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General Audience on Mary |
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by Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II, THE CHURCH GREW IN HER UNDERSTANDING OF MARY'S ROLE reported by L'Osservatore Romano, 11/15/95. In our preceding catecheses, we saw how the doctrine of Mary's motherhood passed from its first formula, "Mother of Jesus," to the more complete and explicit "Mother of God," even to the affirmation of her maternal involvement in the redemption of mankind. For other aspects of Marian doctrine as well, many centuries were necessary to arrive at the explicit definition of the revealed truths concerning Mary. Typical examples of this faith journey toward the even deeper discovery of Mary's role in the history of salvation are the dogma of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption. . . Mariology is a particular field of theological research: In it the Christian people's love for Mary intuited, frequently in anticipation, certain aspects of the mystery of the Blessed Virgin, calling the attention of theologians and pastors to them. We must recognize that . . . the Gospels offer scant information on the person and life of Mary. We would certainly like to have had fuller information about her. . . This expectation remains unsatisfied even in other New Testament writings, where an explicit doctrinal development regarding Mary is lacking. . . Nevertheless, Luke not only provides us with some important facts, but presents a sort of "proto-Mariology" of fundamental interest. . . John's Gospel deepens our knowledge of the value for salvation history of the role played by the Mother of Jesus, when it records her presence at the beginning and end of His public life. Particularly significant is Mary's presence at the cross, when she received from her dying Son the charge to be Mother to the Beloved Disciple and, in him, to all Christians. . . . We can only suppose . . . that she was very closely involved in the development of the first Christian community. . . . We can recognize. . . a special intention of the Holy Spirit, who desired. . . the Church (to) aim above all at discovering her role in the work of salvation. . . . . .the People of God are also urged by the same Spirit to understand deeply all that has been said about Mary, in order to progress in the knowledge of her mission, intimately linked to the mystery of Christ. As Mariology develops, the particular role of the Christian people emerges. They cooperate, by the affirmation and witness of their faith, in the progress of of Marian doctrine. which normally is not only the work of theologians. . . The faith of the simple is admired and praised by Jesus . . . Down the centuries, it continues to proclaim the marvels of the history of salvation, hidden from the wise. This faith. . . has led to progress in the recognition of her personal holiness and the transcendent value of her motherhood. The mystery of Mary commits every Christian, in communion with the Church, "to pondering in his heart" what the Gospel Revelation affirms about the Mother of Christ. In the logic of the Magnificat, after the example of Mary, each one will personally experience God's love and will discover a sign of God's tenderness for man in the marvels wrought by the Blessed Trinity in the woman "full of grace." |