Devotion to Mary, Mother of God

(This post was original written in Chinese. However, I wish that this post can reach to more people, so I re-write in English.)

Catholics venerate Mother Mary. Other people perceive this as idolatry. I mentioned earlier, every Catholic is required to attend catechism classes, so the Catholic needs to know catechism such as Ten Commandments, which includes not to commit sin of idolatry. Idolatry includes the worship of mammon (money), power, politicians, entertainment celebrities, etc. Thus, Catholic do not worship Mary, saints, or angels. This is because they are creatures. Christians worship only one God, Trinitarian God. (Take note that, in Old English, the word “worship” has a wider meaning, but today the worship means adoration to God.)

A believer, or a Christian, if martyred, do you respect him or her? For example the first martyr St Stephen. If a holy man or woman is martyred, he or she must be in the kingdom of God, which we call “heaven”. We people who are still living on earth, sometimes asking the brothers and sisters in Christ to intercede for us, is asking the brothers or sisters that are already in heaven to intercede for us not corresponding to Christian faith? When we read bible about Saul persecuting the Church, what did the Lord say? He said “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 9:5). Persecuting the Church, is persecuting the body of the Lord, Jesus is the head of the Church. Besides that, “… he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him” (Luke 20:38). You give respect to your pastor, those saints and martyrs who overcome the world, shouldn’t we learn from their holy life? If the creatures are being honoured, isn’t that the Creator will be glorified more?

How about Mother Mary? All Christians believe Holy Trinity, one God three persons. Christians also believe that Jesus is true God and true man, two natures (hypostatic union), this is the mystery of the Word incarnation. “This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes” (Ps 118:23). Jesus is God, Mary is Mother of Jesus, then is saying Mary is the Mother of God unbiblical? Or because of Sola Scriptura, which the bible doesn’t say that, then it is unbiblical? When we read the bible, we must not interpret the bible by our own limited wisdom, we should also not taking verses out from the context then assuming that these are the whole doctrine.

According to Catholic, there are four dogmas about Mother Mary: (i) Mother of God, (ii) Perpetual virginity, (iii) Immaculate Conception, and (iv) Assumption. I will not go through all of these dogmas, because I am not an expert of Mariology. We know that Jesus is the New Adam. On the other hand, Mary is similar to New Eve, because of her word “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38), Jesus our Saviour come into the world. Human has free will, we can choose to obey God or disobey God, just like Eve. Yet Mary chose to obey God. However this doesn’t mean that Mary becomes Mother of God is because of her “work”. She is Mother of God, because of the grace of God. She is “full of grace” (Luke 1:28) (or highly favoured). Our first parents are sinless in the beginning, but because of the temptation of the devil, they disobeyed God. This is same for us, after we believe in God, due to the persecution and temptations, we are possible to leave God. Mary, unlike Zechariah, whom didn’t believe in angel’s word and become dumb. Yet, Mary believes “for with God nothing will be impossible” (Luke 1:37). If we say Abraham is justified by faith, doesn’t Mary also have faith?

Is Mary an ordinary human? Absolutely she is human, but she is not an ordinary human. She is special, because she is full of grace (or highly favoured), the Lord is with her, she was conceived by the Holy Spirit, gave birth to Jesus, Son of God, Saviour of the world. Let’s see how Elizabeth expressed when she saw Mary. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:42-43). Mary is obedient to God, as our Lord said, “My mother and my brethren are those who hear the word of God and do it” (Luke 8:21). If God chose Israel, didn’t God choose Mary?

Could someone think that, if we venerate Mary, then we despise Jesus? Jesus said, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me” (Matt 148:5). If receiving a child is receiving the Lord, then how can we say we despise Jesus if we venerate Mary? Or someone thinks that, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matt 6:24), therefore we must not venerate any human like Mary. Then I ask, according to the scripture, “Any one who hates his brother is a murderer” (1 John 3:15), for what reason you want to hate Jesus’ mother? When you love Jesus, do you despise God the Father? Absolutely not. However, I am not saying Mary and Jesus is same substance, I am saying that, we will not despise Jesus when we venerate Mary.

When people attacking Catholic Church, please read the bible how it is written. “If they have called the master of the house Be-elzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household” (Matt 10:25). Similarly, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:28). When you want to attack the Church for venerating Mary, please take note how Book of Revelation is written:

a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars (Rev 12:1)
she brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron (Rev 12:5)
And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had borne the male child (Rev 12:13)
Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and bear testimony to Jesus (Rev 13:17)

When you are attacking the Church, you may fulfil what the scripture is written.

Do you want to be a disciple whom Jesus loved? Jesus said to the disciple whom he loved, “Behold, your mother!” (John 19:27). If you are a follower of Christ, if you are the members of Christ’s body, then isn’t that Jesus’ mother also your mother?

Let’s see how Mary said, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). Therefore, if we venerate Mary, we will not despise Jesus. Moreover, this leads us more towards Jesus Christ, the Son of God.