Marian Theology
| Dogma | Feast | Defined | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Immaculate Conception | December 8 | 1854 | Mary was conceived without sin. She was conceived through the normal act of marriage. |
| Perpetual Virginity | Patristic era | ||
| Theotokos | December 25 | 431 | "Mother of God" |
| Assumption | August 15 | 1950 | At the end of her life, Mary was taken body and soul into Heaven. |
"Most blessed of all women"
"When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." And Mary said: "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name" (Lk 1:41-49).
Mother of God (theotokos)
Mother of the Church
Vatican II.
Ikon of Faith
Mary is the first Christian and the mother of all Christians. By God's grace, she is a new Eve, conceived without sin, who chose to obey God, thus undoing the sin of Eve and allowing God to create the new Adam within her womb. All who are "born again" in Baptism imitate her reception of God's sanctifying grace.
"Be it done unto me according to Thy will" is the first form of the Infallible Prayer recorded in the gospels.
Mary's soul "magnifies the Lord." When we look at her, we see what God wants to accomplish in us.
Conceived without sin
- Conception--December 8 (defined in 1854).
- "In Honor of the Immaculate Conception," by Mark P. Shea.
Taken into Heaven
- Assumption of Mary--August 15th (defined in 1950).
Approved apparitions
| Our Lady of | Date | Country | Recipient(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guadalupe | December 9, 1531 | Mexico | St. Juan Diego | Queen of Mexico and Empress of the Americas, Patroness and Mother of the Americas. |
| Good Success | February 2, 1610 | Quito, Ecuador | Mother Mariana de Jésus Torres | Mary told Mother Mariana some prophecies which will happen in the Twentieth Century, particularly about the corruption, oppression and unavailability of the sacraments and also crisis in the clergy.
|
| Miraculous Medal | July 18, 1830 | Paris, France | Saint Catherine Labouré | "All who wear [these images] will receive great graces." |
| La Salette | September 19, 1846 | Grenoble, France | Maximin Giraud and Mélanie Calvat | "Priests, my Son's ministers, priests, by their evil life, by their irreverences and their impiety in celebrating the holy mysteries, love of money, love of honor and pleasures, priests have become sewers of impurity. Yes, priests call forth vengeance, and vengeance is suspended over their heads. Woe to priests, and to persons consecrated to God, who by their infidelities and their evil life are crucifying my son anew! The sins of persons consecrated to God cry to heaven and call for vengeance, and now here is vengeance at their very doors, for no longer is anyone found to beg mercy and pardon for the people; there are no more generous souls, there is now no one worthy of offering the spotless Victim to the Eternal on the world's behalf." |
| Lourdes | February 11, 1858 | Lourdes, France | Saint Bernadette Soubirous | "I am the Immaculate Conception." Our Lady asked asked for prayer and penitence for the conversion of sinners. |
| Knock | August 21, 1879 | Fifteen parishioners | Knock, Ireland | Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. John the Evangelist, an altar, a lamb on the altar, and a cross. |
| Fatima | May 13, 1917 | Lúcia Santos and her cousins, Jacinta and Francisco Marto | Fatima, Portugal | "O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary I beg the conversion of poor sinners." |
- Fr. Salvatore Perella
-
- More than 1,500 visions of Mary have been reported around the world, but in the past century only nine cases have received official church approval as being "worthy of belief," said an expert in Marian apparitions.
- The church has made very few judgments on apparition claims. "It's not always possible to ascertain if they are true or false because the phenomenon is much bigger than us," said Marianist Father Salvatore Perrella, assistant dean at the Pontifical Theological Faculty Marianum and a theologian who also serves as an expert for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
- The enormous job of determining the veracity of an apparition falls to the local bishop, said Father Perrella.[1]
Our Lady of Good Help
- “Our Lady of Good Help,†in Champion, Wisconsin.
- Official website.
- "Worthy of Belief" by Bishop David Ricken, Green Bay.
- "In October 1859, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared on three occasions to Adele Brise, a young Belgian immigrant. Brise stated that a lady dressed in dazzling white appeared to her and claimed to be the 'Queen of Heaven who prays for the conversion of sinners.'
- "The Lady asked Brise to pray for sinners, as well as to gather the children and teach them what they should know for salvation. The Blessed Virgin followed the commands with these words of assurance to Adele Brise, 'Go and fear nothing, I will help you.'
- "Since 1859, countless faithful have made the pilgrimage to Champion, Wisconsin to offer prayers of thanksgiving and petition to Jesus and to ask for intercession from Our Lady of Good Help."
Our Lady of Knock
- On August 21, 1879, about fifteen parishioners saw Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. John the Evangelist, an altar, a lamb on the altar, and a cross. Wikipedia.
- Knock Shrine.
- Our Lady of Knock, Queen of Ireland, you gave hope to our people in a time of distress and comforted them in sorrow. You have inspired countless pilgrims to pray with confidence to your divine Son, remembering His promise: "Ask and you shall receive, Seek and you shall find". Help me to remember that we are all pilgrims on the road to heaven. Fill me with love and concern for my brothers and sisters in Christ, especially those who live with me. Comfort me when I am sick or lonely or depressed. Teach me how to take part ever more reverently in the holy Mass. Pray for me now, and at the hour of my death. Amen.
- "The purpose of the Bureau is to help Catholics to meet suitable prospective Marriage partners. As this is a branch of Catholic Action, it is presumed that all applicants are practising Catholics, free to marry and definitely seeking a Catholic marriage."
Our Lady of La Salette
- National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette
- In 1846, at La Salette in France, the Blessed Mother appeared to two children. Speaking to them she told them to make her message to "make known to all my people." Inspired by Mary's call for reconciliation with God, the Missionaries of La Salette were founded in 1852 as "ministers of religion" to be "faithful dispensers of the mysteries of God." Their charism focuses on Reconciliation and the Eucharist.