The Immaculate Conception

 There are very down to earth things I believe about the relationship between Jesus and Mary.   I believe that Mary was the mother of Jesus and that Jesus loved her very much.   He loved her as a son loves a mother, and more there is no evidence to suggest that in Heaven his love for his mother is not still the same as it was on earth.  The role of Mary on earth was to take this 'Son of God' as a baby into her bosom, give birth to him, and as he grew help him in his daily life to mature and grow in wisdom.   He became after the incident in the Temple where Joseph and Mary eventually found him discussing scripture, 'subject to Joseph and Mary'.

At the 'enlightenment' that came in the 70's I heard feminists speak of their hero Mary, but it was not the mother of Jesus they spoke of but for some reason Mary Magdalen.    In their ignorance they thought that Mary had a wonderful life and all she had to do was keep her mouth shut, and indeed all women who kept their mouths shut were imitating Mary.    What a travesty of the truth!

When Gabriel appeared to Mary he addressed her "Hail, full of grace".    In he bible that Jerome produced for the Church the words in Luke are "Ave, gratia plena.."   Hail, full of grace.   This was the bible that the church held up as the 'Word of God' and was slavishly copied for hundreds of years until some clever clerics decided it should be 'highly favoured' to suit their own agenda.   They at least recognised that full of grace is something very special, for it conveyed that Mary had all the graces that  Jesus would bring to others on his death on the Cross.     Early theologians will talk about the humanity of Mary and the flesh of Mary being passed on to Jesus.   His flesh was her flesh, and when the Early Church called Jesus the 'New Adam'  they also called Mary the New Eve.   Many early saints in the the church heaped lavish praise on Mary, who as the New Eve overcame the temptations of the Serpent  i contrast to Eve who gave in to the serpent brought sin and death into the world.   This teaching was supported by Jesus in Himself in the Gospels.  At the Marriage Feast of Cana when Mary asked him to help the over the shortage of wine he used the word Mulier, not Mater, to tell her "What is that to thee or to me, WOMAN, my hour has not yet come"    But as a loving mother she knew the heart of her son, and took his answer as a 'yes', and told the stewards to do whatever he told them to do.  Thus for his mother he worked his first miracle.

When on the Cross Jesus looked down at Mary and John. "Woman (Mulier], behold thy son, son behold thy mother"

So scripture backed up by the witness of the Early Church calls Mary the New Eve.  In 1854 the then Pius IX, having consulted the bishops of the world promulgated the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception.    Mary was born free from sin.   In doing so he did not introduce anything new into the church, for that Mary was born 'free from sin' had been the teaching of the Early Church when the Fathers called her the New Eve.

So what does Mary do now?    After she was declared the Immaculate Conception she appeared to a simple child at Lourdes to ask her to spread the Rosary and get processions to come to Lourdes and pray for the conversion of sinners.   Bernadette in obedience to Mary tried to wash herself in a spring which she could not see.  No water came and the crowd mocked her.  After she was removed water suddenly sprung up at the spot where she had been digging with her fingers.   This water proved miraculous for many pilgrims who were cured of infirmities.

As the world was plunged into the horror of the First World War, Mary appeared to three little children at Fatima, and begged them to say the Rosary and do penance otherwise a greater war would start.  Indeed she later revealed to he eldest child Lucy that the Church was in great danger from her enemies and begged the world to turn to the rosary and to penance.    The children were mocked.   Then they announced that the matter was so serious that Our Lady was going to work a miracle.    70,000 people turned up for the 'miracle', many were from atheist newspapers, who had come to scoff.   What they saw was the sun dancing in the sky and then the crowd screamed as it fell to earth.  Then it stopped and returned to earth.   None of those who were there ever denied the miracle , the atheists went back to their newspapers and reported what they saw without comment.

I remember in the story in the Bible how Lazarus who feasted sumptuously while a beggar watched him to whom Lazarus showed contempt.   When Lazarus eventually landed in Hell he pleaded with God to let him at least go back to earth and warn his brothers.   He was told that if they did not believe the law and the prophets then not even a spirit from the dead would move them.   The point is that everyone suffers from the sin of pride.  What they believe must be true, and they fail in humility to even question themselves.    That is the Church of today.   Women shouting for power, the commandments of Jesus being contradicted in the name of 'maturity', Jesus himself being thrown off the altar and people being told they must not adore Him in the Eucharist.   I recently read a report on attitudes towards the Church in my diocese.   It was a Tower of Babel.   People using their own logic and approach to the Church were deciding on their own what they should believe.    Like the tower of Babel they were ignoring God and in their trying to win heaven by ignoring Jesus.    How sad!

Mary Immaculate, pray for us.