Today we celebrate the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, where God preserved Mary from all stains of sin from the very moment of her conception. Mass is required today in many countries including the United States. How wonderfully glorious that the Lord preserved Mary from all stains to make her a worthy dwelling place. Because of Mary's "yes" to God, Our Savior entered the world. For Mary is the woman mentioned in Genesis that would crush the head of the serpent, who is the devil.
Alleluia! The Virgin Mother of God intercedes for all mankind praying unceasingly that the souls won by the price of Jesus' blood will repent. She is our Mother too! Let us pray for her intercession.
Alleluia!
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PRAYER TO THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION:
O God, Who, by the Immaculate Conception of the virgin, didst prepare for Thy Son a worthy habitation, we beseech Thee, that as Thou didst preserve her from every stain by the foreseen death of this Thy Son, so Thou wouldst grant that we also being cleansed from guilt by her intercession, may come to Thee. Through the same our Lord.
27 comment(s):
i thought jesus crushed the head of the serpent. isn't it through him and becuz of him we have immortality?
We do have the option of living forever in Heaven because of Jesus. But Genesis is clear that the woman would crush the serpent:
In Genesis 3:15 it states, “I will put enmity between you [the serpent] and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel” (NAB).
This verse is the first verse that references to mankind’s Redeemer since Jesus Christ came to destroy sin, Satan, and death. 1 John 3:8 further says, “The Son of God appeared that He might destroy the works of the devil,” who came into being through a love for men that far excesses our senses, where one would come to die for all of us while still enemies. This “enmity” in Genesis 3:15 is not between the man and the serpent but the woman and the serpent. Church teachings are that this is in reference to Mary, the one to come and destroy the serpent because of allowing Our Lord to take flesh within her.
Also, it is critical to reverberate Magesterium teachings of Christ being the Second Adam. We all know that through Adam and Eve sin entered the world and it was through Christ, one man, that sin left the world by his death on the Cross. Yet, just as Eve assisted Adam in losing the faith by offering him the apple, Mary offered Christ her body to come and become man and assisted in bringing Our Lord to us. Out of all people Christ chose Mary as His mother and has given her to us as well; how breathtaking. Christ is called the Second Adam since creation was renewed through Him, and Mary is the new Eve who works alongside Our Lord.
Happy Feast day MB!
Wow. Great write-up on your website.
k. just a little confused because if jesus destroyed sin, then what did mary destroy? besides the verse you gave says "jesus will strike at your serpent head, while you the serpent will strike at jesus' heel." two references to men, both talking about striking.
an apple? theres no apples in genesis. :)
I heard once that it was the denial of Adam's and Eve's falt in sin that brought sin apond us that God would of forgave them right there if pride didn't get in the way. This thought is not all the truth but something to dwell on.
Mary didn't destroy sin because she is not God. but Jesus needed a pure entry point into the world. Mary save from all sin to give him this entry for he is the Word and the Word is God Most Holy . if Mary had sin in her she would not of live one hour with the the Lord in her But she being full of grace could go nine months easy
um, i think its pretty clear that jesus saved mankind. regardless of marys role in the whole thing, it was jesus' death and resurrection that gave salvation. jesus was the perfect sacrifice and since it was him being sacrificed as the perfect lamb, salvation has come only a result of his incredible self offering.
Blah,
Your right that It was Jesus that saved mankind and God alone. However, God used Mary to accomplish this plan, so therefore we consider Mary "blessed". Also, Mary was in need of a Savior to save her from sin. But she was saved at the moment of her conception, and therefore she was conceived without sin. So a Savior still played a role in Mary's salvation. I hope that helped! God Bless!
Blah,
Jesus did save us. Period. But, that doesn't mean the Virgin Mary had a role because God chose for her to be His entryway into the world.
so if jesus has saved us by defeating death then how is it that you say mary destroyed sin & death?
"Jesus Christ came to destroy sin, Satan, and death."
"Mary, the one to come and destroy the serpent"
doesnt make sensce.
2 timothy 1:10
Christ destroyed the consequences of sin, therefore we no longer “die” because of sin; but it is by following the example of Mary, complete obedience to God, that we are able to strike at the “serpent’s head” and gain heaven. In other words, we no longer have to “die” because of our disobedience and sin, but neither do we automatically gain “heaven.” It is Mary’s example, therefore it is she, who kills the serpent so that we gain heaven. She is what man was supposed to be when God gave him paradise. Jesus cannot be what man was supposed to be, because he is God.
Wow, and no Bible references to boot :) Ouch. Sorry but you have a gross misunderstanding of who Christ is and what he accomplished. Understand first and foremost that God, Jesus or the apostles never, ever asked anyone to follow the example of Mary. Instead, we're told time and again to follow the example of Christ. This is a fundamental teaching of Christianity and it's abundantly clear when you look to Scripture for answers.
In the days of his flesh, Jesus was a full member of the human and Jewish race, being born of a Jewish woman, Mary, and born under the Law of Moses, (Galatians 4:4). Mary, Jesus’ mother could only impart to her first-born son the identical nature which she herself bore – a frail, mortal nature with its capacity for both righteousness and sin. And this she did, as Christ’s apostles stress in their writings (Hebrews 2:7-18; 4:15, Acts 2:22, Acts 13:38, 1 Timothy 2:5).
So, unless we make them liars and deceivers by refusing to believe their definite testimonies, the apostles clearly and unequivocally teach that Jesus was, and still is a man, a Jewish descendant of Abraham (albeit now at God’s right hand in heaven. He has become a glorified man, a man to whom God has given His own glory and honour).
Because Jesus was a man, tempted as we are, then it's impossible for us NOT to follow him. If this wasn't the case, then explain Jesus' words when he says "follow me"? This is a phrase used many, many times by Christ so either Jesus was having a laugh because he knew people couldn't follow him or he was being sincere.
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
Where's the equivalent reference to Mary? How do you justify this verse in terms of your belief that Jesus is unfollowable because he's God?
Finally, if Christ destroyed the consequences of sin (death) then what are we accomplishing by striking the head of the serpent (who is also death)? It doesn't make sense. We can't kill death if death has already been killed.
I'd like to add a question as well:
If we no longer "die" because of Mary and Jesus, why isn't David in heaven (Acts 2:34)? Because if he's not in heaven, he's either in hell (unlikely) or in the ground dead beyond all measure (likely), waiting to be resurrected in the day of Christ's return (no different then ourselves should we die before our Saviour's second coming).
Instead, while we will all still die (mind, body, soul, etc.) and cease to exist, what Christ has done is given us a hope for immortal life, but an immortal life that will only be given to those found worthy in his Kingdom which will be setup here on earth.
Tiny Tim,
Hello!
Anyway, your objection seems to claim that we cease to exist and then somehow come back into existence at the end of time, if we are found worthy. Jehovah's Witnesses believe that there is no hell; instead, the souls of the wicked simply cease to exist. In the meantime, they seem to claim that the just dead are taken out of existence for a while.
The argument concerning David falls flat. First off, he was never officially canonized, but neither were many saints. It is part of Tradition that he is in Heaven.
Second, the verse you cited is being taken out of context. Acts 2:34 is St. Peter's address to the people of Jerusalem on Pentecost. If you read the passage, you will see that he references David to make a point not about David, but about Christ.
First, St. Peter says that David did not ascend to heaven as Christ did. This is true. Christ ascended in a glorified body. David went to heaven in his soul, but left his body behind in hope of the Resurrection. So already we see that the verse is being taken the wrong way by the question you asked. Second, what St. Peter is doing is appealing to the great place David had in the minds of the Jews. He is saying that David was great, but Christ was greater, because Christ ascended and David did not. So St. Peter's intention clearly was not to tell them that David was no longer in existence. Verse 34 is saying that David didn't ascend into the heavens; quite the contrary, he glorified the one who would come after him, his Lord. St. Peter is saying that, great as David was, even he himself admits that there is a greater one coming, the Christ, who will fulfill all.
So, how do you interpret Revelation 6:9, which shows those who were martyred for the faith (i.e. dead) praying to God and asking for Him to intervene? They could not do this if they didn't exist.
We follow the example of Christ in "Obedience unto death." But since Christ was both man and God, because Christ was able to do it doesn't mean that man can do it. Therefore Mary shows us that yes, man can do it. He can be obedient to God at great suffering. Do you think Mary wanted to stay behind when Jesus "left" to go to heaven? After so much suffering, after seeing her beloved son and God, be unjustly mocked, charged, and killed. She just wanted to be with her son and God in heaven. But Jesus told her no. She had to stay behind and be the Mother to the new Church, the example for the church to follow.
No it is not totally spelled out in the Bible. But there are other early church writings, which are not included in the Bible. There is also the evidence from mystic saints, which have been given the grace of visions.
I always find it amazing that protestant denominations are so ready to accept the church tradition of the fall of the Angels led by Lucifer, even though it does not appear in the Bible (it does appear in other apocryphal writings), but can't accept the revelatory aspect of tradition when it comes to Mary.
Which reminds me of another thing, where in the Bible does it say that it is only by grace that we attain heaven? Luther “deduced” that because man in his fallen form is incapable of being sinless, therefore he cannot gain heaven by merit. But Jesus said, “you will know them by their fruit,” does that not imply that works are also needed? Did not Jesus encourage his disciples to works? Faith without works means that the grace God pours over us has not been internalized. Therefore, grace and works are required.
The Septuagint contained the apocryphal books, some that are still retained in the Catholic Bible, but not in Protestant.
From http://www.gotquestions.org/septuagint.html
Question: “What is the Septuagint?”
Answer: The Septuagint (also known as the LXX) is a translation of the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language. The name “Septuagint” comes from the Latin word for seventy. The tradition is that 70 (or 72) Jewish scholars were the translators behind the Septuagint. The Septuagint was translated in the third and second centuries B.C. in Alexandria, Egypt. As Israel was under the authority of Greece for several centuries, the Greek language became more and more common. By the 2nd and 1st centuries B.C., most people in Israel spoke Greek as their primary language. That is why the effort was made to translate the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language – so that those who did not understand Hebrew could have the Scriptures in a language they could understand. The Septuagint represents the first major effort at translating a significant religious text from one language into another.
It is interesting to note that many of the New Testament quotes from the Hebrew Bible are taken from the Septuagint. As faithful as the Septuagint translators strived to be in accurately rendering the Hebrew text into Greek, some translational differences arose. In comparing the New Testament quotations of the Hebrew Bible, it is clear that the Septuagint was often used. This is the result of the fact that by the late 1st century B.C., and especially the 1st century A.D. – the Septuagint had “replaced” the Hebrew Bible as the Scriptures most people used. Since most people spoke and read Greek as their primary language, and the Greek authorities strongly encourage the use of Greek – the Septuagint became much more common than the Hebrew Old Testament. The fact that the Apostles and New Testament authors felt comfortable, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, in using the Septuagint should give us assurance that a translation of the original languages of the Bible is still the authoritative Word of God.
Jason,
I need to know what exactly you've been smoking... because I need some of that!
First and foremost, I believe that you are the one that grossly misunderstands who Christ is and who is Mother is. How dare you attack your heavenly mother in such a way, would you dare to say something about your earthly mother like that?
From the beggining of time Christ was already created, he is in fact if you understand the trinity, he is the second person in one GOD, therefore when he was born to a VIRGIN, that is Mother Mary, he became man, but he was still God. What you are spouting is a Heresy that has already been crushed by the 4th lateran Council.
Do you honestly think that God would be born of an unclean person? Can you really think that, that he would come in a dirty vessel? NO, Christ was born to a VIRGIN that was sin-free as we are told in the bible. Also Christ was Mary's only child, meaning that she had no others nor did she have relations with Joseph.
All throughout the bible we are told about Mother mary, Heck God the father prophecies her coming in Genesis, when he says to the serpent that a woman will come and crush your head. What did he mean by that? He meant that a woman would bear the savior that the world was waiting on, and by her answer yes to Gabriel the arch-angel, and by giving birth she was going to crush the head of Satan, and then when Christ was crucified, he finished that and the gates of Heaven were opened.
Oh and just in case you forgot, you left out one of the most important passages of the bible... maybe it slipped your memory.. Remember when Christ was dying on the Cross, he said to John his faithful apostle who stayed there with him... He looked at his Mother and said" Woman behold thy son, and then looking at John, he said, Son behold thy mother. Why is this important? Because Christ was telling her to take care of his apostles and all the Christian people while he was gone, and he was telling the apostles and all the Christian people to love and revere his mother.
Oh and you also seem to think that Jesus was a sinner like the rest of us... that is heresy as well. Jesus was without sin, after all he was the son of GOD. AND more importantly he was tempted by the devil ect... and each time he resisted him and never fail like frail humans like ourselves.. when he says come and follow me, he is saying live by my example, sin no more.
So jason, put aside your heretical beliefs that you were raised in and that you've obviously been brainwashed in. Mother Mary isn't just Jesus's mother or the Mother of the Catholic church, she is yours as well, and the sooner you realize this, the sooner you'll learn to love her as I do.
Pax Christi,
St_Michael
LOL!! All for one and one for all!!!!
Firstly, I use the Bible and the Bible alone when it comes to proving and discussing things relevant to our salvation. You can quote all you want from Church forefathers and emphasize Church tradition but it’s going to fall on deaf ears. No offense, if it can’t be proven using Scripture, it’s of no use to me because the Bible is God’s word and it’s enough to fully equip us to understand His will.
Alrighty, moving on.
You’re absolutely correct in your assertion regarding my view of death. When we die, we completely cease to exist. This is the same for good people and bad people. When Christ returns, he will resurrect the dead, some to everlasting glory (immortality) and others to everlasting punishment (the second death). This is the whole point of Christ’s judgment – to judge the people of the earth. There’s only one judgment ever mentioned in Scripture and this judgment hasn’t yet occurred. But heaven as a place of reward and hell as a place of punishment doesn't agree with Scripture in terms of the number of judgments. For heaven and hell to currently exist and for people to populate either one, a judgment would have had to occur already. This is a false belief because it contradicts Scripture.
Interestingly enough though, when you break it down, there isn’t too much of a difference in our beliefs regarding the place of reward. You think it’s in heaven, I think it’s here on earth when Christ returns. The big difference though is, and don’t take this the wrong way, my belief has its foundations in the Bible. There is no evidence anywhere in Scripture of God ever condemning anyone to hell or rewarding someone by allowing them into heaven. On the flip side, I can show you that death in its ultimate state has been everyone's fate since Adam. So to sum up, my “hell” is the grave and my “heaven” is Christ’s kingdom on earth. I have verses aplenty if you want references.
About David. Again, using Scripture as the lone guide, we’re told “David has not gone to heaven” and I’m okay with that. You list…
1. He wasn’t canonized
2. Misreading the context
3. Type of body (wasn’t glorified)
4. And the quote “David didn’t ascend”
…as explanations to this verse. Which is it?
Putting aside vs. 9 for a moment, look at what else Revelation 6 shows:
• A lamb opening seals
• Four talking beasts
• A guy on a horse with a bow conquering people
• A guy on a red horse with a sword
• A guy on a black horse with balances
• A guy on white horse named Death with Hell following on his heels
• White robes given to a bunch of people under an altar
• After an earthquake, the sun turns black and the moon turns red
• Stars fall to earth
• Perfectly sane men talking to mountains and rocks.
Now, there are three ways to look at this chapter. 1. It’s symbolic. 2. It’s literal. 3. It’s symbolic and literal. Which one do you think it is? If you think it’s a literal-symbolic combo, how can we say Death riding on a horse is symbolic while martyrs being given white robes is literal? Surely there’s better and clearer evidence to the existence of heaven & hell…
(Sorry tiny tim, I jumped the gun. In my rush I answered a comment directed at you!!!! Apologies!!)
It's not spelled out in the Bible? Famous last words : How does Mary show us anything if God doesn't show us anything about Mary other then the fact she was Jesus' mother? Think about it: If Mary is the ultimate example of how man should live, why the complete lack of instruction in Scripture to follow in her footsteps? The 1st century churches were never once instructed by any of the apostles to follow Mary.
Think about this #2: God chose Mary to be the vessel to bear Christ. Catholics say Mary must have been sinless since her birth for this to occur. Now, explain how a woman chosen by God, made sinless from birth out of the grace of God, is easier to follow then Christ? Were we made sinless? Nope. Did God choose us to give birth to his son? Nope. I think I'll stick with Jesus. At least his example is a little more…relevant (Jesus was baptised, he prayed to God, he cried, he was tempted, etc. etc. etc.).
Something further to consider: The hierarchy listed in 1 Cor. 11:3 - “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” Would it not have seemed bizarre to members of the 1st century church to follow in the footsteps of woman if they had just been reminded that the head of man was Christ and the head of woman was man?
Careful now, don't lump all non-Cathlics into the protestant melting pot. Lucifer isn't Satan and the angels never fell for the precise reason you mentioned: It doesn't appear in the Bible. You nailed it right on the head. Therefore, we don't use Mary as an example to follow for the same reason.
Michael,
Before you let fly with your accusations, I’m not attacking Mary. I’m attacking your perception of Mary. When Jesus and Paul were branded heretics, they at least had a chance to explain their position. I would expect nothing less from you.
Mary had children. Mary had sexual relations with Joseph. This is what the Bible says in those words. Mary wasn’t a virgin. Discuss these verses instead of attacking my character.
Matthew 13:55-56
Mark 6:3
Matthew 1:24-25
Do I honestly think God would be born of unclean person? No. But then again, I also can’t fathom why God would want to spend 9 months floating in embryonic fluid and then come into this world through a birth canal covered in blood. I also can’t fathom why God, creator of everything and giver of life, would choose to spend the first few months of his “life” drinking milk from his mother's breast and crawling around and burping and falling.
Please be careful when quoting Scripture. Genesis doesn’t say the woman will crush the serpent’s head. Genesis says “it” will crush the serpent’s head. The “it” being the seed of the woman.
Have you ever considered that when Jesus was looking down at John and Mary on the cross that he was actually telling HIM to take care of HER? You’re making a pretty gross assumption without anything to back it up with. I could just as easily say, “Christ was telling John to take care of his mother and all the Christian people while he was gone, and he was telling Mary and all the Christian people to love and revere John.” It’s just as valid a comment as yours although when you read :27 of John 19, I’d say mine’s a little more on the mark☺
One of the cool things about the Bible are echoes and threads. Every Bible-based doctrines has them. The shedding of blood by the high priest in the most holy place echoes the shedding of blood by Jesus and his entrance in the symbolic most holy place. Moses striking the rock and water coming out echoes Christ being struck by the spear. With threads, an idea is carried throughout Scripture, linking dozens of verses in book after book (baptism is a great example). It's fascintating how God has put His book together and in recognizing how incredible the Bible is, a belief hinging on a single verse must be questioned to the nth degree. Promoting Mary to be the Mother of the Church based on a single verse that contains no echoes or threads is incredibly suspicious and rightly so...
Having said that, thank you for being so positive in your attempt at instructing me in righteousness. Your Christ-like example makes me want to put aside my brainwashed past and join the masses. :)
Jason,
I was at work when I answered you, now that I am at home... I will unleash the verses and ect that will prove against your arguments... That is if you have the eyes left to see them!
I would however like to know what denomination you fall under and what bad translation of the bible your using.. In translation I mean, the bible that was abused and copyrighted from the REAL word of God... aka the Catholic one.
LOL. We've barely looked at a verse and you're already slamming whichever translation of the Bible I'm using!! Your tactics are most interesting. :)
Make my eyes hurt. Unleash those verses.
Jason,
This is no laughing matter, in fact your very salvation depends on your present rude theology and misguided concept of the bible. That is from the beggining, that is the alpha, before you can rightfully learn anything positive about Christ and the bible, it is imperative that you are reading a correct translation of it and not some wack translation by a disgruntled Priest/Monk who felt the urge to spit upon the very foundation of Christology that he was taught and read just because he felt the urge to break his vocation and his vows that he made before God. That is what I am talking about! So lets start from the beggining, maybe once you give us your history and a little info on the thing you call a bible, then maybe we can help point you in the right direction... and not the lost one you seem to be heading in... after all didn't Christ say.. "Ask and you shall receive"?
Pax,
The Sword of God
Tell you want, we've taken up enough of Moneybag's post already. How about you and me go have a chat over here where it's nice and quiet. I can tell you all about the heretical translation I'm using, you can explain why you care, and then hopefully you can can point me down the right path because I've been living a lie for so long.
Bible Discussions: A Conversation With Michael
P.S. I'm still waiting for those "hurt your eye" verses.
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