Foolishness of God?
I haven’t posted very much on the subject of Marian devotion because, quite frankly, my understanding is still growing in such a way as I feel I have less mastery to defend the faith from the apologetics standpoint and from the heart my sense of the faith is still incomplete.
It is quite amazing to me how deeply some prejudices and modes of thinking go, and when one is raised in a particular religious environment, it is quite natural to find certain aspects of another religious tradition and hard to grasp, not intellectually, but intuitively.
This is a common theme among many Protestant converts to the Catholic faith with respect to Marion doctrine and popular piety. Often the doctrines are accepted first and the practice is much more difficult to absorb. And ultimately the “feel” of it is something that for cradle Catholics is natural yet for converts sometimes is alien.
So it was interesting to read one of the comments tothis particular postover atde cura animarum. This blog I found throughthis postatInsight Scoop. The comment I am referring to is from Jason C. Petty and I will quote it here;
I believe I heard someone make a similar point regarding Protestant worship: lacking the sacrificial element of the Mass, their worship, whether public or private, is relegated solely to prayer. Thus, to a Protestant, prayer is worship. Thus, to pray to Mary or any other saints is, to a Protestant, to worship Mary or the saints. For what it’s worth.
I found that to be particularly useful in understanding the gut difficulty many Protestants, particularly Evangelicals, have with the practice of Marian devotion, the internalizing, if you will, of the Marian doctrines.
I would add also, that the Marian doctrines come from a place that is not the regular hard, cold plateau of doctrinal debate. They have little to do with the philosophy of the mind in origin, but rather the philosophy of the heart, yet their underpinnings are intertwined and at least for the Council of Nicea, are integral to the Doctrines of the Divinity of Christ and the Trinity. And we may also see, in the doctrines surrounding Mary an elucidation of Original Sin, the Genesis prophecy, the very Incarnation itself. But the point of it all is that we can readily understand the symbolism and the symmetry of God’s plan and the unique place of Mary in it, yet it still remains to understand her as the person, the intercessor, the human being, the saint above other saints. That takes a different kind of understanding that doesn’t come readily to the fierce independence of mind so characteristic of much of Protestantism and my own mind in particular.
This I have found in myself more in recent days than ever, having gone through a period of surgery and recovery wherein I was more dependent upon others than ever before and it was a learning experience for me, an experience of dependency that was very much against my instincts. It caused me to re-think and understand that part of myself and particularly to re-think my very relationship with Christ. Giving oneself totally to Jesus Christ is not easy for someone like me, on various levels.
Part of this is learning to accept that others are the agents of Christ, by his design. He didn’t intend for us to be isolated free agents, but rather a family, helping each other through prayer and ministry and material assistance. Part of that is the intercession of the larger family of saints, and above all of them is Jesus’ mother, whom he chose to raise to the status she has as Queen of Heaven, see the Apocalypse of John, chapter 12, verse 1 and following.
It has been difficult for me to realize on the larger scale, that Jesus used the material of this world to transmit his grace, and he has chosen to give us the opportunity to participate in the salvation of our family and friends and neighbours and enemies… He works through people, through his Church. I think he wants us to be dependent upon each other so that we will be forced to co-operate and if we don’t love each other as he has loved us, then things won’t work out so well.
This theme underlies all of Church history, her practices and doctrines to such a degree that it is natural for the cradle Catholic. Yet for outsiders there is a visceral reaction often of defiance. “I’m not letting any Pope in Rome tell me what to do!” “I don’t need any church to get to heaven!” “I don’t need to confess to some priest!” “I don’t need to pray to Mary or any saints!” “I’m alright Jack!”
Some of this rebellious spirit was at the heart of the Reformation in my opinion. At least it seemed evident in some of the vitriolic rhetoric that followed for many years, centuries. Personally, it would sometimes be quite easy to slip back into that spirit. I know it well, because I find a lot of rebellion in my own heart as a matter of personality. I have never been the vocal rebel, but have tended to go my own way regardless. It occurred to me once that my conversion to the Catholic Church might be seen as one more major rebellion on my part. That is funny if you think about it. It would be like a young man leaving home to join the Army so he could be his own boss.
Anyway, to quote Fr. John Corapi speaking of the Blessed Virgin Mary, “if she’s good enough for Jesus, she’s good enough for me.” Jesus was and is a good Jewish man, honouring his father and mother. She is still his mother. That is forever, as many parents have found out when their kids turned eighteen.