Mary in the New Catholic Catechism

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Bill Jackson's comments in ( )

p.6 - "[Mary's] powerful intercession" (The Bible speaks of Jesus and the Holy Spirit making intercession for us; the only time in the New Testament that a human being makes intercession (I Timothy 2:1), the word used simply means supplication, or prayer.)

p. 22 #64 "[among holy women] the purest figure is Mary. Ref: Zeph 2:3, Lu 1:38." (Read Zeph 2:3 and see if you can find a reference to Mary.)

p. 104 #411 "[Mary] was preserved from all stain of original sin and by a special grace of God committed no sin of any kind during her whole earthly life." (See Romans 3:23; Luke 1:46,47; Romans 5:10,12)

p. 123 #488 "The Father of mercies willed that the Incarnation should be preceded by assent on the part of the predestined mother, so that just as a woman had a share in the coming of death, so also should a woman contribute to the coming of life." (While Christians admire the life and ministry of Mary, we cannot concede that her assent actually contributed to salvation, for that would destroy the unique and complete saviourhood of Christ.)

p. 123 #491 "Mary. . . was redeemed from the moment of her conception. This is what the dogma of the Immaculate Conception confesses." (This is one of the stages of development of Marian devotion, and contributes to the position Mary has been given in many Catholic hearts. Though they profess to come to Jesus through Mary, the Jesus to whom they come is not the Christ of the Bible, but a dependent baby, child, or dead "Christ.". Thomas Aquinas said, "if the soul of the Blessed Virgin had never been stained with the contagion of Original Sin, this would have detracted from Christ's dignity as the saviour of all men.) [Aquinas quote from St. Anthony Messenger, November 1993.]

p. 124 #492 "The Father blessed Mary more than any other created person `in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places' and chose her `in Christ before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless before him in love.'" (This is a quotation from Ephesians 1:3- 4; the Bible says God blessed us (not Mary) and chose us. There is absolutely no inference that this Scripture is especially reserved for Mary.)

p. 124 #493 "By the grace of God Mary remained free of every personal sin her whole life long." (Of course there is no scripture given for this.)

p. 125 #494 "As St. Irenaeus says, `Being obedient she became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race.'" (This statement blasphemes the only Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.)

p. 125 #494 "Death through Eve, life through Mary."

p. 125 #495 "the Church confesses that Mary is truly `Mother of God.'"

p. 126 #499 "The deepening of faith in the virginal motherhood led the Church to confess Mary's real and perpetual virginity even in the act of giving birth to the Son of God made man. In fact, Christ's birth `did not diminish his mother's virginal integrity but sanctified it.'" (Roman Catholic theologian Richard McBrien in Roman Catholicism [p. 869] says, "The New Testament says nothing at all about Mary's virginity in partu [in the act of giving birth], i.e., that Jesus was born miraculously, without the normal biological disruptions." The Bible speaks of Jesus "opening the womb" (Luke 2:23) which would imply a normal birth. A text used by Roman Catholic scholars for centuries to "prove" the Perpetual Virginity of Mary was Ezekiel 44:2, which expressly states that the gate had been opened for the Messiah's entrance.)

p. 127 #506 "It is her faith that enables her to become the mother of the Savior." (The biblical record is different. The Angel Gabriel, before any consent by Mary said, "thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son...The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee [Luke 1:31,35].)

p. 191 #721-715 The entire paragraphs 721 through 725 give unbiblical praise to Mary. She is called: the all-holy ever-Virgin Mother of God, the Seat of Wisdom, the one of whom Proverbs 8:1 through 9:6 relates, Full of Grace, Conceived without sin, The burning bush of definitive theophany. The section concludes: "Finally, through Mary, the Holy Spirit begins to bring men, the objects of God's merciful love, into communion with Christ. And the humble are always the first to accept him: shepherds, magi, Simeon and Anna, the bride and bridegroom at Cana, and the first disciples." (Yet they resist in the claim that they do not worship her. The final paragraph might be a model of the motto "To Jesus through Mary," but the entire theme of the paragraphs is Marian exaltation.)

p. 204 #773 "Mary goes before us all in the holiness that is the Church's mystery as `the bride without spot or wrinkle.'" (There is no theological reason to insert Mary into this promise of Ephesians 5:27.)

p. 220 #829 "But while in the most Blessed Virgin the Church has already reached that perfection whereby she exists without spot or wrinkle, the faithful still strive to conquer sin and increase in holiness. And so they turn their eyes to Mary; in her, the Church is already `all holy.'"

p. 251 #963. "by her charity (Mary has) joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church." (This sounds like a giant step toward recognizing Mary as Co=Redeemer.)

p. 251 #964. "This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation. . . .There (the Blessed Virgin) stood. . . enduring with her only begotten Son the intesity of his suffering."

p. 251 #965. "We also see Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of the Spirit."

p. 253 #969. "Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix."

p. 253 #971. "From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title `Mother of God,' to whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs."

p. 254 #973. "By pronouncing her `fiat' at the Annunciation and giving her consent to the Incarnation, Mary was already collaborating with the whole work her Son was to accomplish." (Roman Catholics like to put a lot of emphasis on Mary's consent, as if God's whole plan of salvation from the Incarnation to the Resurrection would have been thwarted had Mary said "no." Such a thought is utterly repugnant to one who believes in God's sovereignty. How could a sovereign God rely on the assent of a creature to do His Redemptive work?)

p. 403. #1613. "On the threshold of his public life Jesus performs his first sign - at his mother's request." (They can't resist the temptation of promoting Mary at every available opportunity.)