The Blessed Virgin Mary , sometimes shortened to the Blessed Virgin or the Virgin Mary , is a traditional title used by most Christians and most specifically used by liturgical Christians such as Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Lutherans, Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholics, and some others to describe Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ.Since the first century, devotion to the Virgin Mary has been a major element of the spiritual life of a vast number of Christians, primarily in Catholicism. From the Council of Ephesus in 431 to Vatican II and Pope John Paul II's encyclical Redemptoris Mater , the Virgin Mary has come to be seen not only as the Mother of God but also as the Mother of the Church, a Mediatrix who intercedes to Jesus Christ and even a proposed Co-Redemptrix.
The key role of the Virgin Mary in the beliefs of many Christians, her veneration, and the growth of Mariology have not only come about by the Marian writings of the saints or official statements but have often been driven from the ground up , from the masses of believers, and at times via reported Marian apparitions, miracles and healings.
Veneration of the Virgin Mary
There is a long-standing and widespread tradition in Catholic, Orthodox, Coptic, Syriac and Anglican Christianity of giving special honor and devotion to the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus.
Origins
Over considerable resistance, the Council of Ephesus in 431 formally sanctioned devotion to the Virgin as Theotokos, Mother of God, (more accurately translated as God bearer ), sanctioning the creation of icons bearing the images of the Virgin and Child. Devotion to Mary was, however, already widespread before this point, reflected in the fresco depictions of Mother and Child in the Roman catacombs ( illustration. left ). The early Church Fathers saw Mary as the "new Eve" who said "yes" to God as Eve had said no. The non-canonical Gospel of James, written around 150, is a literary testament to the earliest devotion to Mary, the first document advocating her perpetual virginity. Mary, as the first Christian Saint and Mother of Jesus, was deemed to be a compassionate mediator between suffering mankind and her son, Jesus, who was seen as King and Judge. Biblical support for this position was found in the story of the Marriage at Cana whereat Mary entreated Jesus to turn water into wine (Gospel of John, Chapter 2). Elizabeth's praise of Mary "blessed art thou among women" and "who am I that the mother of my Lord would visit me?" in Luke 2 are also cited in support of Mary's role, among other passages of Scripture.
In the East, devotion to Mary blossomed in the sixth century under official patronage and imperial promotion at the Court of Constantinople. The popularity of Mary as an individual object of devotion, however, only began in the fifth century with the appearance of apocryphal versions of her life, interest in her relics, and the first churches dedicated to her name, for example, S. Maria Maggiore in Rome. A sign that the process was slower in Rome is provided by the incident during the visit of Pope Agapetus to Constantinople in 536, when he was upbraided for opposing the veneration of the theotokos and refusing to allow her icons to be displayed in Roman churches. Early seventh-century examples of new Marian dedications in Rome are the dedication in 609 of the pagan Pantheon as Santa Maria ad Martyres , "Holy Mary and the Martyrs", and the re-dedication of the early Christian titulus Julii et Calixtii , one of the oldest Roman churches, as Santa Maria in Trastevere. The earliest Marian feasts were introduced into the Roman liturgical calendar by Pope Sergius I (687-701).
Early representations of Mary show her as the "Throne of Heaven" with Mary and the Child Jesus both royally crowned with Byzantine diadems. She was further identified with the Bride in the Old Testament Song of Solomon, by such noted theologians as St. Bernard of Clairvaux. She became the prototype for the Church itself. During the Middle Ages, and especially in France, the great Cathedrals were thus named for Mary. The Marian Rosary was popularized by the followers of St. Dominic.
The image of Mary as Queen was softened somewhat by Mary as Mother of the Child Jesus. St. Francis of Assisi popularized the image of the Nativity scene using live animals. This representation of the helpless Jesus suckled by his mother brought Christmas into the hearts and homes of the people. And, as journeys to the Holy Land became difficult, Mary's role in the Passion story became part of the popular Stations of the Cross as the Mother of the suffering Jesus. During the great plagues such as the Black Death, Mary became greatly popular as a compassionate intercessor and protector of mankind against the just judgment of God.
Devotion to the Virgin Mary as the "new Eve" lent much to the status of women during the Middle Ages. Women who had been looked down upon as daughters of Eve, came to be looked upon as objects of veneration and inspiration. The veneration of Mary both as woman and prototype of the Church was greatly responsible for transforming the Germanic Warrior code into the Code of Chivalry. This reinterpretation of women flowered in the Courtly Love poetry of Medieval and Renaissance France. Mary, as the original "vessel of Christ" may have also influenced the legends of the Holy Grail. Her selflessness, obedience and virginal humility were reinterpreted in the literary figure of Sir Galahad, finder of the Grail.
Marian prayers and devotions
Main article: Marian devotionsThe earliest known prayer addressed to Mary is the Sub tuum praesidium, or Beneath Thy Protection , dating to the second half of the 3rd century. A papyrus dated to c. 250 containing the prayer in Greek was discovered in Egypt in 1917, and is one of the earliest known references to the title Theotokos, confirmed by the Council of Ephesus in 431:
In the twelfth century indications of a regular devotion can be noted in a sermon by Bernard of Clairvaux (De duodecim stellis), from which an extract has been taken by the Roman Catholic Church and used in the Offices of the Compassion and of the Seven Dolours . Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina , usually attributed either to St. Anselm of Lucca (d. 1080) or Bernard of Clairvaux; and also in the large book "De laudibus B. Mariae Virginis" (Douai, 1625) by Richard de Saint-Laurent.
The central role of Mary in the belief and practice of Catholicism and Orthodoxy is reflected in the fact that many churches contain side altars dedicated to the Virgin Mary, or statues and icons, often with candles that can be lit to accompany prayer.
Rosary and Scapular
Main articles: Rosary, Scapular, and Rosary and ScapularTwo popular Marian devotionals are the Rosary and the Scapular. They continue to be supported and linked as Marian Sacramentals by various religious figures.
The Holy Rosary, a form of prayer in which an Our Father, ten Hail Marys and a Glory Be to the Father (together forming a "decade of the Rosary") are recited five times while meditating on the mysteries of the life of Jesus and Mary (Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious) to be followed by a prayer called the "Hail Holy Queen" and perhaps the "Litany of Loreto". The rosary as a "devotional path" to the Virgin Mary has been a source of inspiration for a number of Roman Catholic figures. For instance, in his encyclical Rosarium Virginis Mariae Pope John Paul II discusses the inspiration of the rosary and how his motto "Totus Tuus" was inspired by the writings of Saint Louis de Montfort. Rosary beads are not always used for purely Marian prayers, and other Rosary based prayers (e.g. Rosary of the Holy Wounds directed to Jesus Christ) also exist in the Roman Catholic tradition.
The Mariologicalbasis of the Scapular devotion is effectively the same as Marian consecration, namely the role of the Virgin Mary as " the mother to us in the order of grace ". Pope John Paul II stated that:
Scapular is essentially a habit which evokes the protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary in this life and in the passage to the fullness of eternal glory.
Pope John Paul II also stated that he received his own first Brown Scapular of Mount Carmel at age ten when his Marian devotion was taking shape and he continued to wear it into his papacy.
Reparations to the Blessed Virgin
Roman Catholic tradition includes specific prayers and devotions such as the Acts of Reparation to the Virgin Mary for insults that she suffers. Marian art depicting a sorrowful
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