She was simply a girl.
Do you focus more on mary than Jesus? Have you ever had a personal relationship with him?
2007-12-12 10:42:53 · 8 answers · asked by Terence W 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
We worship Jesus Christ as God the Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity.
We honor the Blessed Virgin Mary as a saint. We do not focus on her more than her son.
+ Saints +
Catholics share the belief in the Communion of Saints with many other Christians, including the Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Episcopal, and Methodist Churches.
The Communion of Saints is the belief where all saints are intimately related in the Body of Christ, a family. When you die and go to heaven, you do not leave this family.
Everyone in heaven or on their way to heaven are saints, you, me, my deceased grandmother, Mary the mother of Jesus, Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II.
As part of this family, you may ask your family and friends living here on earth to pray for you. Or, you may also ask the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Andrew, or your deceased grandmother living in heaven to pray for you.
Prayer to saints in heaven is simple communication, not worship.
Asking others to pray for you whether your loved ones on Earth or your loved ones in heaven is always optional.
For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 946 and following: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p5.htm#946
+ The Blessed Virgin Mary +
"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Luke 1:28)
"Blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb" (Luke 1:42).
In Luke 1:48, Mary prophesied: "From henceforth all generations shall call me blessed."
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.
For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 2673 and following: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt4sect1chpt2art2.htm
A question for Christians who take the Bible literally: Do you call Mary "blessed"? If not, why?
+ With love in Christ.
2007-12-13 17:02:41 · answer #1 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mother Mary is Jesus' mother, Mary, whom He gave to us to mother us and help us stay on the path to Him.
We pray to her because she's in heaven now and that's how you talk to people who are living in heaven. If she was still on earth, we'd call her up or e-mail her or something, but those systems don't work when you're trying to reach the people in heaven.
We want to talk to her because she's our mother and because she helps us. See John 2. Ask yourself why Mary is mentioned in that story at all if she doesn't matter.
Mary was simply girl in one way, but she was a lot more than that in other ways. She gave Jesus His humanity, for one thing, and she fed Him, nurtured Him, and raised Him in a most godly way. And then after that, she told people "Do whatever He tells you to do." She's the first to believe in Jesus, the first to receive the Holy Spirit, the first who ever laid down her life for Jesus' sake (childbirth was the #1 killer of women until about 150 years ago). She is the first Christian and the truest and most devoted of all His followers ever, so we can all learn a lot from her.
No, we don't focus more on Mary than Jesus. That would be impossible because Mary is only worth notice because she points us to Christ!
Yes, I have a personal relationship with Jesus. He is my Savior, and I love Him. I worship Him, I pray to Him, I try my best to grow like Him and to follow Him and to do what He bids me to do, and I receive Him through the Sacraments. All my hope for salvation is placed on Him.
2007-12-13 10:42:19 · answer #2 · answered by sparki777 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
All catholics have a personal relationship with Jesus. That is all you hear about, especially during your devotionals and daily bible readings of the new testament.
Mary is the woman that gave birth to Jesus (more commonly known as "Mother").
2007-12-12 18:57:22 · answer #3 · answered by Sapere Aude 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Mary was the mother of Jesus. In all honesty, I don't care. I'd rather be Wiccan.
2007-12-12 18:48:55 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Have you ever had a personal relationship with Buddha? No? How about Zoroaster, or Rasta, or Muhammad, or the FSM?
How about you stop worrying about what other people believe and not nitpick or second-guess them to death?
2007-12-12 18:50:20 · answer #5 · answered by ಠ__ಠ 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I have always wondered the same thing I think they view Mary as a saint but *shrug* I really don't know
2007-12-12 18:48:52 · answer #6 · answered by Candace B 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Believers never pray to ayone but Jesus, because that is what Scripture says:
1 Timothy 2:5 (King James Version)
King James Version (KJV)
Public Domain
5For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
NOT Mary.
NOT the "saints"
JESUS & HIM ALONE!
Period!
2007-12-12 18:50:56 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
she is a saint and a advocate and blessed.
2007-12-12 19:30:38 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋