Pope St. John Paul II’s

MariologyRegan Institute 2019 Presented by James J. Bitting Jr., M.A. Saints show us that the Christian faith is not a mere philosophy or ideology, but rather a blessed life to be lived. Through his example and teaching, St. John Paul II directs our attention to the most perfect model of human life united to Jesus Christ, namely the Blessed Virgin Mary. St. John Paul II entrusted his papacy to the Blessed Virgin Mary, taking for his motto the Latin phrase Totus Tuus, meaning Totally Yours. Inspired by the writings of another saint, St. , St. John Paul II grew in his relationship with the Holy Mother of God. Prompted by this precedent of saints forming saints, in this course we will invite St. John Paul II to form us with his teaching on Mary. We will look to Sacred Scripture, the Catechism of the , and John Paul II’s encyclical Redemptoris Mater, as our points of reference. Through study of Redemptoris Mater and the Catechism, participants will come to a better appreciation of Mary’s obedience of faith, her role as model of all disciples of Christ, and the great gift the Church possesses in Mary’s mediation. • Be like Mary and draw all the attentionRegan to 2019 what - Class God Schedule has done for you. Mary,• DAY1And “Mother AMMary– Preliminary said, “My Info, & soul Basic Model” magnifies of Catechists the Lord and my spirit rejoices in GodCatechesismy onSavior Mary, ,Introduction for he regarded to RM the low(Pertinent estate Readings: of his Catechismhandmaiden. of the For behold,Catholic Church henceforthparagraphs all 487 generations-511 and willRedemptoris call meMater blessed;Introduction for he (art. who 1- is mighty6) has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercyDAY 1 PM is– Parton thoseI of RM (art.who 7- 24)fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm, he has scatteredDAY 2 AM – Part the II ofproud RM (art. in 25 the-37); imagination of their hearts, he has putDAY 2 down PM – Finishthe Part mighty II of RM from (maybe their thrones,some of Part and III), Resources exalted for those further of low degree;study of Mary he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hasMore sentpertinentempty readings: away.Catechism He has of helped histhe Catholic servant Church Israel,paragraphs in remembrance 963-975; ofLumen his Gentium mercy52, as-69 he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity for ever.”(Lk1:46-55) • JPII 5min bio • KAROL JÓZEF WOJTYŁA,, was born in Wadowice, Poland, on 18 May 1920. • Feeling called to the priesthood, he began his studies in 1942 in the clandestine major seminary of Krakow • priestly ordination in Krakow on 1 November 1946. • attained a doctorate in theology (1948) • became professor of moral theology and ethics in the major seminary of Krakow • On 13 January 1964, Paul VI appointed Bishop Wojtyła as Archbishop of Krakow and subsequently, on 26 June 1967, created him a Cardinal. • took part in the Second Vatican Council (1962- 1965) and made a significant contribution to the drafting of the Constitution Gaudium et Spes. • elected Pope on 16 October 1978, motto Totus Tuus • His principal documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions and 45 Apostolic Letters (Mary is mentioned in virtually all of these). He also wrote five books • On 3 May 1981, an attempt was made on Pope John Paul II's life in Saint Peter's Square. Saved by the maternal hand of the Mother of God, following a lengthy stay in the hospital, he forgave the attempted assassin • Pope John Paul II died in the Apostolic Palace at 9:37 p.m. on Saturday, 2 April 2005, • John Paul II was beatified in Saint Peter's Square on 1 May 2011 by Pope Benedict XVI, • Canonized by Pope Francis 27 April 2014 • Feast day is October 22nd (anniversary of his inaugural Papal mass)

• -maybe show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMzgoXbaOHQ Or this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20jU8PJDl04

• Or St. Paul Center lesson 12 (1-4min ) Resources & Readings

• The Catechism • Gift from JPII, History, Nature of the Text (Sure Norm) • Two Catechetical Principles i.e. Salvation History and the Central Truths of the Faith • Approach to Scripture (see CCC 101 ff , & slide footnote) • -Content & Unity of the Whole • -Living Tradition (especially the Liturgy and as handed on by the Magisterium) • -Analogy of Faith i.e. coherence of each part with one another • Ratzinger on JPII’s approach to Scripture in Redemptoris Mater. • John Paul II “considers the Bible’s words within the larger biblical unity and accepts them as truth, as testimony about the true relationship between God and us…thus the Bible is truly relevant for us…(see Ratzinger’s Intro p. 11-14) • Vatican II in General (CCC 884,891 & see slide footnote) • -JPII & Vatican II- For JP II, Vat II is the constant reference point for [his] every pastoral action • -Define “Ecumenical Council” and Describe “Conciliar Documents” (Akin p. 42-44, 109-111 esp.110) • Lumen Gentium in Particular (Schreck p. 83ff esp. 84) • Section on Mary in LG (Schreck p. 105ff) • Optional reading = LG paragraphs 52-69 on Mary • Redemptoris Mater • -Define “encyclical” (Akin p. 115-118) and distinguish from other Papal documents • Year and Purpose of this particular Encyclical • March 25th 1987 • in order to look to Mary, in the time of a New Advent, in preparation for the Bimillenial Jubilee of the birth of Jesus Christ. Precedes the Marian Year, Pentecost 1988-Assumption 1989 • To bring out what the Bible has to say about Mary (cf. Ratzinger p.10). • It is an “original synthesis between the closing chapter of the Council’s great document, Lumen Gentium, and the Holy Father’s most personal insights into his topic: Mary and the Church” (von Balthasar p. 161) Content of Redemptoris Mater

• Introduction • Mary has a precise place in the plan of salvation • Note on the “Plan of Salvation” aka Salvation History aka Economy of Salvation” Explain the term and the importance of Salvation History as the context for all doctrine and meaning. • Show Mary situated in Salvation History in the CCC • 488 “from all eternity God chose for the mother of his Son…” • 489 “Throughout the Old Covenant…” • 490-493 The Immaculate Conception • 494 Annunciation • 495-507Mary’s life Divine Motherhood & Perpetual Virginity Introduction

Galatians 4:4-6 - But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to ransom those under the law, so that we might receive adoption. • -As VAT II (LG 52) begins with this passage, JPII intentionally begins with Gal 4 as well • -Gospel Message in a nutshell like CCC 1 and Central Truths of the Faith • -“Fullness of time” JPII goes onto explain its meaning (see below) • -Redemption • -Adoption • -Sonship (by the Spirit calling out to God as Father) Introduction RM 1 • -JPII comments on Gal 4 pointing out its revelation of the Central Truths of the Faith: • Trinity • Paschal Mystery - “mission of the Son” “Redeemer” • The Person of Christ Incarnate - “born of the woman” • Dignity of the Human Person - “our divine filiation” JPII explains what “fullness of time” means • 1.The moment fixed from all eternity when the Father sent the Son • 2.When the Word became flesh & made Himself our Brother • 3.The moment when the Holy Spirit, who had made Mary Full of Grace, formed the human nature of Christ in her womb • *4.It is the entrance of the eternal into time...time is redeemed & being filled with the mystery of Christ...time becomes definitively “salvation time” (aka Salvation History) • *this is the most metaphysical and my favorite. Time is “filled” because it cannot contain the divine...if time were a container the Incarnation would fill & overflow it. • 5.It is the hidden beginning of the Church’s journey: • Mary is the Church’s beginning (cf. Preface to Dec 8th Liturgy and LG 68) • In the Immaculate Conception the Church sees projected and anticipated the saving grace of Easter • -In the Incarnation the Church encounters Christ and Mary indissolubly joined • Christ = Lord & Head • Mary = Spouse & Mother Introduction RM 2 • -Strengthened by the presence of Christ (Mt 28:20) the Church journeys through time to meet the Lord who comes...Mary has already trodden this path… i.e. we follow her ...She advanced “in her pilgrimage of faith and loyally persevered in her union with her Son unto the Cross” (cf. LG 58) • -Again notice JPII’s reliance on VAT II (Lumen Gentium)...here he takes his words from LG 58 • -The Church venerates Mary as Mother and Model in faith, hope, and love • We look to her in order to know how to do the same • Papal Predecessor - St. Paul VI also wrote on Mary • the Encyclical Christi Matri • Apostolic Exhortations Signum Magnum and Marialis Cultus • JPII points this out to show continuity between his teaching and that of Paul VI More notes on the Introduction RM 3

• Preparing for the 2000 year anniversary of the Birth of Christ we turn to His Mother • “A dynamic impulse directed to the future” -Ratzinger • Mary precedes Christ in Salvation History • the Church has constantly been aware that Mary appeared on the horizon of salvation history before Christ (RM 3) • We remember this every Advent in the Liturgy • like a true "Morning Star" (Stella Matutina)… Mary from the time of her Immaculate Conception preceded the coming of the Savior, the rising of the "Sun of Justice" in the history of the human race (RM 3) Mary & Salvation History

• She was unnoticed by contemporaries but shines “very clearly before the Eternal One” (RM 3) • Daughter Zion (cf. Zeph 3:14-17, 2:10) • Ratzinger says, “The salutation to Mary Lk 1:28-32 is modeled closely on Zephaniah 3:14-17…Mary is the daughter Zion addressed in Zeph, summoned to ‘rejoice’, informed that the Lord is coming to her…she is the person of the true Zion…the True Israel in whom the Old and New Covenant, Israel and the Church are indivisibly one (p. 42-43 in Daughter Zion) • JPII says that the providential plan of God is the central reality of Revelation & faith…its time to emphasize Mary’s role in this plan What the Church teaches about Mary is based on what she teaches about Christ (CCC 487)

• RM 4 –“only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light” (GS 22 & note JPII’s role in this Conciliar text) • This can be applied to Mary “that extraordinary ‘woman’ who became the Mother of Christ…Only in Christ is her mystery made clear” • Reference to Council of Ephesus 431AD where the “divine motherhood of Mary was solemnly defined as a truth of the faith…she is Mother of God, Theotokos” Mary as Model of the Church • RM 5 – Vat II, “by presenting Mary in the mystery of Christ, also finds the path to a deeper understanding of the Church” • -Vat II, through Mary, comes to know the Church as an extension of the Incarnation i.e. the union of God and man in Christ. • JPII wants to “consider primarily that ‘pilgrimage of faith’ in which the Blessed Virgin advanced faithfully preserving her union with Christ”…this is relevant to us also because it is a “question of the history of the whole People of God…all those who take part in the same ‘pilgrimage of faith’” (LG58) • The Church can look to Mary who has “gone before, becoming ‘a model of the Church in the matter of faith, charity and perfect union with Christ’” (LG63) The Story & Our Story • RM 6 – the pilgrimage of faith is a journey… JPII wants to concentrate on the present in the sense of the history of salvation • Viewing the present this way “opens a broad prospect in which the Blessed Virgin Mary continues to go before the People of God…Her pilgrimage “represents a constant point of reference for the Church, for individuals and communities” • We can look to Mary who is in the same “Story” on the same journey, but who is ahead of us • She is the “eschatological fulfillment” of the Church…she has reached perfection but we still strive to conquer sin so we “raise our eyes to Mary, who shines forth to the whole community of the elect as a model of the virtues” (LG 65) • She is the Maris Stella for all those on the journey of faith (cf. St. Bernard) Part I- MARY IN THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST

• 1.Full of Grace • Paragraphs 7-10 unpack Ephesians 1 and explain what “Full of Grace” means • 2.Blessed is She who Believed • Paragraphs 12-19 What her blessing constitutes and from where it comes, comparison with Abraham, the kingdom, Annunciation, Presentation, flight into Egypt, hidden life in Nazareth, contact with Christ through her faith, at the foot of the Cross • 3. Behold your mother • Paragraphs 20-24 A new dimension of motherhood and brotherhood with the coming of the kingdom, Christ wants to raise us from the earthly to the heavenly, wedding at Cana and Mary’s contribution, the Cross, & Pentecost Section 1 –Full of Grace

• Show St. Paul Center Video Lesson 9 • RM 7 • Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens • “these words reveal the eternal design of God the Father, his plan of man’s salvation in Christ” • This divine plan, fully revealed with the coming of Christ, is eternal • “it includes everyone, but reserves a special place for the ‘woman’ who is the Mother of him to whom the Father has entrusted the work of salvation” • She is prophetically foreshadowed in Gen 3:15 • She is the Virgin who will conceive and bear a son…called Emmanuel (cf Isa 7:14) • The OT prepares for the NT, that “’fullness of time’ when God ‘sent forth his son, born of a woman…so that we might receive adoption as sons’” • God has kept his promise and it is recorded in the Gospels Full of Grace

• RM 8 – Mary is “definitively introduced into the mystery of Christ” through the Annunciation • This is Real History! - This happens in Nazareth in the “concrete circumstances of the history of Israel” • The Angel greets Mary “Hail, Full of Grace” • He calls her this as if it were her name…he doesn’t call her Mary • see my slide on Kecharitomene see also some of the Patristic references footnote 21, and Miravalle p. 39 •Kekaritomene = Hail, you who have been perfected in grace. This is a perfect participle, an action completed in the past but with relevance to the present. •The angel is not saying “Hail, you who are graced now that I am here”…or… “Hail, you who have just become graced.”

Full of Grace RM 8 con’t • JPII sees a “significant echo” of Gabriel’s greeting in the blessing of Ephesians 1 • She is “blessed among women” (Lk 1:42) because of the blessing God the Father has given us in Christ. • This blessing is meant for all people…it “bears in itself fullness and universality” • It flows from Trinitarian love through Christ to us • It “refers to Mary in a special and exceptional degree”…she is present even before the creation of the world as the one whom the Father has chosen a Mother of his Son…she is eternally beloved in this beloved Son” • At the same time she is in need of His grace “she stands out among the poor and humble of the Lord, who confidently await and receive salvation from him” (Apologetic Note) The Annunciation

• RM 9 – fullness of grace also indicates the “supernatural munificence from which Mary benefits by being chosen…[God desires all to be saved but…] the election of Mary is wholly exceptional and unique” • Disturbed by the greeting Mary asks, “How shall this be, since I have no husband?” • NOTE on poor translation see Pitre p. 105 • “She receives from the angel the confirmation and explanation” (Contrast with Zechariah) • The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you… • Note on “overshadow” cf. Pitre p.54-55 RM 9 the Annunciation con’t

• The Annunciation…is the revelation of the mystery of the Incarnation at the very beginning of its fulfillment on earth. • God's salvific giving of himself and his life, in some way to all creation but directly to man, reaches one of its high points in the mystery of the Incarnation…. • Mary is "full of grace," because it is precisely in her that the Incarnation of the Word…is accomplished and fulfilled • She is also the favorite daughter of the Father and the temple of the Holy Spirit…Because of this gift of sublime grace, she far surpasses all other creatures, both in heaven and on earth. (LG 53) More on “Full of Grace”

• RM 10 - The Letter to the Ephesians, speaking of the "glory of grace" that "God, the Father...has bestowed on us in his beloved Son… this "glory of grace" is manifested in the Mother of God through the fact that she has been "redeemed in a more sublime manner.“ • Immaculate Conception - “She was preserved from original sin…from the first moment of her conception- which is to say of her existence-she belonged to Christ, sharing in the salvific and sanctifying grace and in that love which has its beginning in the ‘Beloved’” • Mary receives life from him to whom she herself, in the order of earthly generation, gave life as a mother. • Since Mary receives this "new life" with a fullness corresponding to the Son's love for the Mother,…the angel at the Annunciation calls her "full of grace." Incarnation and Proto-Evangelium • RM 11 - In the salvific design of the Most Holy Trinity, the mystery of the Incarnation constitutes the superabundant fulfillment of the promise made by God to man after original sin (note on Gen 3:15) • And so, there comes into the world a Son, "the seed of the woman" who will crush the evil of sin in its very origins… • the victory of the woman's Son will not take place without a hard struggle, a struggle that is to extend through the whole of human history… • The "enmity," foretold at the beginning, is confirmed in the Apocalypse… • Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, is placed at the very center of that enmity, that struggle which accompanies the history of humanity on earth and the history of salvation itself. • Mary thus remains before God, and also before the whole of humanity, as the unchangeable and inviolable sign of God's election, spoken of in Paul's letter to the Ephesians Section 2 - Blessed is she who Believed

• RM 12 – The Visitation • Immediately after the narration of the Annunciation, the Evangelist Luke guides us in the footsteps of the Virgin of Nazareth towards "a city of Judah" …Mary arrived there "in haste," to visit Elizabeth • Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a Son…For with God nothing will be impossible • Why did St. Gabriel tell her this? • JPII interprets, “The divine messenger had spoken of what had been accomplished in Elizabeth in order to answer Mary's question. ‘How shall this be, since I have no husband?’” • Mary gets to see the power of the Most High God at work in Elizabeth…her faith is bolstered by God’s action in history RM12 Visitation con’t

• Mary is moved by Love – “Moved by charity, therefore, Mary goes to the house of her kinswoman.” • Filled with the Holy Spirit, Elizabeth cries aloud, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!" (cf. Lk. 1:40-42) (note mention Jael & Judith) • still more significant are the words of Elizabeth in the question which follows: "And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" • Elizabeth bears witness to Mary … she recognizes and proclaims that before her stands the Mother of the Lord • …and John the Baptist shares in the witness too. • (note on importance of witness Mt 10:32, Lk 12:8; Acts 1:8; 4:20; 1 Jn 1:3; Rev 12:10- 11) RM 12 Visitation con’t

• While every word of Elizabeth's greeting is filled with meaning, her final words would seem to have fundamental importance: "And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord" (Lk. 1:45). • “Mary's faith, proclaimed by Elizabeth at the Visitation, indicates how the Virgin of Nazareth responded to this gift.” (note again – contrast Zechariah) The Obedience of Faith

• RM 13 - The Obedience of Faith must be given to God who reveals [it is] an obedience by which man entrusts his whole self freely to God.(cf. DV 5) (note on Obedience in CCC 144) • This description of faith found perfect realization in Mary. • “blessed is she who believed" refers primarily to the moment of the Annunciation …at the Annunciation Mary entrusted herself to God completely, with the "full submission of intellect and will," manifesting "the obedience of faith“ • The nature of Mary’s faith (remember she is our model) • perfect cooperation with "the grace of God that precedes and assists" • perfect openness to the action of the Holy Spirit, who "constantly brings faith to completion by his gifts.“ • Faith is a journey to be brought to completion as we see in Mary Mary’s brings about God’s plan RM 13 con’t • "The Father of mercies willed that the consent of the predestined Mother should precede the Incarnation.“ (LG 56) • This fiat of Mary-"let it be to me"-was decisive, on the human level, for the accomplishment of the divine mystery…. • The mystery of the Incarnation was accomplished when Mary uttered her fiat… Faith brings about Union RM 13 con’t • Mary uttered this fiat in faith…she conceived this Son in her mind before she conceived him in her womb: precisely in faith! • This gives more meaning to the words "And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." Like Abraham

• RM 14 - In the salvific economy of God's revelation, Abraham's faith constitutes the beginning of the Old Covenant; Mary's faith at the Annunciation inaugurates the New Covenant. • (note on “covenant) • Note on Abraham see Heb 11:19 & CCC 145-146 • Just as Abraham "in hope believed against hope…so Mary, at the Annunciation, having professed her virginity ("How shall this be, since I have no husband?") believed that through the power of the Most High… she would become the Mother of God's Son • The Annunciation is “also the point of departure from which her whole "journey towards God" begins, her whole pilgrimage of faith” RM 14 con’t

• Her blessing will become every more clear along her journey…she believes along the way • JPII definition of faith – “To believe means ‘to abandon oneself’ to the truth of the word of the living God, knowing and humbly recognizing ‘how unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways’" (Rom. 11:33). See also Heb 11:1 • Mary conforms herself to God’s ways “in the dim light of faith, accepting fully and with a ready heart everything that is decreed in the divine plan” The Kingdom

• RM 15 – Son of David, to reign “forever” …Mary had grown up in the midst of these expectations • After hearing this she responds by saying she is the “handmaid of the Lord” • With the obedience of faith she abandons “herself to the meaning which was given to the words of the Annunciation by him from whom they proceeded: God himself” (note of contrast with modern thinking – her faith is the opposite of relativism, it is a humble submission to objective truth) Simeon’s Prophecy

• RM 16 – Simeon’s words, “suggested by the Holy Spirit, confirm the truth of the Annunciation” • Because Simeon's words match the meaning of this name, which is Savior: "God is salvation." • Jesus is “light” and “glory” …the shepherds and magi witness this too • Suffering will be part of the journey…He is also “a sign that is spoken against” and regarding Mary, “a sword will pierce through your own soul” • Like a 2nd Annunciation that gives the historical context i.e. misunderstanding and sorrow • Mary’s faith will be lived “in suffering, at the side of the suffering Savior” – This is true for us as well Hidden Life in Nazareth

• RM17 – She who believed…lives the reality…Daily at her side is the Son • “Mary knows…” JPII repeats 3xs • “…that the Son to whom she gave birth in a virginal manner is precisely that "Holy One," the Son of God, of whom the angel spoke to her.” • So YES, you can tell Kenny Rogers that Mary did in fact know! Contact via Faith RM 17 con’t

• More explanation of Faith • “Faith is contact with the mystery of God…Every day Mary is in constant contact with the ineffable mystery of God made man” • She is blessed because by her faith she in in contact with the living God • “She is therefore blessed, because "she has believed," and continues to believe day after day amidst all the trials and the adversities of Jesus' infancy and then during the years of the hidden life at Nazareth” • See also CCC 2626 RM 17 con’t

• Joy in the midst of Suffering • The Gospel begins in Mary… “The Mother of that Son, …bears within herself the radical "newness" of faith: the beginning of the New Covenant…This is the beginning of the Gospel, the joyful Good News.” • At the same time… • “it is not difficult to see in that beginning a particular heaviness of heart, linked with a sort of night of faith"-to use the words of St. John of the Cross-a kind of "veil" through which one has to draw near to the Invisible One and to live in intimacy with the mystery. • Suffering is a path to unity with the God who suffers for us • Despite trials Mary moves forward in faith… • Finding in the Temple • Even Mary did not understand everything Christ did , "And they (Joseph and Mary) did not understand the saying which he spoke to them" (Lk. 2:48-50). She grows in knowledge of the Mystery of Christ • Her intimacy with Him is through her act of Faith. At the foot of the Cross

• RM 18 – Mary’s blessing is best understood at the foot of the Cross • The Council says that this happened "not without a divine plan": by "suffering deeply with her only-begotten Son and joining herself with her maternal spirit to his sacrifice, lovingly consenting to the immolation of the victim to whom she had given birth," in this way Mary "faithfully preserved her union with her Son even to the Cross.“ (LG 58) • She had been told of His never-ending reign and now He dies on the Cross…like Abraham she is tested and remains faithful (again see Heb 11) • How great, how heroic then is the obedience of faith shown by Mary in the face of God's "unsearchable judgments"! … And how powerful too is the action of grace in her soul, how all-pervading is the influence of the Holy Spirit and of his light and power! Mary’s Faith at the Cross RM 18 con’t • “Through this faith Mary is perfectly united with Christ in his self- emptying.” See Phil 2:5-8) • Faith is, in a sense, a death to self… “This is perhaps the deepest "kenosis" of faith in human history. Through faith the Mother shares in the death of her Son, in his redeeming death; but in contrast with the faith of the disciples who fled, hers was far more enlightened • The two prophecies of Simeon are fulfilled • The Sign of Contradiction • The Sword that pierces Mary’s soul • RM 19 – Canceling out the Original Sin of Adam and Eve • The sacrifice of Christ the New Adam becomes, “in a certain sense the counterpoise to the disobedience and disbelief embodied in the sin of our first parents.” • As Christ is the New Adam, Mary is the New Eve • The New Eve (CCC 494) • “The knot of Eve’s disobedience was untied by Mary’s obedience: What the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith.” - St. Irenaeus • “Death through Eve, life through Mary” - St. Jerome Section 3 - Behold Your Mother • RM 20 - The bridge between RM 19 and 20 is: • “[Mary] made present to humanity the mystery of Christ. And she still continues to do so. Through the mystery of Christ, she too is present within mankind. Thus through the mystery of the Son the mystery of the Mother is also made clear.” • Recall GS 22 • A woman in the crowd draws attention to Mary, by saying “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!" (Lk. 11:27) • Jesus responds by raising our focus from the earthly to the heavenly, from mere flesh to spirit, “"Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it" (Lk. 11:28). (see also Bishop Barron - Samaritan Woman ) • Jesus is true man but He is also truly God… “He wishes to divert attention from motherhood understood only as a fleshly bond, in order to direct it towards those mysterious bonds of the spirit which develop from hearing and keeping God's word” The Coming of the Kingdom RM 20 con’t • New dimension of human relationship…with God as Father (the “radius of God’s Fatherhood”) “brotherhood” and “motherhood” take on new meaning, which Jesus explains • "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it" (cf. Lk. 8:20-21). • Jesus is not belittling Mary’s physical motherhood, rather he draws attention to her greater motherhood…she is the first of those who hear the word of God and do it… “And therefore does not the blessing uttered by Jesus in response to the woman in the crowd refer primarily to her?” • Jesus’ words are not opposed to the woman’s rather they coincide with them i.e. both are true. (Note on the Greek Menouge Lk 11:28) • Mary remained open to the new dimensions of motherhood she was called to embody in God’s plan for her… • “Through faith Mary continued to hear and to ponder that word, …Thus in a sense Mary as Mother became the first "disciple" of her Son, the first to whom he seemed to say: "Follow me," even before he addressed this call to the Apostles or to anyone else (cf. Jn. 1:43). • Note on Mary as disciple St. Augustine Wedding at Cana • RM 21 – • “the Son seems to have been invited because of his mother” • "beginning of the signs" …"manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him" (Jn. 2:11). • “in a significant way she contributes to that "beginning of the signs" which reveal the messianic power of her Son” • “Jesus' reply to his mother sounds like a refusal” (See ISB footnote for John 2 “woman”) • She assumes He will do what she asks, “’Do whatever he tells you’ (Jn. 2:5)… Then Jesus orders the servants to fill the stone jars with water” New Motherhood in the Kingdom-RM 21 con’t

• John’s text manifests a new kind of motherhood “according to the spirit and not just according to the flesh…that is to say Mary's solicitude for human beings, her coming to them in the wide variety of their wants and needs.” • This new motherhood is expressed through mediation…she is the Mediatrix who “puts herself “in the middle,’” • Like a bridge she brings God to man and man to God • “She also wishes the messianic power of her Son to be manifested” • So we can be free from evil and saved by His power Do Whatever He Tells You-RM 21 con’t

• RM 21 – “The Mother of Christ presents herself as the spokeswoman of her Son's will, pointing out those things which must be done so that the salvific power of the Messiah may be manifested.” • i.e. if we do what he tells us His power will be manifest in our lives • “…thanks to the intercession of Mary and the obedience of the servants, Jesus begins "his hour." At Cana Mary appears as believing in Jesus. Her faith evokes his first "sign" and helps to kindle the faith of the disciples.” • Faith begets Faith…[Jesus] “manifested his glory; and the disciples believed in him: (Jn 2:11b) Maternal Mediation

• RM 22 – • Her mediation doesn’t diminish Christ’s mediation • Apologetic note – share this with your Protestant friends see LG 60 (note see also Ratzinger’s explanation) • Mother in the Order of Grace • As Co-Remptrix she “cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the Savior's work of restoring supernatural life to souls” (LG 61) Mediation at the Cross • RM 23 – Mary’s maternal mediation finds its “crowning moment, namely when Christ's sacrifice on the Cross” • 'Woman, behold your son!' Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother!' And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home" (Jn. 19:25-27). • “if Mary's motherhood of the human race had already been outlined, now it is clearly stated and established.” • “The Mother of Christ…is given as mother to every single individual and all mankind.” (note on interpretation and patristic belief see Pitre p. 189-190) • “this "new motherhood of Mary," generated by faith, is the fruit of the "new" love which came to definitive maturity in her at the foot of the Cross, through her sharing in the redemptive love of her Son.” Gen 3:15 Fulfilled

• RM 24 – “By his redemptive death Jesus Christ conquers the evil of sin and death at its very roots. It is significant that, as he speaks to his mother from the Cross, he calls her "woman" and says to her: "Woman, behold your son!" • Remember He called her “Woman” at Cana too (Jn 2:4) • Her role in Salvation History is revealed…she is the Woman who with her Son crushes the head of the serpent • Her new motherhood finds “continuation in the Church and through the Church” • The Woman is present at the beginning, the climax, and the end of Salvation History • “…the Holy Mother of God, through the Church remains in that mystery as "the woman" spoken of by the Book of Genesis (3:15) at the beginning and by the Apocalypse (12:1) at the end of the history of salvation.” Pentecost-RM 24 con’t • RM 24 – “the very moment of the Church's birth and full manifestation to the world enables us to glimpse this continuity of Mary's motherhood… ‘We see Mary prayerfully imploring the gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation.’” • “in the redemptive economy of grace… there is a unique correspondence between the moment of the Incarnation of the Word and the moment of the birth of the Church” • Mary & the Holy Spirit are present at the Incarnation and birth of the Physical Body of Christ and at the Birth of the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church • “In the Church too she continues to be a maternal presence…” Part II Mother of God at the Center of the Pilgrim Church Section 1 The Church, the People of God Present in all the Nations of the Earth

• RM 25 – The pilgrim journey of the Church • The Church is The New Israel “Israel according to the flesh, which wandered as an exile in the desert, was already called the Church of God (cf. 2 Esd. 13:1; Num. 20:4; Dt. 23:1ff.). Likewise the new Israel...is also called the Church of Christ (cf Mt 16:18)” • Visible and Invisible – JPII first emphasizes “visible” 3xs, then highlights her invisible/interior character i.e. “the essential character of her pilgrimage is interior: it is a question of a pilgrimage through faith, …a pilgrimage in the Holy Spirit, given to the Church as the invisible Comforter …"Moving forward through trial and tribulation, the Church is strengthened by the power of God's grace promised to her by the Lord, so that...moved by the Holy Spirit, she may never cease to renew herself, until through the Cross she arrives at the light which knows no setting." • Mary is like a mirror reflecting the central truths of the Faith The Church at Pentecost looks to Mary

• RM 26 – • Again her obedience of faith • Again she goes before the Church • Christ commissions the Apostles • The Church grows through Testimony • Mary has a different mission distinct from the Apostles i.e. she helps prepare them for their mission • She blazed the trail… • First to believe • Followed Jesus her whole life • Her faith did not fail The new born Church prays with Mary and contemplates Mary in light of Jesus • RM 27 – • “it was always to be so” • Leads to reverence for Mary and devotion to her • Her faith marks the beginning of the New Covenant • We seek support for our own faith in Mary • RM 28 – Mary’s faith becomes the faith of the Church • We gain or regain it through prayer • The Church contemplates who she is as the People of God • Mary remains present with the Church in this time • Different expressions of Mary’s presence in the Church • Pilgrimage sites • She opened an interior space in humanity for the Father to fill Part II Section 2 The Church’s Journey and the Unity of All Christians • RM 29 – Christians are seeking unity in response to Jesus’ prayer (cf. Jn 17:21) • Urgent need • Ecumenical movement – “Christians must deepen in themselves and each of their communities that "obedience of faith" of which Mary is the first and brightest example” • RM 30 – need to resolve discrepancies regarding the Church and Mary • Dialogues between Catholic Church, Churches and Ecclesial Communities • RM 31 – unity of East and West • Churches of the East pay high tribute to Mary • Show eastern rites chart • Saints from the Eastern traditions who write well of Mary: • St Cyril of Alexandria • St. Ephrem the Syrian • St. Gregory of Narek (recently named Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis)

BVM in Byzantine Liturgy

• RM 32 – • “in all the hours of the Divine Office, praise of the Mother is linked with praise of her Son” • “Eucharistic Prayer of St. John Chrysostom, immediately after the epiclesis the assembled community sings in honor of the Mother of God” • “These praises, which in every celebration of the Eucharistic Liturgy are offered to Mary, have molded the faith, piety and prayer of the faithful” Iconoclasm & Nicea II (787) • In 730 A.D. Byzantine Emperor Leo III issued a decree prohibiting veneration of icons. He ordered the destruction of icons i.e. iconoclasm (Schreck p. 37) • This is condemned as heretical by the the 2nd Council of Nicea in 787 A.D. • St. John of Damascus wrote against the iconoclasts (see p. 244 & 247 in Wilken; for catechetical value see p. 248-249) Nicea II – The Virgin Mary in Art

• RM 33 – • Nicea II Put “an end to the well known controversy about the cult of sacred images” • Mary is represented in a number of ways • as the throne of God carrying the Lord and giving him to humanity (Theotokos); • as the way that leads to Christ and manifests him (Hodegetria); • as a praying figure in an attitude of intercession and as a sign of the divine presence on the journey of the faithful until the day of the Lord (Deesis); • as the protectress who stretches out her mantle over the peoples (Pokrov), or as the merciful Virgin of tenderness (Eleousa). • She is usually represented with her Son, the child Jesus, in her arms: it is the relationship with the Son which glorifies the Mother. Sometimes she embraces him with tenderness (Glykophilousa); at other times she is a hieratic figure, apparently rapt in contemplation of him who is the Lord of history Our Lady of Vladimir • JPII singles out one image in particular • “In these Icons the Virgin shines as the image of divine beauty, the abode of Eternal Wisdom, the figure of the one who prays, the prototype of contemplation, the image of glory: she who even in her earthly life possessed the spiritual knowledge inaccessible to human reasoning and who attained through faith the most sublime knowledge.” • RM 34 - Such a wealth of praise, built up by the different forms of the Church's great tradition, could help us to hasten the day when the Church can begin once more to breathe fully with her "two lungs," the East and the West. Part II sec 3 - The "" of the pilgrim Church

• RM 35 & 36 – The Magnificat “ceaselessly re-echoes in the heart of the Church down the centuries” • Mary’s interior faith becomes exterior as she proclaims it out loud. • “That which remained hidden in the depths of the "obedience of faith" at the Annunciation can now be said to spring forth like a clear and life-giving flame of the spirit…[this is] an inspired profession of her faith, in which her response to the revealed word is expressed with the religious and poetical exultation of her whole being towards God…[Mary’s words are] very simple and wholly inspired by the sacred texts of the people of Israel ” • Concentrated in Mary is the whole of Salvation History • “She is conscious that the promise made to the fathers, first of all "to Abraham and to his posterity for ever," is being fulfilled in herself…that concentrated within herself as the mother of Christ is the whole salvific economy, in which "from age to age" is manifested he who as the God of the Covenant, "remembers his mercy." From Mary to Church, Mary to Church…repeat • RM 37 - “The Church, which from the beginning has modeled her earthly journey on that of the Mother of God, constantly repeats after her the words of the Magnificat” • The Magnificat uproots Original Sin • Mary is contrasted with the devil • The Church is recommitted to evangelization, preaching the Good News to the poor • Mary as model of the Church is poor and free…totally dependent upon God • READ from PARAGRAPH 37 Part III - Maternal Mediation • RM 38 - the Handmaid of the Lord • “The maternal role of Mary towards people in no way obscures or diminishes the unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power“ (LG 60) • Christ’s mediation is inclusive not exclusive • “the unique mediation of the Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives rise among creatures to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this unique source” • Mary is “his ‘generous companion’ in the work of redemption” The Incarnation and Mediation • RM 39 – “The first moment of submission to the one mediation "between God and men"-the mediation of Jesus Christ-is the Virgin of Nazareth's acceptance of motherhood” • Motherhood as total self-gift • “The words "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord" express the fact that from the outset she accepted and understood her own motherhood as a total gift of self, a gift of her person to the service of the saving plans of the Most High.” • God entrusted Himself to Mary and she was completely open to Him • She is Christ’s “Associate of unique nobility” • “In Mary's case we have a special and exceptional mediation…In response to this interior willingness of his Mother, Jesus Christ prepared her ever more completely to become for all people their ‘mother in the order of grace.’” The Handmaid’s Motherhood

• RM 40 – Mary awaited Pentecost with the Apostles in the Upper Room, “left by her Son as Mother in the midst of the infant Church…there began to develop a special bond between this Mother and the Church” • She, “could not but poor out upon the Church…her maternal self-giving” • “the Mother cooperates in the saving work of her Son…[this Motherhood] will last without interruption until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect” • JPII keeps reminding us that her mediation is subordinate to that of Christ’s…at the same time it is universal like His • “her manifold acts of intercession continue to win for us the gifts of eternal salvation… [Mary] cares for the brethren of her Son who still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties” The Assumed Mediatrix

• RM 41 – Mary also “contributes in a special way to the union of the pilgrim Church on earth” • The Dogma of the Assumption is an expression of eastern and western tradition • All the effects of the “one mediation of Christ” are “definitively accomplished in Mary” • United with Him at His first coming she will be united with Him at His second coming as “mediatrix of mercy” • She has been “glorified as Queen of the Universe” • Christ’s mission “was one of service”…As His disciple Mary served Christ “in others with humility and patience…” “Assumed into heaven she does not cease her saving service, which expresses her maternal mediation” Part III sec. 2 Mary in the Life of the Church and of every Christian • RM 42 – Summary of previous teaching in the document • RM 43 – The Church, like Mary, is Mother… “from Mary the Church learns her own motherhood…she recognizes the maternal nature of her vocation” • The Church is “a virgin who keeps whole and pure the fidelity she has pledged to her Spouse…Precisely such virginity, after the example of the Virgin of Nazareth, is the source of a special spiritual fruitfulness…it is the source of motherhood in the Holy Spirit” • RM 44 – Mary is exemplar and Model but also much more… “she cooperates in the birth and development of the sons and daughters of Mother Church…the Church draws abundantly from this cooperation” • Her cooperation is maternal “here we perceive the real value of the words spoken by Jesus to his Mother at the hour of the Cross…they are words which determine Mary’s place in the life of Christ’s disciples” • “Her motherhood is particularly noted and experienced” at mass… “Mary guides the faithful to the Eucharist” (see Ecclesia de Eucharistia and Msgr Calkins Article) • RM 45 – The Essence of Motherhood • “Motherhood always establishes a unique and unrepeatable relationship between two people: between mother and child and between child and mother…Even when the same woman is the mother of many children, her personal relationship with each one of them is of the very essence of motherhood.” • “motherhood ‘in the order of grace’ preserves the analogy with what ‘in the order of nature’ characterizes the union between mother and child.” • “The Redeemer entrusts his mother to the disciple, and at the same time he gives her to him as his mother. Mary's motherhood, which becomes man's inheritance, is a gift: a gift which Christ himself makes personally to every individual.” • Be like Mary and draw all the attention to what God has done for you. • And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is on those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity for ever.”(Lk1:46-55)