The title "Mother of God" (Theotokos) for Mary was confirmed by the First Council of Ephesus, held at the Church of Mary in 431. The Council decreed that Mary is the Mother of God because her son Jesus is one person who is both God and man, divine and human.
Mary, the Mother of God, was born as Miriam more than 2000 years ago. Is Mary the mother of God? According to the Bible, Mary did not give birth to God, but to the Son of God. Since the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD, however, Mary has been venerated in Christianity as the Mother of God.
The title “Mother of God” is a western derivation from the Greek Theotokos, which means “God-bearer”. Mary being chosen by God, the Father, to bring Jesus Christ into this world, and her willingness to do so is great cause for celebration.
In Gal 4:4, Paul tells us of Mary's Jewish roots in order to note Jesus' background. Luke tells us that Mary was living at Nazareth when Jesus' conception by the Holy Spirit was announced by the angel, Gabriel (Lk 1:26). Lk 1:5 sets these events during the reign of Herod the Great.
Catholics do not pray to Mary as if she were God. Prayer to Mary is memory of the great mysteries of our faith (Incarnation, Redemption through Christ in the rosary), praise to God for the wonderful things he has done in and through one of his creatures (Hail Mary) and intercession (second half of the Hail Mary).
The phrase "pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death" demonstrates that Catholics view Mary not as a goddess to be worshipped, but as a helpful ally in the life-long struggle against sin and temptation.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that "Mary is truly 'Mother of God' since she is the mother of the eternal Son of God made man, who is God himself." According to Catholic teaching, sourced in the John 1:1-14, Mary did not create the divine person of Jesus, who existed with the Father from all eternity.
Catholics believe that worship is due to God alone. Catholics do, however, venerate Mary. In other words, we honor our Blessed Mother with great reverence and devotion because she is the Mother of God. Mary is the model of perfect love and obedience to Christ.
God had a wife, Asherah, whom the Book of Kings suggests was worshiped alongside Yahweh in his temple in Israel, according to an Oxford scholar. God had a wife, Asherah, whom the Book of Kings suggests was worshipped alongside Yahweh in his temple in Israel, according to an Oxford scholar.
It states that Mary is called Queen of Heaven because her son, Jesus Christ, is the king of Israel and the heavenly king of the universe; indeed, the Davidic tradition of Israel recognized the mother of the king as the queen mother of Israel.
In Exodus, the nation of Israel is called God's firstborn son. Solomon is also called "son of God". Angels, just and pious men, and the kings of Israel are all called "sons of God."
In the New Testament the name of the Virgin Mary is always Mariam, excepting in the Vatican Codex and the Codex Bezae followed by a few critics who read Maria in Luke 2:19.
Mary is one of the most important figures in Christianity, as the ultimate symbol of motherhood her clothing is a reflection of her virtues such as her purity, modesty, faith and love for her child. In Christianity, she is not only the mother of Christ but also the mother of all humanity.
The Blessed Virgin Mary
Mary fulfilled Old Testament prophecies by miraculously conceiving and giving birth to Jesus as a virgin, and she maintained her virginity throughout the rest of her time on earth. Her perpetual virginity celebrates that amazing moment when God became man.
Just like Catholics who go directly to Jesus but also ask Mary and the Saints to pray for us, Protestants themselves ask for the prayers of their: pastors, ministers, elders, family and friends.
In the Roman Catholic tradition Mariology is seen as Christology developed to its full potential. Mary is seen as contributing to a fuller understanding of the life of Jesus. In this view, a Christology without Mary is not based on the total revelation of the Bible.
Many Greek and Byzantine Fathers asserted that Mary remained without sin throughthout her entire life. By the 4th century the sinlessness of Mary was a common belief. Augustine in the 5th century upheld that Mary had no personal sin, but Augustine did not clearly affirm that she was free from original sin.
The Qur'an speaks highly of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the virgin mother Mary. She is revered so much in Al-Islam until Prophet Muhammed, prayers and peace be upon him, said that Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the most respected and honored woman ever in the life of humanity.
The earliest recorded prayer to Mary is the sub tuum praesidium (3rd or 4th century) and the earliest depictions of her are from the Priscilla catacombs in Rome (early 3rd century).
Some Catholics believe that Mary died before being assumed, but they believe that she was miraculously resurrected before being assumed (mortalistic interpretation). Others believe she was assumed bodily into Heaven without first dying (immortalistic interpretation).
A corollary that has been deduced from the doctrine of Mary's virginity in the conception of Jesus is the doctrine of her perpetual virginity, not only in conception but in the birth of the child (i.e., she was exempt from the pain of childbirth) and throughout her life.
Rather, we see the saints as our brothers and sisters in the Family of God, just as we see members of the Church on earth as our brothers and sisters. We ask the saints to pray for us in the same way we ask anyone else to pray for us.
Answer: But it is in the Bible. When the angel Gabriel was sent to Mary by the Father, he greeted her, “Hail, full of grace; the Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28). When Mary visited Elizabeth, Elizabeth exclaimed, “Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Luke 1:41-42).