MARY, WHY CATHOLICS HONOR HER?
Often, my friend from other christian denomination would ask me this, why do we need Mary? why should we pray through Mary, in fact, we can pray directly to God? Yes, Why would anyone want to honor Mary? After all, Jesus is paramount and we should go directly to Him. We do not need her.....or do we? Let us examine this question with Scripture and with our own GOD given powers of reason.
1. Who is the first person in Scripture to call Mary 'Blessed'?
The first place in the Bible where you will find the answer is Luke 1:28. If your answer is Gabriel, then it is the wrong answer. Gabriel is an Archangel, and the Greek word 'angel', means 'messenger'. So Gabriel was only a messenger for someone, but who? Gabriel was sent by GOD, so it was GOD's message that Gabriel delivered. If GOD was the first person to call Mary 'Blessed', can any of GOD's creatures do less? Dare you, or I, or anyone else refute a clear statement from GOD Himself? Anyone who attempts to do so is putting himself above GOD.
Others in Scripture called her "Blessed" also. Elizabeth did in Luke 1:42, and a "woman from the crowd" did in Luke 11:27. Mary herself said in Luke 1:48, "...for behold, henceforth all generations ‘shall’ call meBlessed." Can you dispute the fact that the word ‘shall’ is a command, and not a suggestion?
If you look up the word 'Blessed' in the dictionary, it means, 'Holy', held in 'Veneration', 'Revered'. GOD is telling us that Mary is Holy, and she should be venerated and revered. Why does any human try to refute the word of GOD?
2. Okay, so she is 'Blessed', but that does not mean we need her!
Well, what did GOD say through Gabriel in Luke 1:30-33? "You have found favor with GOD." Right there, GOD 'venerated' Mary over all other women. In verse 31 He tells her that she will conceive. Who will she conceive?None other than Jesus Christ, the second person of the Holy Trinity, who will manifest Himself as the 'Incarnate Word'. GOD Himself needed Mary to conceive and carry for nine months, His very own Son. GOD needed Mary to be the vessel to give birth to His Divine Son. If GOD needed her, can we not need her also?
3. So she gave birth to a male child! She is a mother like any other mother! Why does that make her special?
This brings us to a basic theological question. Who is Jesus Christ? We know that He is the second person of the Holy Trinity, the only Son of GOD. We know He is also the 'Incarnate Word' as explained in John 1:14, "...the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." John 1:1 teaches us that the "WORD WAS GOD." Mary gave birth to the 'Incarnate Word' and the 'Word' was GOD. I ask, to whom did Mary give birth? The only possible answer is that she gave birth to GOD. Some insist that she only gave birth to the 'humanity' of GOD, but what does that mean? Jesus Christ was the only person ever born with two natures, one human and one divine. He was but one person however, not two. He could not be a human person and a divine person, as that would make Him two persons. The question then becomes, 'was Jesus Christ a human person, or was He a divine person'? Back to John 1:1 and 14, the 'Incarnate Word' was GOD. Jesus Christ is a divine person. Mothers give birth to persons, each with a nature. They do not give birth to natures. GOD Himself,calls Jesus Christ His divine Son (Heb 1:5-8).
Yes she is a mother like any other mother, but what a difference between the sons.
4. Well, I am still not convinced you say?
We have established that Jesus Christ is GOD, that He was born of Mary, and that GOD needed her for this 'Incarnation'. Let us look at what Scripture says. Jesus Christ did not come to destroy the 'Law', but to fulfill it. In Matthew 5:17-20, Jesus stated this and He also said in verse 18-19, "...not one jot or tittle shall be lost from the law till all things have been accomplished. Therefore whoever does away with one of these least commandments, and so teaches men, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven..." He very plainly said to 'keep the commandments'. Now don't you suppose Jesus Christ Himself, kept the commandments that He Himself wrote? Of course He did, all of them. Now what about 'honor thy father and thy mother'. Don’t you think He kept that one too? There is certainly ample evidence to show that He honored His Father, and there is evidence that He honored His mother as well. In fact, He, GOD Himself, must have obeyed His mother's, everyday living, 'mother to child' commands as He was growing up. This is shown in Luke 2:51, "And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was SUBJECT to them."
Jesus also obeyed her by performing His first miracle at her request at Cana when He turned the water into wine in John 2:1-5. Jesus Christ therefore kept the commandment 'honor thy mother'.
If Jesus Christ honored His mother, can we do less?
Jesus Christ loves His mother like any good son would. He will defend her from all attacks against her. If you have not honored Mary, what will you tell her Son when you eventually meet Him face to face, after you have taken your last breath, and He asks you why? Remember, at that point in time, the 'GOD of Mercy' becomes the 'GOD of Justice'.
5. In Summary:
a. GOD called Mary Blessed, and He venerated her.
b. GOD needed her to bear His Divine Son.
c. GOD chose Mary above all women.
d. Mary gave birth to the divine 'Incarnate Word'.
e. Jesus Christ honors His very own mother.
f. Jesus Christ will defend His mother as any good son would.
Doesn't that make Mary special?
Does not this make her worthy of our honor?
Can we do less than what GOD Himself did?
Does any man or woman have the right, or the authority, to say we should not honor Mary?
I have given you the Scriptural authority to honor her. Ask the person who tells you otherwise to show in Scripture where it says not to honor her.
Jesus Christ was the only person in history who was able to choose His own mother. Why did He choose Mary? Because she is special, that's why...
