot of the Cross, and prays to him with the apostles in the Upper Room.

+ Mary was a prophet. "Behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me." (Luke 48-49) As Christians who believe the Bible, we must call Mary "blessed."

+ Mary is our Mother too. While he was on the Cross, Jesus said to his beloved disciple (who represents all Christians), "this is your mother." (John 19:27)

The Blessed Virgin Mary is not a goddess but the blessed daughter of God the Father, mother of God the Son, and dwelling place of God the Holy Spirit.

The Hail Mary prayer simply recites Bible passages (the Word of God) and asks Mary to pray for us:

Hail Mary Full of grace, the Lord is with you. (These are the words the angel Gabriel said to Mary, a Bible quote.)

Blessed are thou among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. (This is Mary's cousin Elizabeth's greeting, another bible quote.)

Holy Mary, (The angel Gabriel said she was full of grace and Elizabeth said she was blessed.)

Mother of God, (the Bible says Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ, God the Son)

Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. (A simple request to pray for us.)

Amen.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

If you have married into a Catholic family, you might at least take the time to learn the basics of your wife's beliefs - such as the fact that worship of Mary, or of anyone else except GOD, is absolutely forbidden by Catholic teaching. Catholics honor Mary for the unique role she played in salvation history, a partner with God in giving us a Savior. But Catholics worship no-one but the Most Holy Trinity - which I assume you as a Baptist also do.

Answer 3

Welll - I was raised Catholic then became a Protestant in my 30's.
One of the first things that struck me upon attending a Protestant church was the spontaneous prayer, the encouraging to read the Bible yourself and the community of a congregation - this seemed like such a more full life in Christ.
But - some things came to light and one of them was the Catholic emphasis on Mary. A great and beloved (by me as well) servant of God who did great things for God. But make no mistake - the emphais on Mary is a doctrine of the "church" and not of the Word (Bible - scripture). She is a special person in Christian history -obvioulsy - but to pray to her and give her many points of worship as are given to the Trinity? No.
Jesus was God in the flesh - when he revealed himself and brought the new covenant is just seems misguided to offer prayers and a position of worship to anyone else ( and what about confession with a mediary? No.). Christ is all sufficient (read Hebrews) and we need nothing else.
I have come to understand however that the adoration for her goes back to very early church history, and Catholics who follow these practices with her say it is because of how much Jesus loved his mother - and I respect that, but I think few analyze that and in my heart and spirit I am uncomfortable with it for the above reasons.
You won't find Biblical text leading to the practices and beliefs the Catholic church has for Mary - because there are none.
Your in-laws? Don't push it - but I certainly would not participate in it - having said that - I firmly believe Catholics are our brothers and sisters in Christ - and many will see the kingdom of God.

Interesting answers above... they don't worship her... but they do PRAY to her. Seems incongruent - but God looks on the heart.

Answer 4

I agree that a lot of Catholics are worshipping the Virgin Mary more than they worship God. I think that's wrong.
I am devoted to the Lady and I honour her & pray to her
for intercession to the Lord but I don't worship her. Worship should only be meant for God & He made that
clear in the 1st commandment. Mother Mary is the pure
& sinless icon example for Christians to follow. Her obedience & trust in God, her patience, perseverance
throughout the ordeal of her son's crucifixion deserves
the reverance given to her.

Answer 5

First of all, Catholics don't worship her, we HONOR her. And we honor her because Jesus did.

Whoever told you that we worship her lied to you. This is a lie that won't seem to go away because it gets repeated over and over again by people who don't know what the Catholic Church teaches.

I recommend these links to get you started:

Mary and the Saints:
http://www.catholic.com/library/mary_saints.asp

A former Baptist explains why he Converted to the Catholic Church:
http://www.ourcatholicfaith.org/

Eternal Word Television Network Website:
http://www.ewtn.com/

The Vatican Website:
http://www.vatican.va/

The website of another convert from Baptist to Catholic:
http://www.catholicconvert.com/

The Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology:
http://www.salvationhistory.com/

Catholicism in the Bible:
http://www.scripturecatholic.com/

Online Catholic Encyclopedia:
http://www.newadvent.org/

Answer 6

Welcome...I'm Catholic and my husband was a little confused about Mary when we first got married, too. Let me assure you, it is not an obsession, but honor to the Mother of the Lord.

To give you the basics: Catholics believe that Mary was sinless (as evidenced by the angel's greeting to her in Luke 1:28 "Hail, full of Grace.") She was Jesus' first believer...(remember the wedding at Cana?) and the first Christian. We believe that the Lord does not refuse what his mother asks, and therefore we pray for her intercession (we ask for her prayers on our behalf to Jesus)...it never hurts to have others praying for you.

Some common misconceptions: We do not think she is a goddess, she doesn't have any special powers (though being so favored by the Lord as to have his only Son is pretty special).

We don't think we can only pray to her to pray to the Lord. Catholics pray to Jesus, and for Mary's intercession on our behalf.

Another thing to remember: much of Catholic teaching about Mary...such as her assumption into Heaven...was handed down in Catholic tradition. Unlike protestant religions, we are not a sola scriptura Church, so every belief and practice we have does not necessarily have a corresponding scriptural reference. See (2 Thess. 2:15): "stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter."

For an excellent reference on Catholicism see www.catholic.com.

Good luck.

Answer 7

Hello,

My name is Ryan, and I'm a Catholic. I have found that alot of Baptist feel the same way as you. But, you seem to be open to the truth, and the answer. Catholics in fact DO NOT WORSHIP MARY. I want to get that across to you. Catholics pray to the Virgin Mary as an intersession to Christ, her son. The Lord. Intercession means that while we pray the Rosary to mary, Mary is the messager to her son, in a way. The Blessed Mother is someone who we Catholics look up to, as our Mother. And the Rosary is a way of Honoring her. Please tell me that you honor your mom, right. what's different from Mary? We do not intend to Worship her. But we pay respect to her, for being Christ mother, and the mother of the Earth. I really have faith in her, and how Catholics pray. I hope this answered your question.

Answer 8

That you cannot have, my friend. The new testament is not a story about the Blessed Virgin. It is about our salvation and of Jesus. Her story was not considered important enough for your salvation, however, there is very old literature, for instance, she "wrote" a letter to the people of Messina.

(Just do not let it become a division be tween you and your spouse.) Besides, all you have to do is ask her. She's a very gentle person. (edit: I know the difference between the Earth Mother and Jesus' Mother. I do not worship her, but honor her as Christ did, for that was his final instruction. "Love one another, as I have loved you.")

It is well known that the Evangelist St. Luke was a talented painter as well as a physician. He painted an icon presenting the Virgin Mary holding the Child Jesus, which many churches all over the world later on copied. Also, in a reference, it was mentioned that the historian Van Celub found an icon of the Archangel Michael during his visit to a Cathedral in Alexandria, that was also made by the Apostle Luke.

Three original copies of St. Luke's "Virgin and Child" were available, one, still present to our present day, at El-Seryan monastery of the Antiochene (Syriac or Jacobite) Orthodox Church, Jerusalem, the second at Virgin Mary (also called El-Seryan) Coptic Orthodox monastery, Egypt, and the third in Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome (? now in Cyprus).

St. Luke’s icons are said to be of the full "Hodegitria" type which means that the icon is a "guide" or "indicator of the way." According to tradition, the Mother of God was supposed to have blessed the portrait and said, "My blessing will remain always with this icon." St. Luke sent the portraits to Antioch with the text of his gospel. It remained there until the middle of the fifth century, when it was taken to Constantinople and placed in a monastery founded by the powerful Pulcheria, sister of Theodosius II. Finally, this version of the icon was brought from Constantinople to Cyprus during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus (1080-1118) and is present now at the "Holy Royal Monastery of Kykko Founded with a Cross" in Cyprus.

Saint Luke the Evangelist
Saint Luke, the author of the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, was a companion and fellow worker of Saint Paul. According to Colossians 4:11-14, he was a Gentile and a physician. St. Luke was arrested and martyred in Rome under Nero. He is the patron saint of physicians and artists. Feast day: October 18 (Coptic Orthodox: November 1).

Answer 9

Interestingly the original Rosary did not refer to Mary, it contained 'Our Father's'. The Liturgy of the Hours is older than the Rosary and is more biblical. If you examine the early Church there is none of the focus that you find appearing later on - in the 19th and 20th centuries when a number of revelations/visions of the virgin suddenly occurred.

Answer 10

It is interesting that the Orthodox faith and Roman Catholic faiths have always held that Mary was always Holy, but that it is not accepted by other Christians, who often say it came about in 1850 or some such, but they fail to consider that even Mohommad in 650 or so, considered her of considerable importance.

This is called Tradition of the church, which is capital "T" tradition, because it simply "always was." By benefit of the Church's age, we have these things.

She is not considered God.

Answer 11

mainly from Luke chp 1:28 good day highly favored one,Jehovah is with you. and vs 32 ,38 Mary said look Jehovah's slave girl. so the catholics worship Mary because she gave birth to Jehovah's son Jesus. but Jesus never worshiped his mother nor any of the apostles. maybe next time you will marry someone of your own faith. all the catholics i know wont marry a baptist only catholics.my guess is you didn't have a church wedding.