Cum Petro et Sub Petro

With Peter & Under Peter

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Christian apologetics attacking Catholic dogma/doctrine re Mary

Mary was a very blessed woman. She was graced with the privilege of being able to bear the Son of God. We should never forget her high privilege in this respect. However, we must not elevate her to a level beyond that which is prescribed in Scripture. To do so is to be in error, the very error that is taught in the Roman Catholic Church. We urge Roman Catholics not look to Mary. Instead, they should look to Jesus alone. He alone is the sinless one, the perfect one, the Lord, the mediator, the forgiver of our sins. It is he alone to whom we should appeal and trust for the forgiveness of our sins. We should not look to any creature, no matter how blessed that creature may be.
Source:Christian apologetics The Greek word is charis. Jerome translated the Greek into into the Latin gratia-which in English IS grace.We could also note that the word full of grace used to describe Stephen is not the same as the word used to describe Mary. Evidently these are 2 different kinds of grace.The only other person to be referred to as full of grace is Jesus; but we know Jesus is God(divine)and Mary is not. That said,let's just suppose and move along. Elizabeth calls Mary BLESSED among women(meaning all women). There is one other blessed woman and she is in the OT. Judges 5:24 Jael is considered blessed among all the women of the tents(context).Mary is regarded as blessed among ALL women. Let's go back to Genesis where God puts enmity between Mary and Satan. I'm going to assume you're Christian so you know that this verse is about Mary and Satan without having to go into great detail. The word enmity between Mary and Satan is important. Of course this would be total enmity;afterall Mary is going to conceive and give birth to Jesus. She is going to be the spouse of the Holy Spirit.She is going to be God's most exalted CREATURE.
Mother! whose virgin bosom was uncrost With the least shade of thought to sin allied; Woman! above all women glorified, Our tainted nature's solitary boast; Purer than foam on central ocean tost; Brighter than eastern skies at daybreak strewn With fancied roses, than the unblemished moon Before her wane begins on heaven's blue coast; Thy Image falls to earth. Yet some, I ween, Not unforgiven the suppliant knee might bend, As to a visible Power, in which did blend All that was mixed and reconciled in Thee Of mother's love with maiden purity, Of high with low, celestial with terrene! William Wordsworth
Mary,then,is our greatest hope because she is by God's design what we are going to be . Christian apologetics seemed to have a problem with the term spiritual mother for Mary too.Again,we go back to Genesis. Adam and Eve were our first parents. Eve was considered our mother(the human race). We are adopted into God's family-as Catholics we believe we are born again through Baptism becoming adopted sons/daughters of God. This would make Mary our Mother(in the spiritual realm). Now we go to the other bookend of scripture to see how Mary is our Mother. Rev 12:1 1 1 A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman 2 clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth. 3 3 Then another sign appeared in the sky; it was a huge red dragon, 4 with seven heads and ten horns, and on its heads were seven diadems. 4 Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky and hurled them down to the earth. Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, to devour her child when she gave birth. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod. 5 Her child was caught up to God and his throne. 6 The woman herself fled into the desert where she had a place prepared by God, that there she might be taken care of for twelve hundred and sixty days. 6 7 7 Then war broke out in heaven; Michael 8 and his angels battled against the dragon. The dragon and its angels fought back, 8 but they did not prevail and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 The huge dragon, the ancient serpent, 9 who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceived the whole world, was thrown down to earth, and its angels were thrown down with it. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: "Now have salvation and power come, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Anointed. For the accuser 10 of our brothers is cast out, who accuses them before our God day and night. 11 They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; love for life did not deter them from death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, you heavens, and you who dwell in them. But woe to you, earth and sea, for the Devil has come down to you in great fury, for he knows he has but a short time." 13 When the dragon saw that it had been thrown down to the earth, it pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle, 11 so that she could fly to her place in the desert, where, far from the serpent, she was taken care of for a year, two years, and a half-year. 15 The serpent, 12 however, spewed a torrent of water out of his mouth after the woman to sweep her away with the current. 16 But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth and swallowed the flood that the dragon spewed out of its mouth. 17 Then the dragon became angry with the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring, those who keep God's commandments and bear witness to Jesus. 13

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