Immaculate Conception
THE FEAST OF MARY'S IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
12 14 , 10:39 Filed in: Mary
Written By: Thomas Mulcahy
Prefatory note on the importance of devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Conception. Mary entered human existence by a remarkable grace that preserved her from original sin, and which set her apart to become the Mother of God and the harbinger of God's own human existence in the person of Jesus. Mary's Immaculate Conception thus warrants a special devotion, and wearing the Miraculous Medal (first called the medal of the Immaculate Conception), and saying the prayer each morning, "Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you,' is one way to effectively practice this devotion. Saints who have been devoted to Mary's Immaculate Conception include Saint Catherine Laboure, Saint Bernadette, Saint Maximilian Kolbe, and Blessed Mother Teresa (whose nuns have given out millions of Miraculous Medals).
Father Faber talks about the power of this devotion to Mary's Immaculate Conception; he indicates that her Immaculate Conception "is the first dawn of the world's redemption." He further indicates that devotion to Mary's Immaculate Conception is calculated to help us greatly in our "present needs...against the torrent of modern impurity" (and Faber was writing around 150 years ago!, so how much more do we need this devotion now!). Perhaps you know someone battling impurity: here is a devotion "eminently calculated" to sanctify our unruly passions. Faber recommends immense devotion to Mary and her Immaculate Conception, calling such devotion "a special power with God." Of the power of Mary's mediation Saint Pope John Paul II once said:
"In Mary's case we have a special and exceptional mediation...Jesus Christ prepared her ever more completely to become for all people their 'mother in the order of grace' "
(Saint Pope John Paul II, Mother of the Redeemer, 39).
This "preparation" began with the Immaculate Conception. If you are interested in the Miraculous Medal devotion, I recommend you read about the amazing conversion story of a Jewish man, Alphonse Ratisbonne. See
The Miraculous Conversion of Alphonse Ratisbonne
A FEW BASIC POINTS ABOUT MARY'S IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
1. It is an infallible doctrine of the Catholic Church promulgated by Pope Pius IX , ex cathedra (from the chair of St. Peter) on December 8, 1854. The Papal Bull reads:
"We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which asserts that the Blessed Virgin Mary, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God, and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, was preserved free from every stain of original sin is a doctrine revealed by God and, for this reason, must be firmly and constantly believed by all the faithful."
"With these words in 1854, Pope Pius IX in the Papal Bull ineffabilis Dei, declared Mary's Immaculate Conception to be dogma. Pius was simply affirming a long-held belief of many Christians East and West before him, that Mary was conceived free of the stain of original sin, on account of Christ's work, in order to bear God-made-flesh." (From Saint John Cantius Parish web-site)
2. The dogma is confirmed four years later (in 1858) by the Blessed Virgin Mary herself in the most famous of her apparitions at Lourdes. At Lourdes, when asked her name by St. Bernadette, Mary responded in an extraordinary fashion, saying, "I am the Immaculate Conception." Since then, Lourdes has been the situs of countless miracles.
3. Some of the early Reformers, such as Martin Luther, at least initially stood firmly behind this doctrine in that they saw that Mary would have to be a pure and sinless vessel in order to communicate to Jesus his sacred and holy body. The following quote from Martin Luther is illustrative:
"It is a sweet and pious belief that the infusion of Mary's soul was effected without original sin; so that in the very infusion of her soul she was also purified from original sin and adorned with God's gifts, receiving a pure soul infused by God; thus from the first moment she began to live she was free from all sin."
Martin Luther, (Sermon: "On the Day of the Conception of the Mother of God," 1527).
4. Contrary to popular belief, the doctrine has strong scriptural support in that:
A. Gabriel announces that Mary is "full of grace" (Luke 1:28). If Mary is full of grace it follows that she is without sin (note how the angel does not call Mary by her name, but rather by a title, saying:"Hail, full of grace" - and the angel is God's messenger). The
Ignatius Catholic Study Bible defend the traditional translation, "Hail, full of grace," as against some modern translations, stating: "[The Greek word used by Luke], kecharitomene, indicates that God has already graced Mary previous to this point, making her a vessel who 'has been' and 'is now' filled with divine life. Alternative translations like 'favored one'... are possible but inadequate." Ref: Ignatius Catholic Study Bible
B. Saint Luke (in his Gospel) and Saint John (in the Book of Revelation) identify Mary as the Ark of the New Covenant, thus comparing her to the all-holy Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament. See "Topical Essay: Mary Ark of the Covenant" in The Ignatius Catholic Bible Study or click the following on-line article from This Rock: Mary, the Ark of the New Covenant | Catholic Answers
C. Mary's Immaculate Conception is internally consistent with the doctrine of Original Sin (which flows from a number of Old and New Testament passages, especially at Romans 5:12-21). Since original sin is transmitted by physical generation, it follows logically that Jesus, who was born without sin, would have to be born from a spotless womb. Mary is that pure and spotless vessel: the woman who overflows with God’s grace; and
D. John the Baptist was sanctified in his mother's womb. At Luke 1:15 it states that John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. The passage, in context, reads as follows:
[11] And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right side of the alter of incense. [12] And Zachary seeing him, was troubled, and fear fell upon him. [13] But the angel said to him: Fear not, Zachary, for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John: [14] And thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice in his nativity. [15] For he shall be great before the Lord; and shall drink no wine nor strong drink: and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother' s womb. [16] And he shall convert many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. [17] And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias; that he may turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children, and the incredulous to the wisdom of the just, to prepare unto the Lord a perfect people.
The angel then identifies himself as Gabriel, the same angel of Mary's annunciation a few
lines later at Luke 1:26, who addresses Mary, not by a name, but by a title, "Hail, Full
of grace." The point is obvious (I think its obvious): if John was filled with the Holy Spirit from
birth, what was done in God's providence to prepare Mary to be the mother of God?
Luke then, as you know, makes a direct comparison between Mary and the Ark of the
Covenant, implying the incredible magnitude of her sanctity and holiness. All of this
fits in very nicely with the Church's proclamation of her Immaculate Conception.