THE FOUR MARIAN DOGMAS

DIVINE MOTHERHOOD
- Mary's divine motherhood was proclaimed at the Council of Ephesus in 431. Various names are
used to describe Mary's role as mother of Jesus. She is called "Mother of God" which translates
the more accurately stated greek term "Theotokos" or "Birthgiver of God." The Council of
Ephesus (431) attributed to Mary the title, Mother of God. This needs to be read against the
Council's declaration that in Christ there are two natures, one divine and one human, but only one
person.
- Indeed, according to the Council the holy virgin is the Mother of God since she begot according
to the flesh the Word of God made flesh. This decision was further explained by the Council of
Chalcedon (451) which says with regard to Mary's divine motherhood: "...begotten from the
Father before the ages as regards his godhead, and in the last days, the same, because of us and
because of our salvation begotten from the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos, as regards his manhood;
one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-begotten..." Mary's Divine Motherhood was not the
object of an independent or exclusive dogmatic declaration.
- The statement is embedded in texts defining the person and natures of Jesus Christ. Thus, the
dogma of Divine Motherhood becomes an integral part of the Christological dogma. This does
not diminish its definitive and binding character. The dogma of Divine Motherhood is generally
accepted by all Christian denominations.
PERPETUAL VIRGINITY
- The expression perpetual virginity, ever-virgin, or simply "Mary the Virgin" refers primarily to
the conception and birth of Jesus. From the first formulations of faith, especially in baptismal
formulas or professions of faith, the Church professed that Jesus Christ was conceived without
human seed by the power of the Holy Spirit only. Here lies the decisive meaning of expressions
such as "conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary," "Mary's virginal conception," or "virgin
birth."
- The early baptismal formula (since the 3rd century) state Mary's virginity without further
explaining it, but there is no doubt about its physical meaning. Later statements are more explicit.
Mary conceived "without any detriment to her virginity, which remained inviolate even after his
birth" (Council of the Lateran, 649). Although never explicated in detail, the Catholic Church
holds as dogma that Mary was and is Virgin before, in and after Christ's birth.
- It stresses thus the radical novelty of the Incarnation and Mary's no less radical and exclusive
dedication to her mission as mother of her Son, Jesus Christ. Vatican II reiterated the teaching
about Mary, the EverVirgin, by stating that Christ's birth did not diminish Mary's virginal
integrity but sanctified it . The Catechism of the Catholic Church ponders the deeper meaning of
the virgin bride and perpetual virginity (499-507). It also maintains that Jesus Christ.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
- The solemn definition of Mary's Immaculate Conception is like Divine Motherhood and
Perpetual Virginity part of the christological doctrine, but it was proclaimed as an independent
dogma by Pope Pius IX in his Apostolic Constitution "Ineffabilis Deus" (December 8, 1854).
Though highlighting a privilege of Mary it in fact stresses the dignity and holiness required to
become "Mother of God." The privilege of the Immaculate Conception is the source and basis for
Mary's all-holiness as Mother of God. More specifically, the dogma of the Immaculate
 Conception states "that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, from the first moment of her conception,
by a singular grace and privilege from Almighty God and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ,
was kept free of every stain of original sin.".
- This dogma has both a "negative" and a "positive" meaning which complement each other. The
"negative" meaning stresses Mary's freedom from original sin thanks to the anticipated or
retroactive (here called preventive) grace of Christ's redemptive act. By the same token, the
dogma suggests Mary's all-holiness. This "positive" meaning is the consequence of the absence of
original sin. Mary's life is permanently and intimately related to God, and thus she is the all-holy.
Although difficult to explain, original sin provokes disorderliness in thought and behavior,
especially with regard to the primacy of God's presence in our life.
- Consequently, in declaring Mary immaculately conceived, the Church sees in Mary one who
never denied God the least sign of love. Thus, the dogma declares that from her beginning Mary
was exceptionally holy and in constant union with the sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit.
THE ASSUMPTION
- This marian dogma was proclaimed by Pope Pius XII on November 1, 1950 on his Encyclical
Munificentissimus Deus. A distinction needs to be made between Ascension and Assumption.
Jesus Christ, Son of God and Risen Lord, ascended into heaven, a sign of divine power. Mary, on
the contrary, was elevated or assumed into heaven by the power and grace of God. The dogma
states that "Mary, Immaculate Mother of God ever Virgin, after finishing the course of her life on
earth, was taken up in body and soul to heavenly glory." This definition as well as that of the
Immaculate Conception makes not only reference to the universal, certain and firm consent of the
Magisterium but makes allusion to the concordant belief of the faithful. The Assumption had
been a part of the Church's spiritual and doctrinal patrimony for centuries. It had been part of
theological reflection but also of the liturgy and was part of the sense of the faithful. This dogma
has no direct basis in scripture. It was nonetheless declared "divinely revealed," meaning that it is
contained implicitly in divine Revelation. It may be understood as the logical conclusion of
Mary's vocation on earth, and the way she lived her life in union with God and her mission. The
assumption may be seen as a consequence of Divine Motherhood. Being through, with, and for
her Son on earth, it would seem fitting for Mary to be through, with, and for her Son in heaven,
too. She was on earth the generous associate of her Son.
- The Assumption tells us that this association continues in heaven. Mary is indissolubly linked to
her Son on earth and in heaven. In heaven, Mary's active involvement in salvation history
continues: "Taken up to heaven, she did not lay aside her salvific duty... By her maternal love she
cares for the brothers and sisters of her Son who still journey on earth" (LG). Mary is the
"eschatological icon of the Church" (CCC 972), meaning the Church contemplates in Mary her
own end of times. The definition of the dogma does not say how the transition from Mary's
earthly state to her heavenly state happened. Did Mary die? Was she assumed to heaven without
prior separation of soul and body? The question remains open for discussion. However, the
opinion that Mary passed through death as her Son did, has the stronger support in tradition.
Glorified in body and soul, Mary is already in the state that will be ours after the resurrection of
the dead.
TITLES OF MARY
Our Lady is a common title to give to Mary as a sign of respect and honor. In French she is called Notre
Dame and in Spanish she is Nuestra Señora.
 • * New Eve • *Our Lady, Star of the Sea
• * Stella Maris or Our Lady, Star of the Sea • *Queen of All Saints Queen of Angels
• * Mary • *Queen of Apostles
• * Full of Grace, Blessed, Most Blessed • *Queen of Confessors
• * Virgin, the Virgin • *Queen of Families
• * Cause of our Salvation • *Queen of Martyrs
• * Mother of God • *Queen of Patriarchs
• * God-bearer • *Queen of Prophets
• * Ever-virgin • *Queen of Virgins
• * Holy Mary, Saint Mary • *Queen of the World (in Latin Regina mundi)
• * Most Holy • *Refuge of Sinners
• * Most Pure • February 2 — Presentation of the Lord
• * Immaculate • February 11 — Our Lady of Lourdes
• * Lady, Mistress • March 25 — Annunciation
• * Queen of Heaven • May 13 — Our Lady of Fatima
• * Ark of the Covenant • May 31 — Visitation
• * Comfort (or Help) of the Afflicted • June 27 — Our Mother of Perpetual Help
• * Our Lady, Gate of the Dawn • July 16 — Our Lady of Mount Carmel
• *Holy Mary• *Immaculate Heart of Mary • * August 15 — Assumption
• *Mother of Christ • August 22 — Queenship of Mary
• *Mother of Mercy • September 8 — Birth of Mary
• *Mother of Sorrows • September 12 — The Most Holy Name of
Mary
• *Mother for the Journey
• September 15 — Our Lady of Sorrows
• * Mother of the Church
• October 7 — Our Lady of the Rosary
• *Mystical Rose
• November 21 — Presentation of the Blessed
• *Our Lady of the Annunciation
Virgin Mary
• *Our Lady of Charity
• *December 8 — Immaculate Conception
• * Our Lady of Providence
• December 12 — Our Lady of Guadalupe
• *Our Lady of Ransom
• *Our Lady of Solitude
 THE BOOKS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
• THE NEW TESTAMENT: 27 BOOKS IN 5 CATEGORIES
- The New Testament books fall into five general categories: the Gospels, the single book of Acts,
Paul’s letters to churches, Paul’s letters to church leaders, and a collection of letters sent out
(mostly) to large groups of people. Let’s take a quick tour of how these books are grouped
together in our Bibles.
THE 4 GOSPELS
• If you’ve spent much time around Christians, you’ve probably heard the word “gospel.” It’s a word that
means “good news.” Christians through the centuries have used it primarily to refer to a very specific bit
of good news: Jesus, the Son of God, rose from the dead and will one-day return to govern the whole
world in peace and justice. So it’s no wonder that the four books of the New Testament which tell the
story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection are called “the gospels.” They are as follows:
• *Matthew
• *Mark
• *Luke
• *John
ACTS
- The book of Acts is a sequel to the gospel of Luke (Acts 1:1–2; Luke 1:1–4). It’s the author’s
account of how the followers of Jesus grew from a small group of witnesses to a movement that
spread throughout the Roman Empire. The central characters in this narrative are Peter and Paul:
two prominent leaders in the early church.
PAUL’S LETTERS
In the book of Acts, we see how Paul spread the good news about Jesus throughout the first-century
Roman empire. As he did this, he and his associates established gatherings of people (“churches”) who
regularly met. Paul kept tabs on how these churches developed, and on several occasions sent letters to
local churches to educate and instruct them on, just what it meant to be a church, and how churches
should conduct themselves. For the most part, these letters were sent to churches in individual cities—
which is where they get their names:
• *Romans • * 1 Thessalonians
• *1 Corinthians • *2 Thessalonians
• *2 Corinthians • This isn’t the complete works of Paul—there’s
evidence in the Bible that he wrote other letters,
• *Galatians
too. These are just the ones Christians preserved
• *Ephesians long enough and spread wide enough for them to
make it into the Bible … but that’s another
• *Philippians story.
• *Colossians
THE PASTORAL EPISTLES: PAUL’S LETTERS TO CHURCH LEADERS
• Paul didn’t just write to congregations. Four of our New Testament books are correspondence from Paul
to individual church leaders. These letters are named after the people Paul sent them to:
• *1 Timothy
• * 2 Timothy
• * Titus
• *Philemon
A quick note on Philemon: this is a tricky book to categorize. It’s an open letter to the man Philemon, but
also to his church. There’s a good chance that it was delivered at the same time as the letter to the
Colossians.
THE GENERAL EPISTLES: LETTERS TO LARGE GROUPS
- For the most part, the following letters were written to large groups of Christians living in the
first-century Roman empire. These letters address a wide array of topics important to Christians
of the time. With the exceptions of Hebrews and Revelation, these letters are named after their
traditional authors.
• *Hebrews
• *James
• * 1 Peter
• * 2 Peter
• * 1 John
• *2 John
• * 3 John
• * Jude
• * Revelation
THE MEANING OF THE TERMS GOSPEL, EVANGELISTS AND SYNOPTIC
*Gospel, any of four biblical narratives covering the life and death of Jesus Christ. Written, according to
tradition, respectively by St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke, and St. John (the four evangelists), they are
placed at the beginning of the New Testament and make up about half the total text. The word gospel is
derived from the Anglo-Saxon term god-spell, meaning “good story,” a rendering of the Latin evangelium
and the Greek euangelion, meaning “good news” or “good telling.” Since the late 18th century the first
three have been called the Synoptic Gospels, because the texts, set side by side, show a similar treatment
of the life and death of Jesus Christ.
* Synoptic Gospels, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke in the New Testament, which present
similar narratives of the life and death of Jesus Christ. Since the 1780s the first three books of the New
Testament have been called the Synoptic Gospels because they are so similar in structure, content, and
wording that they can easily be set side by side to provide a synoptic comparison of their content.
*Evangelists, “Matthew, Mark, Luke & John,” from old French evangelist and directly from late Latin
evangelista, from Greek euangelistes “preacher of the gospel,” literally “bringer of the good news”. In
early Greek Christian texts, the word was used of the four traditional authors of the narrative gospels.
Meaning “itinerant preacher” was another early Church usage. Classical Greek euangelion meant “the
reward of good tidings”.
FORMATION OF THE GOSPELS: MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE AND JOHN
• FORMATION OF THE GOSPELS (3 STAGES)
• STAGE 1 THE HISTORICAL JESUS (ACTUAL LIFE OF JESUS) Jesus actually lived, performed
miracles, told parables, was crucified a nd rose from the dead. Nothing was written about him at this
stage.
• STAGE 2: ORAL TRADITION
• Convinced that JESUS was the Messiah the apostles preach and baptize. The Church begins. There were
collections of parables, sayings, and miracles. As the name implies- nothing was written.
THE APOSTLES ORAL PREACHING TOOK THREE FORMS
• Kerygma: Preaching to unbelievers. Those who had no firsthand knowledge of Jesus.
Didache: Teaching. To repeat the message and explain it in more dept h. Emphasize teachings and
sayings of Jesus.
Liturgy: Worship, participation in the work of God. Primarily, Christians met for the Eucharist and the
teachings and actio ns of Jesus were repeated (Do this in memory of me).
• STAGE 3: ACTUAL WRITING OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
• Earliest (first writings) were the Letters of Paul. As a missionary Paul kept in contact with the
communities he had founded by writing letters. These are the letters we have in the New Testament today.
• *Gospels were compiled from the oral tradition the writers took: sayings, miracles, and parables, from
the oral tradition and combined them into a Gospel account.