palefrost

I was recently reading up on when the Pope was shot back in 1981(?) he claims the Virgin Mary deflected the shot. I wonder why the Virgin Mary? Why not God Himself, or Jesus?

Have Catholics taken the worship of Mary to an extreme? Has Mary become equal to, and sometimes more than, God Himself. Is this true? Why has this come about? What is it about this woman, who was no more than a vessel?

lpstong

Well I agree with you on the part of why they have taken over the fact of worshipping Mary more than Christ? But to say she was no more than a vessel is beyond questioning.

For someone to believe in Christ and the magnitude of what he has done and brought to the world. One should place Mary very high. To care the Son of God should say plenty. That she had great influence on her son Jesus Christ and should not be deemed less than or just a vessel.

Even though Christ gave his life for the sins of the world by christianity ideas. One should also take into view than since the dawn of time that many woman put their lives on the line on a yearly basis having children. Do you have any concept of what a mere vessel is - of giving birth?

Men may provide their sperm. But they do not carry the baby for nine months. Or give the child life or to sustain it after birth. The mother may choose to breast feed an nature not the male.

What Mary did would be considered Godly. But should not be placed over Christ.

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Melos

You know, while I think that bearing children is a great thing (I have 2), I hardly think that it is a godly act that is some sort of ultimate sacrifice or generosity. Its just biology. Women bear children. Mary bore Jesus (for those that believe). Yeah, you could argue she was blessed by god, but what she did was just being a woman.

taiarain

You have to go back quite a bit to see the significance of Mary. Catholicism (well, pretty much all of modern Christianity) gained momentum in a polytheistic pagan culture that included a full range of female deities.

If people were to be converted, they'd have to accept the religion being promoted. Why switch to a religion that excludes female deities? Seriously, if you were a woman raised in a culture filled with deities you could relate to, why in Hades would you convert to one that excluded you?

Mary is very much a mother figure - a figure that many of the women of that time and culture could relate to. A figure that made for an easier transition. I don't really think that's been lost over the centuries. People still identify with the mother figure. People believe mommy is the one who protects us so it's not difficult to see JP believing that Mary was protecting him.

I only recently learned about the Marian Missals myself and I'm from two lines of Catholics. I'm interested in learning more about Mary's role not only through the centuries, but also prior to the Council of Trent.

Though not the same pantheon, there are some relative similarities between Christian theology and the Zeus, Alcmene, & Hercules story. Zeus is the father god who impregnates a mortal woman. The mortal woman gives birth to a child who suffers a terrible fate before rising as an immortal god-figure.

Taia

lpstong

I agree with you to point Taiarain. But until a male can birth a child and be able to lactate. I would even agree with you more. Bearing a child may not be godly. But it is a very very uniques situation. Even to the point that not all woman can do this for some physical reason also. Hence science coming in to help. Even so, even with the help of science, they can not help all woman who have trouble concieving.

So to me it is a very special deal bearing children. Many woman have put their lifes on the line to bear children. Many fall sick or in the need of a required and necessary C-Section. Many woman also endure eptopic pregnancy's and if not taken care of immediately will lose their life.

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nanners86

Well, I was cathloic (because of my ex-husband, I felt I should convert) anyhoo, they see that if one praises Mary that they are in turn praisin Jesus and she is considered to be the mother of humankind, while God is the father. Hope that helped some.