The DOGMA of the Immaculate Conception

The raising of a teaching to a Dogma means that the particular teaching was part of the deposit of Faith handed down by the Early Church.  In 1854 Pope Pius IX  consulted the bishops of the world and declared the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception, that Mary was born free from that inclination to sin that we inherited from Eve, that original sin, and in the eyes of the fathers she was seen as the New Eve.  Mary lived with the apostles and the early disciples and they knew of her holiness.   They knew what Gabriel had said  "Hail Full of Grace", they knew what Jesus said about her "She heard the word of God and kept it", but most of all the word Jesus used in referring to her as "Woman" taking us back to Genesis when God said to the serpent  "I will put enmity between thee and the woman"   When Jesus was seen as the New Adam we remember the words that followed "and between his seed and yours"   Simply put The battle between the woman and the serpent because she was not of the seed of the old Eve, and her son whom the serpent could not overcome, led to a new creation, a people who could overcome sin and death - the followers of Christ.     Four years after the solemn declaration of Pius IX Mary herself appeared at Lourdes and when Bernadette asked who she was, the reply came  "I am the Immaculate Conception"

One of the difficulties with Catholic Education long before Vatican II was that while Protestants claimed Sola Scriptura the church would reply  "No we do not just follow scripture we also follow tradition, without making it clear just what tradition was and inviting Catholics to study the early Fathers.   When in the revolution after Vatican II  the enemy within skilfully made the Bible the only source of Revelation, there were few laypeople who could argue from Tradition    So the Church became Protestant.   But the writings of Clement, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, St Irenaeus of Lyons, and so many others were ignored as though the content the Church used in the New Testament made their writings null and void, when actually the Church was instructing us on the books of the bible to be read at Masses.   They did not condemn these other books.   A good way to start studying the early fathers and their comments on early teaching, is a book I use "The Fathers Know Best" by Jimmy Akin.

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