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To: CynicalBear

Bishop Liguori’s excessive language is the effusive and often hyperbolic language of love. It is not to be confused with dogmatic teaching.

No knowledgeable Catholic believes that Mary is the ultimate source of our Hope or Salvation, except in the remote sense that her ascent to God’s will for her brought into the world Jesus, The Source of our Hope and Salvation.

The central question is, What does the Catholic Church dogmatically teach regarding Mary? The answer to that question is available for all to read on-line in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Yes, Mary is holy and sinless, since she is “full of grace,” and the Queen of Heaven, as the Catholic Church and Bible teach.


225 posted on 01/18/2012 8:39:58 AM PST by St_Thomas_Aquinas
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To: St_Thomas_Aquinas; CynicalBear; 1000 silverlings; Alex Murphy; bkaycee; blue-duncan; boatbums; ...
The central question is, What does the Catholic Church dogmatically teach regarding Mary? The answer to that question is available for all to read on-line in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

The Catechism of the Catholic church? OK.

How about this? Right from Vatican.va itself......

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2C.HTM

963 Since the Virgin Mary's role in the mystery of Christ and the Spirit has been treated, it is fitting now to consider her place in the mystery of the Church. "The Virgin Mary . . . is acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the redeemer.... She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ' ... since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church, who are members of its head."500 "Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church."501

964 Mary's role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. "This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ's virginal conception up to his death";502 it is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion:

Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words: "Woman, behold your son."503

965 After her Son's Ascension, Mary "aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers."504 In her association with the apostles and several women, "we also see Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation."505

966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death."506 The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:

In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death.507

969 "This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation .... Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix."510

970 "Mary's function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power. But the Blessed Virgin's salutary influence on men . . . flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it, and draws all its power from it."511

"No creature could ever be counted along with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer; but just as the priesthood of Christ is shared in various ways both by his ministers and thefaithful, and as the one goodness of God is radiated in different ways among his creatures, so also the unique mediation of the Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives rise to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source."512

971 "All generations will call me blessed": "The Church's devotion to the Blessed Virgin is intrinsic to Christian worship."513 The Church rightly honors "the Blessed Virgin with special devotion. From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title of 'Mother of God,' to whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs.... This very special devotion ... differs essentially from the adoration which is given to the incarnate Word and equally to the Father and the Holy Spirit, and greatly fosters this adoration."514 The liturgical feasts dedicated to the Mother of God and Marian prayer, such as the rosary, an "epitome of the whole Gospel," express this devotion to the Virgin Mary.515

973 By pronouncing her "fiat" at the Annunciation and giving her consent to the Incarnation, Mary was al ready collaborating with the whole work her Son was to accomplish. She is mother wherever he is Savior and head of the Mystical Body.

974 The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son's Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of his Body.

232 posted on 01/18/2012 9:13:25 AM PST by metmom (For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore & do not submit again to a yoke of slavery)
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To: St_Thomas_Aquinas; smvoice; HossB86; RnMomof7; metmom; boatbums; caww; Iscool; ...
>>Yes, Mary is holy and sinless, since she is “full of grace,” and the Queen of Heaven, as the Catholic Church and Bible teach.<<

“As the Bible teaches”? Are you kidding? First of all Mary surely didn’t realize she was sinless.

Luke 1:29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

How could anyone think that a person who is sinless doesn’t know it and others around that person wouldn’t have noticed?

Kecharitomene is a derivative of the word charitoo which we can find the meaning of here. [http://www.biblestudytools.com/search/?q=charitoo&rc=LEX&rc2=LEX+GRK&ps=10&s=References]

Charitoo
to make graceful charming, lovely, agreeable to peruse with grace, compass with favour to honour with blessings

This has been debated over and over and not once can anyone show that kecharitomene ever means sinless. On the other hand let’s look at words that do mean sinless. [http://www.biblestudytools.com/search/?q=sinless&rc=LEX&rc2=LEX+GRK&ps=10&s=References]

Anamartetos
sinless of one who has not sinned of one who cannot sin

Not once used to or about Mary.

Pluno
to wash: with reference to clothing use figuratively of those who by faith so appropriate the results of Christ's expiation as to be regarded by God as pure and sinless

Used about all true believers.

Anamartetos
sinless of one who has not sinned of one who cannot sin

Again, never used about or to Mary.

Hagion
reverend, worthy of veneration of things which on account of some connection with God possess a certain distinction and claim to reverence, as places sacred to God which are not to be profaned of persons whose services God employs, for example, apostles set apart for God, to be as it were, exclusively his services and offerings prepared for God with solemn rite, pure, clean in a moral sense, pure sinless upright holy

In Ephesians 1:6 we can see that God has granted every true believer with grace.

Ephesians 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

Luke 1:28 is rightly translated “highly favored”. To try to make that verse somehow infer that Mary was sinless is deceitful.

238 posted on 01/18/2012 9:47:09 AM PST by CynicalBear
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