One of the Protestant objections to the Catholic faith is that we make too much of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She looms large in their perception of Catholicism, and they believe that we value Mary more than her Son, and that we pay her far too much attention.
There are many theological replies that can be made, but a simple, practical reply is to suggest that the Protestant has this misunderstanding because he has never been a Catholic. They do not realize that for Catholics the central focus of everything is the Mass. When Catholics get together they may pray the rosary, but they are far more likely to celebrate Mass, and in the Mass the paschal mystery of Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension is the central focus of all.
At the Mass we focus on the old rugged cross, the pashcal mystery, the blood of Christ, the one, full, final sacrifice. Mary is always second to that. The problem is, without worshipping as a Catholic, without living the Catholic faith, this truth would remain invisible.
Too much Mary,too much rosary,too much confession,too much Mass,too much blessing,too much liturgy,too much pope,too much saints,too much RCIA,too much pancake breakfast, sheesh, I mean, don’t you you just want to follow Jesus, man?
I was talking to a woman Baptist the other day about my learning iconography, and I wasn’t even talking for a minute and she rolled her eyes and dashed the conversation and said, “I just follow Jesus.”Oh, really? And you don’t do anything else, like sin against Him?Your argument Father, which is a good one, may actually point to what they really object to, which is the totality of the Catholic church: the Mass.
Fr. Thanks for bringing to our attention some of the thoughts of our protiestant brothers and sisters. I just feel that we as catholics have to be as understanding and pastoral as we can be when protestants ask us aobut our faith.Throughout the years there has been soo much miss information out there about Catholics. The protestants that I have encountered have been very respectful of Catholicism, soo lets spread the Joy that our blessed Mother Mary has given to us, to all those who really dont understand,yet are reaching out to understand our faith tradition. Love this Blog, keep up the Good work Fr.Reggie
Very good comment Father. Even our devotion to Mary leads us towards her Son and draws our attention to him.
I got a great insight on this from Kimberly Hahn, in the book about Scott and Kimberly Hahn’s conversion to Catholicism. She said that Protestant worship consists of songs, prayers, and readings. So when we sing and pray to (or about) Mary, with the occasional scriptural readings thrown in, we are doing what their worship consists of and so of course they think we are worshiping Mary. They don’t have the Eucharist, so they don’t understand that our “real” worship is the Eucharist. The songs, the prayers, and the readings just go along with it. They’re extra. So they are scandalized and we wonder what all the fuss is about. When I attend Protestant services with friends, I can never get over waiting for something to HAPPEN. From my perspective, they never DO anything. They spend a very long time in what is, for me, just preparation for worshiping. And then they stop and go home.
To Jesus through Mary … for she said “yes, let it be done unto me, according to Thy Will”…oh that I may always say Yes to God’s plan in my life – pray for me, please.
One way to talk to people about the rosary is to remind them that the focus is on the mysteries of the rosary, and that these mysteries follow the life of our Lord and His family. The rosary is a kind of ‘remembering’ of memories that our loved by the one who prays the rosary.
Two things come to mind that have always helped me with Protestant views of Mary. One is the analogy of her as the moon: her light is merely a reflection of the sun (son), not her own light. The second is the word Magnificat (magnify), straight from scripture. It is hard to argue against that as giving her a crucial role in helping us illuminate our lives with Christ’s light.One of the seers of Medugorje was interviewed. He had an interesting conversation with Mary about world religions. Her response was thought provoking. To paraphrase, she said not to obsess so much over the minor differences between sects and denominations, just get right with Jesus.
very simplegood one, Father!
Fr. wrote:”They do not realize that for Catholics the central focus of everything is the Mass.”True and common among evangelicals. As Gail said, to them, “worship” is songs and group prayer. I’ll add EMOTION to that—modern American christians equate emotions to worship–largely through music— and have a difficult time understanding what christians have been doing for over 2000 yrs. I get the “too focused on Mary” argument all the time. I often reply that my questioner would have to agree that the MASS is indisputably the central focus of our lives and that the CATECHISM is our teachings and doctrine laid out for all to see. So…where in the mass are we too focused on Mary? And exactly where in the catechism are the areas which are focused on Mary?Usual reply:(silence… then) “Yeah, but…”There are a great many wonderful non-Catholic christians out there, but far too many of them are more interested in being able to declare themselves right than they are about truly investigating Catholicism and christian history. Authentic, historical christianity is as plain as the unused altars at the front of so many of those churches. The truth sits quietly in front of them waiting to be discovered.
In his sermon of August 15, 1522, the last time Martin Luther preached on the Feast of the Assumption, he stated: There can be no doubt that the Virgin Mary is in heaven. How it happened we do not know. And since the Holy Spirit has told us nothing about it, we can make of it no article of faith . . . It is enough to know that she lives in Christ. The veneration of Mary is inscribed in the very depths of the human heart. (Sermon, September 1, 1522). [She is the] highest woman and the noblest gem in Christianity after Christ . . . She is nobility, wisdom, and holiness personified. We can never honor her enough. Still honor and praise must be given to her in such a way as to injure neither Christ nor the Scriptures. (Sermon, Christmas, 1531). No woman is like you. You are more than Eve or Sarah, blessed above all nobility, wisdom, and sanctity. (Sermon, Feast of the Visitation, 1537). One should honor Mary as she herself wished and as she expressed it in the Magnificat. She praised God for his deeds. How then can we praise her? The true honor of Mary is the honor of God, the praise of God’s grace . . . Mary is nothing for the sake of herself, but for the sake of Christ . . . Mary does not wish that we come to her, but through her to God. (Explanation of the Magnificat, 1521).
Saw you tonight on “Journey Home”. Even my husband was impressed (it takes a lot…)!! Thanks so much for your witness and thanks be to God for your life!
toldja – Palin lost it for McCain. She bought him states he would have won anyway, and alienated fiscal conservatives and people who want a well spoken pres capable of performing in interviews.
I saw you on Journey Home–great program-enjoyed your explanation about what is going on in the Anglican Church . Wish that post Vatican RC Churches would go back to being as aesthetically pleasing as far as liturgy and church buildings as the Anglican Catholic Churches in England seem to be. I think Anglicans who are interested in Roman Catholicism would find it easier to come home.
Naaaaaa. Coulter has it right once again. McCain lost it for McCain. The only postive bumps in the polls were Palin driven. The smart VP choice would have been…McCain.