Mary, an obstacle?

 

Having been raised Catholic, and knowing and believing what Catholics know and believe about Mary, I have never struggled to understand the Church's teachings about Mary, but I know that for some people, these can be a real obstacle. 

The common question is, "Why go to Mary when you can pray directly to Jesus?" or, "Why do you worship Mary?"

Like Blessed Fulton Sheen said . . .

“There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate the Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be.”

First, let's clear up the second question.

Catholics do not worship Mary. We know she is not God. We do accept that she was conceived without sin and that God prepared her for her special role to be the mother of Jesus.

But the "why pray to Mary" question takes a little more explaining, and the Bible gives us the perfect answer.

At the Wedding at Cana (Gospel of John, Chapter 2) the hosts of the wedding ran into a serious problem--they were running out of wine!

Mary, the mother of Jesus, noticed that their friends had a problem, and she turned to Jesus for help. 

Now there are a lot of things we could say at this point, but let's just stop right there.

Rest a minute on the fact that it was Mary who took the problem to Jesus. 

We know Jesus solved the problem by turning water into wine (his first miracle at Cana), but it was Mary who brought their problem to him.

Similarly, we understand that if we take our worries to Mary, they will reach Jesus through her. She may not have the power that Jesus has, since he is God and she is not, but she is certainly able (as she did at the wedding) to solicit his response.

Now yes, of course, we can go directly to Jesus as well, but Jesus made it pretty clear even in his final words from the cross, that Mary is our mother, and what is a mother's role but to listen and respond to the needs of her children? (Gospel of John 19:27)

The real question is, "Why wouldn't we go to Mary, our Mother?" 

We learn directly from the Bible, and specifically from Jesus himself, that as our mother, Mary is a sound recourse when we are in need.

Mary, an obstacle? 

No, Mary is a gift, from Jesus. 

Pray for peace, joy, and an end to war.

Janet Cassidy
Email me at:  jmctm2@gmail.com

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