December 24, 2007
St. Augustine on the Birth of Christ
Now of this Mediator [Jesus] it would occupy too much space to say anything at all worthy of Him; and, indeed, to say what is worthy of Him is not in the power of man. For who will explain in...
September 30, 2006
The Historical Background of Devotion to Mary in Art
I’ve often heard statements such as “The Church didn’t start worshipping Mary until the Middle Ages.” There are obviously two things wrong here: (1) the Church doesn’t worship Mary and never has; and (2) Devotion to Mary started much,...
September 1, 2006
Five Biblical Proofs that Jesus did not have Brothers
A common disagreement between Catholics and protestants is over the “brothers” of Christ. Catholics argue that Mary was a perpetual virgin and had no other children than Jesus, whereas protestants point to a few passages in the Bible to argue...
August 14, 2006
Why so many Our Lady’s? What the Versions of Mary mean for us?
On the eve of a Marian Feast Day (the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven), I wanted to point out one particular difference between Catholics and protestants: our multiple views of Mary. As Catholics we have the...
August 5, 2006
Who is the Woman Clothed in the Sun of Revelation 12?
This is actually an interesting apologetics question, since there is a clear difference of opinion between Catholics and most protestants (a few prominent protestant exegetes do adhere to the Catholic position). The “Woman” in Revelation 12 is important because of...
May 2, 2006
Marian Theology in the Early Church
May is considered to be a Marian month, so I thought it would be appropriate to consider what the Early Fathers taught about Mary. On the Immaculate Conception "He was the ark formed of incorruptible wood. For by this is...
October 30, 2005
Mary and Romans 3:23..."All Have Sinned..." (Mary?)
The following is an article that I stumbled upon on Dave Armstrong's blog. It deals with the objection that has been repeatedly posted on this blog in reference to Mary being sinless and the apparent contradiction created by St. Paul's...
May 17, 2005
Anglicans see the light on Mary
The Anglican church has just issued a new document that agrees with Catholic teaching on Mary. Some quotes from the article: In the passage likely to cause most dissent, the document says the infallible dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and...
April 29, 2005
The Rosary and Matthew 6:7
In the many discussions I have had with Protestants over the years regarding the Rosary one of the first questions to come up is the following: How do Catholic justify praying the Rosary in light of what Jesus said in...
February 19, 2005
Linguistic Issues Regarding the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, Part II
Many fellow Christians (Protestants) and members of other religious cults (Jehovah Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists, etc) often attempt to us certain biblical passages as "proof" that the Catholic teaching on Mary's Perpetual Virginity is untrue and contradicted by the Bible....
January 7, 2005
Honor Mary- Honor God
I am reading Catholic for a Reason II, Scripture and the Mystery of the Mother of God and just read a profound statement that I wish I had heard when I was Protestant. I pray that everyone reading this will...
January 3, 2005
Are Protestants re-examining Mary?
Dappled Things (an excellent blog) pointed to an interesting article today that takes a look at the changing opinions of Protestants concerning the role of Mary. In What about Mary? Protestants and Marian devotion we get an interesting glimpse at...
December 10, 2004
The Blessed Virgin Mary and the Bible
I keep hearing the claim that Mary is “invisible” or “faint” within Scripture, which I disagree with. As we near Christmas, Catholics often think of a woman with God actually within her body. As any parent understands, mothers have an...
July 12, 2004
BOOK REVIEW: The Mystical Rose by Venerable John Henry Cardinal Newman
John Henry Cardinal Newman was one of the great Catholic converts of his day. Born in 1801, Newman was raised Anglican. At the age of 24 he was ordained an Anglican priest. He was of high regard in the Anglican...
June 25, 2004
Mary's Gospel: The Marian Influence on the Gospel of Luke
We have often discussed on this blog the role of Mary in the Early Church. Many have insisted that her role was minimal and insignificant. Yet we cannot deny the vividly strong presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the...
March 20, 2004
Writings on the Perpetual Virginity of Mary
It has recently been suggested by some of our visitors that the belief in the perpetual virginity of Mary was not established by the early Church, but rather first became pervasive during the middle of the fourth century. I felt...
March 12, 2004
Why Do Catholics Pray the Rosary?
This is an article long in coming, but certainly due. The Rosary. What is it? Why does it benefit one to pray it? Where did this prayer come from? How come I can't find it in the Bible? For many...
March 1, 2004
Linguistic Issues Regarding the Perpetual Virginity of Mary
There has been some significant discussion on this site regarding the "brothers" of Jesus referred to in the Gospels. Most of you know that the Church teaches the perpetual virginity of Mary, meaning that she could not have had any...
December 21, 2003
Meditations on the Birth of Christ III: the Silence of Mary
Romano Guardini is fond of noting the “stillness” and “quiet” the surrounds the incarnation of God into the womb of Mary (the new Ark of the Covenant). Part of this quiet lies in the silent assent of Mary to the...
December 7, 2003
Biblical Mary, Part II
One thing we can all agree on (hopefully) is that Jesus came from the line of David. The Lord promised David that a king in his line would one day rule all nations, and he would reign forever (2 Sam...
December 3, 2003
Biblical Mary; Part I
Mary’s role in God’s plan of salvation is absolutely crucial. In a way, Mary is the new Eve. Eve’s disobedience immersed all humans in the bondage of sin. On the contrary, Mary’s obedience to God opened the way for the...
November 4, 2003
The Brothers and Sisters of Jesus: Did Mary have other children?
A visiting blogger recently posted a comment under Jay's article entitled "Pius XII and Hitler: Facts, not Fiction" in which the blogger called into question whether or not Mary had other children besides Jesus. Here I will show that this...
October 24, 2003
Mary Worship - The Common Misconception
In a previous article I addressed the reason why Catholics pray to Mary and have such devotion to her as the Mother of God. I might add that this is not some new fad that has captivated Catholics only in...
August 10, 2003
Do Catholics pray to Mary?
"Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of...
