“And Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
For he has looked on the humble estate of His servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.’”
Luke 1:46-48
It is so important at Christmas to set the record straight related to what the Bible teaches about Mary, the mother of Jesus. Let’s start with the truth (Bible doctrine), then compare to official Roman Catholic Church teaching (Dogma of church proclamation).
Mary is introduced and spoken of clearly in the first two chapters of Luke
– She was a righteous woman proclaimed as favored by the Lord (1:28, 30).
– She was betrothed in marriage to a righteous man named Jospeh, of the linage of King David (Matthew 1:16).
– She was told she would conceive the son of God by the power of the Holy Spirit (1:30-35).
– She believed this angelic proclamation (1:38, 45).
– She was filled with the Holy Spirit to rejoice in speaking a prophetic song of praise (1:46-55).
– She gave birth to Jesus in a standard human way, but in the most humble place of an animal stable, where Jesus was first laid to rest in the hay of a manger (2:6).
– She did not understand what the future held for Jesus but was a thoughtful and devout woman (2:19, 51).
– She was present for the arrival of the worshipping magi from the east (Matthew 2:11).
– She and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple as instructed by the law for his dedication (2:23).
– She and Jospeh were faithful to attend the Jerusalem Passover every year and bring Jesus with them (2:41).
– She was a good, but stern mother, not fully understanding Jesus’ path at age twelve (2:48-50).
– As a child, Jesus was submissive to Mary’s authority as a parent (2:51).
– As a man, Mary was still near to Jesus’ ministry and aware of His divine power. She became submissive to His words and called others to have the same heart (John 2:1-5).
– She was known to be the wife of a carpenter (Joseph) and the mother of Jesus, but this was a stumbling block to the belief of local people because she and Joseph were average everyday people (Mark 6:3).
– Mary and Joseph had at least seven other children together by natural means; James, Jospeh, Simon, Judas, and at least three sisters (Matthew 13:55-56).
– Mary did not forsake Jesus at the cross, but stood and watched him die (John 19:25).
– The final mention of Mary in the New Testament narrative is her presence with the disciples in the upper room after Jesus’ ascension. It is noteworthy that she believed in Jesus fully, continued with the church in devotion, but is not assigned any special place of leadership or devotion in the book of Acts (Acts 1:14).
In summary, the Bible presents Mary as a godly, faith-filled, thoughtful mother and wife. She did fill a blessed and unique role in salvation history. She was a virgin, in the normal sense of that word, at the time of Jesus’ birth. This speaks to her righteousness as a woman. She lived a steady faithful life, with her husband Joseph, fulfilling the law and commands of God as a faithful Jew. She and Joseph had at least seven other children together by natural means, four sons and three daughters. Mary loved Jesus and was loved by Him. Mary believed Jesus was the son of God and worshipped Him, believed in Him, and prayed to Him as such. At no time in the Bible does anyone pray to Mary or attempt to worship her. She did not feature as a prominent person in the early church.
In light of the Bible testimony about Mary, it is shocking what Roman Catholic Church (RCC) dogma declares Mary to be. It’s important to understand that dogma is the proclaimed teaching of the RCC that stands for them with authority, but is proclaimed by Popes, not conveyed by Scripture.
First, RCC dogma teaches the “immaculate conception” of Mary. This teaching states that Mary herself was conceived without indwelling sin or corruption and continued through her life in a sinless state of perfection. It was because of her sinless state that Jesus could be born without sin. The “immaculate conception” dogma of Mary was proclaimed as such by Pope Pius IX on December 8th, 1854, stating that Mary was “free from the stain of original sin.” The RCC annually celebrates this recently established belief on December 8th.
Second, that Mary was a “perpetual virgin.” This dogma works to present the birth of Jesus not as a real natural event, but as a mythical event sanitized of all the messiness of birth. Second, it flatly contradicts biblical teaching that Mary and Joseph had a happy and intimate marriage resulting in many children.
Third, that Mary was “assumed into heaven” at the end of her life. This means that she did not die a natural death but was taken directly to heaven like Elijah or Enoch. Mary is seen in this way to be the greatest of the saints. This Dogma was proclaimed by Pope Pius XII in 1950.
Fourth, that Mary is to be “venerated” and prayed to as the “Queen of Heaven” and intercessor to Jesus for our salvation. The word “venerated” is specifically used but has no meaningful difference from worship. Large statues of Mary exist in RCC churches all over the world and worshippers are taught to pray repetitious prayers that continually “hail Mary” and worship her as the “Queen of Heaven.” She is taught to be the “co-helper in the redemption of humanity” as the mediator to Jesus. Or in other words, we come to Jesus by coming through Mary.
Such teaching by the RCC amounts to idolatry of Mary by creating a fictional character that is contradictory to the biblical account. The RCC, papal created, version of Mary bears no resemblance to the Mary of the bible and would be shockingly offensive to the truly devout real woman that claimed none of these things outside of originally being a virgin before marriage. Understand that RCC dogma insists on these things and holds this teaching of Mary as central to its worship and routine of prayer. It is not possible to live as a faithful Roman Catholic apart from believing and practicing these idolatrous beliefs. It is also easy to see how Roman Catholic followers can quickly shift from Mary to an entire other host of “saints” representing every cause known to man. This cadre of “saints” are prayed to, venerated, and hoped upon with coins and pendants like superstitious good luck charms. In all this the biblical Gospel of Jesus Christ and salvation by grace alone through Christ alone is utterly lost. It is not enough to generally believe in a “Jesus” of your own imagination or tradition. We must believe in the real Jesus revealed in the Bible. This biblical Jesus is the only way, the truth, and the life!
Beloved, test what you are believing to make sure it is true (1 John 4:1),
Pastor Vic