A Mary Quote

[Brother Adam]

This is something that I posted on the Baptist board that i wanted to share here.

Sorry Bob, I completely missed your post.

Bob said:

Adam - which prayers would you consider "for Mary" vs "for God"?

I'm not so hung up on titles or intercession of the saints, but there is still language that bothers me, such as what Gina posted:

a surrender of oneself into her hands, and a fervent, frequent and confident seeking of her aid. This usually comes through some form of consecration to the Mother of God.....

Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, in the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, and to thy Immaculate Heart, as thy child and slave of love, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God, in time and in eternity....

Talk about giving our body and souls to Mary is...err...no. I understand Catholics believe Mary is the dispenser of all graces, and while that seems a bit of stretch to me, it doesn't change soteriology so much as Catholics would no longer be Christians.

I don't know, I've studied Mariam doctrines quite a bit, but like I said, its the language used here that I'm not used to and I don't know the intent behind it, but from my point of view, it is bothersome.

Edited February 19, 2004 by Brother Adam

[geetarplayer]

Bro, even I am sometimes confused by the language used in reference to Mary, and I'm a practicing Catholic!

-Mark

[Laudate_Dominum]

To me language like this is not enough! Words cannot express the love we should all have for the Immaculate Mediatrix of All Grace and Mother of Our Salvation.

Maybe reading "True Devotion to Mary" by St. Louis de Montfort would help. In this book he describes the practice of holy slavery to the Mother of God.

"Immaculate Conception and the Holy Spirit" is another good one, it is about St. Maximillian Kolbe's writings on Our Lady. His form of consecration is based on being the possession and property of Our Lady instead of slave, since he felt this is an even greater expression of total self-surrender.

Oh, and brother, such things like this are devotional. They are expressions of love so they might appear out of control to someone who is only used to examining Catholicism from a doctrinal point of view. These devotional practices assume one has correct doctrine and are rooted in orthodoxy.

And from my own experience, consecration to Our Lady is an inexpressible gift! It is Christ's gift to me. He has given us His own mother to be our own. To be devoted to Our Lady is to love her with Christ's love. It is to imitate Christ who was the first to be entrusted to her care. I know of no more perfect way to Jesus than through the Immaculate Heart of His Mother.

Edited February 19, 2004 by Laudate_Dominum

[Laudate_Dominum]

Maybe this would make a good topic under Mary in the reference section.

I'll try to write a little apologetic on Marian consecration some time.

Maybe this site has something: http://www.consecration.com/

[phatcatholic]

Maybe this would make a good topic under Mary in the reference section.

I'll try to write a little apologetic on Marian consecration some time.

Maybe this site has something: http://www.consecration.com/

ahhh, good call LaudDom. in the Mary entry, i already have a section entitled "Devotion and Veneration." i'll check that site tho and see if there is more that i can add.

also, the small link at the very top of the Mary entry should have alot of info on Marian devotion as well.

good lookin out,

phatcatholic

[phatcatholic]

pham,

i just added the following links to the Mary entry:

--What Is Consecration?

--Frequently Asked Questions about Consecration to Mary

--Wear the Miraculous Medal

--Miraculous Medal

hopefully, those will flesh out the devotion section a bit more.

thanks,

phatcatholic

[M.SIGGA]

Hey Laudate and anyone else,

I read Secret of the Rosary by St. Louis deMontfort and I really liked it, but do you think some prayer language when refering to the BVM can ever go too far - like in some of the prayers we have now? I became sort of Mariaphobic when I first came back to the Catholic Faith, and it sort of changed my form of devotion to her. I still pray the rosary, HHQ, Magnificat (my favorite), and a Novena to Perpetual Help, but there are a few traditional devotions I feel sort of awkward about since returning from an evangelical prot. church. I'm still praying to totally regain the faith I rejected once and sometimes this is one of my battles - smells of elderberries for me lol.