America
Jan 31, 1998

 

Mary at the dawn of the new millennium.(Marian theology)(Cover Story)
Author/s: Avery Dulles

For Pope John Paul II, MARY is the primary patroness of the advent of the new millennium. As the mother of Christ she is preeminently an advent figure--the morning star announcing the rising of the Sun of Righteousness. Like the moon at the dawn of a new day, she is wholly bathed in the glory of the sun that is to come after her. Her beauty is a reflection of his.

The glories of Mary have only gradually been discovered by the church iq the course of nearly 2,000 years of study and contemplation. The basic lines of Catholic Mariology are by now beyond dispute, enshrined as they are in the Scriptures, in the liturgy, in prayer, poet, song and art, in the writings of saints and theologians and in the teaching of popes and councils. Mary holds a secure place as the greatest of the saints, conceived and born without original sin and free from actual sin at any point in her life. Full of grace, she is exemplary in her faith, hope, love of God and generous concern for others. Having virginally conceived the Son of God in her womb, she remained a virgin throughout life. At the end of her earthly sojourn she was taken up body and soul into heaven, where she continues to exercise her spiritual motherhood and to intercede for the needs of her children on earth. This body of teaching, constructed laboriously over long centuries, belongs inalienably to the patrimony of the church and can scarcely be contested from within the Catholic tradition. It goes without saying that John Paul H accepts this heritage without question.

WOJTYLA'S MARIOLOGY

These convictions have not come to the present Pope only as a result of being installed in his office. He has been a devoted son of Mary ever since early youth, when he worshiped at her shrines in the neighborhood of his native Wadowice. During the Nazi occupation of Poland, as a chaplet leader in a "living rosary," he joined in prayers to Mary for peace and liberation. He also studied the works of St. Louis Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716), from whom he takes his motto as pope, totus tuus ("I am wholly yours").

It would be a mistake to think of Karol Wojtyla's attachment to Mary as the fruit of sentimentality. He emphatically denies that Marian teaching is a devotional supplement to a system of doctrine that would be complete without her. On the contrary, he holds, she occupies an indispensable place in the whole plan of salvation. "The mystery of Mary," writes the Pope, "is a revealed truth which imposes itself on the intellect of believers and requires of those in the church who have the task of studying and teaching a method of doctrinal reflection no less rigorous than that used in all theology" (L'Osservatore Romano, Jan. 10, 1996).

As a bishop at Vatican II, Wojtyla made several important interventions regarding Mary. He favored the inclusion of Mariology within the "Dogmatic Constitution on the Church," but he pleaded for a different location of the text, so that, instead of being a final chapter, it would immediately follow Chapter 1 on the Mystery of the Church. Mary, he declared in a written intervention in September 1964, having built up Christ's physical body as mother, continues this role in the mystical body. Since she is mother of Christ and of Christians, she ought to be considered early in the document, he said in a joint submission with the other Polish bishops in the fall of 1964, rather than be relegated to a kind of appendix at the end.

 

"For practical reasons," however, the theological commission judged it necessary at that stage to keep the section on Mary at the end of the constitution--a decision that unfortunately made it possible for some commentators to say that Vatican II had demoted the status of Mary. The commission also rejected several proposals to designate Mary formally as Mother of the Church, and even to make that term the title of the chapter. But in the "Dogmatic Constitution on the Church" (1964) the council did declare that "the Catholic Church, taught by the Holy Spirit, honors her with the affection of filial piety as a most loving mother" (No. 53). To the great satisfaction of Archbishop Wojtyla, Paul VI at the end of the third session, on Nov. 21, 1964, explicitly proclaimed Mary to be Mother of the Church.

The Mariology of John Paul II appears in concentrated form in his encyclical Redemptoris Mater (1987) and more diffusely in a series of 70 Wednesday audience catecheses on Mary delivered between Sept. 6, 1995 and Nov. 12, 1997. In general, his teaching may be called pastoral rather than speculatively theological. The Pope is more concerned with communicating the faith of the church and fostering authentic piety than with proposing new theories. But rather frequently one comes across phrases and statements that reflect personal insights of his own.

The key term that unifies the Pope's Mariology, as I see it, is that of motherhood. Mary is the mother of the Redeemer, mother of divine grace, mother of the church. The Council of Ephesus in the fifth century established the foundational dogma of Mariology, that Mary is Mother of God, theotokos (literally, "God-bearer"). In Redemptoris Mater the Pope calls attention to the ecumenical value of this dogma (Nos. 30-32): it is accepted by practically all Christians, and has given rise to beautiful hymns, especially in the Byzantine liturgy, which in turn inspired the salutation in the great Anglican hymn, "Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones":

O higher than the cherubim,

More glorious than the seraphim,

Lead their praises, Alleluia!

Thou bearer of th'eternal Word,

Most gracious, magnify the Lord, Alleluia!

With his great interest in the theme of redemption, John Paul II frequently calls attention to Mary's involvement in the saving mission of her Son, beginning with the Annunciation, when she consented to the plan of the Incarnation and received the signal grace of divine Motherhood. As the virgin mother, she conceived through faith and obedience to the divine Word that came to her from on high (Redemptoris Mater No. 13).

Like Christ's own redemptive mission, Mary's role in salvation history was not exempt from sorrow. In many texts John Paul II recalls how, at the presentation of the infant Christ in the Temple, Simeon prophesied that Mary's soul would be pierced by a sword. This prophecy was to be fulfilled on Calvary, where Mary's compassion perfectly mirrored the passion of her Son, whose sufferings reverberated in her heart.

 

After the death of Jesus, according to the Pope, Mary's motherly office assumes a new form. In saying to the Beloved Disciple, "Behold your mother," Jesus places the apostles under her maternal care (Jn. 19:25-27). In the days following the Ascension we find Mary in the company of the Apostles prayerfully and confidently waiting for the Holy Spirit, who had already overshadowed her at the Annunciation, to descend upon the church. There is a mysterious correspondence, therefore, in Mary's maternal relationships to Jesus and to the church. By her unceasing intercession she cooperates with maternal love in the spiritual birth and development of the sons and daughters of the church (Redemptoris Mater No. 44). "Choosing her as Mother of all humanity," writes the Pope, "...the heavenly Father wanted to reveal the maternal dimension of his divine tenderness and care for men and women of every age" (L'Osservatore Romano, weekly English edition, Oct. 22, 1997).

NEW MARIAN DOGMAS?

As the present millennium draws to a close, certain groups of Catholics are pressing for new dogmatic definitions officially conferring upon Mary the titles "coredemptrix," "mediatrix of all graces," and "advocate of the people of God." A Dutch mystic, Ida Peerdeman, who died in 1995, predicted that John Paul II would proclaim this threefold title of Mary as the "final dogma." A group calling itself Vox Populi Mariae Mediatrici, based in the United States and headed by Mark Miravalle, a lay professor of theology at Steubenville, Ohio, has been gathering signers, including many cardinals and bishops, calling for this triple definition. According to Newsweek for Aug. 25, 1997, the Pope has received 4,340,429 signatures from 157 countries requesting him to make this dogmatic proclamation. Miravalle is quoted as claiming that the date of the proclamation has actually been set: May 31, 1998, a day when the feast of Pentecost coincides with the former feast of Mary Mediatrix of All Graces.

There is nothing unusual about campaigns to confer more exalted titles on Mary. The dogmas of the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption were preceded by floods of petitions. After World War I, the Belgian Cardinal Desire Mercier took the leadership in a drive for a dogmatic definition that Mary was universal mediatrix of grace. Pius XI appointed three commissions to study this question, but no further action was taken. Many bishops, however, obtained permission for the Mass and Office of Our Lady Mediatrix of All Graces to be celebrated in their dioceses. In 1950 the first International Mariological Congress, meeting in Rome, asked for a dogmatic proclamation of Mary's universal mediation. But Pius XII did not implement this request. In fact he replaced the feast of Mary Mediatrix with that of the Queenship of Mary in 1954.

In order to assess the acceptability of the three proposed titles it will be helpful to glance at their past usage in Catholic theology and magisterial teaching.

 

THE PROPOSED TITLES

Of the three proposed titles, "advocate" is the least burdened with difficulties. It was used in the patristic age by Irenaeus and John Damascene, and in the Middle Ages by Bernard and many others. In the Salve Regina we implore Mary as "most gracious Advocate" to turn her eyes of mercy toward us. The fact that the title "advocate" is applied to the Holy Spirit in the fourth Gospel Qn. 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7) and to Christ in the First Letter of John (1 Jn. 2:1) can hardly constitute an objection, since Mary's advocacy, as that of a created person, takes place on a different level. If she is not our advocate, what could her intercession mean? To deny her this title would be in effect to reject the whole doctrine of the intercession of the saints. The title "mediatrix" is likewise very ancient. It goes back to the fifth century (Basil of Seleucia) and was in common usage by the eighth century (Andrew of Crete, Germanus of Constantinople and John Damascene). Medieval saints such as Bernard of Clairvaux, Bonaventure and Bernardine of Siena frequently used the title. In modem times it was further popularized by St. Louis Grignion de Montfort and St. Alfonsus Liguori.

The designation of Mary as "mediatrix" is a commonplace in papal documents. Leo XIII in 1896 said of her, "No single individual can even be imagined who has ever contributed or ever will contribute so much toward reconciling man with God.... She is therefore truly his [Christ's] mother and for this reason a worthy and acceptable `Mediatrix to the Mediator.'" Pius X in 1904 said that by reason of the union she had with Jesus she is "the most powerful mediatrix and advocate of the whole world with her divine Son." Benedict XV in 1915 in an address to the Consistory of Cardinals declared: "The faith of her believers and her children's love consider her not only God's mother, but also the mediatrix with God." Pius XI in 1928 declared that Christ willed "to make his mother the advocate for sinners and the dispenser and mediatrix of his grace." Pius XII in 1940, without actually using the term "mediatrix," urged faithful Christians to have recourse to Mary since, as Bernard had taught, "It is the will of God that we obtain all favors through Mary."

In preparation for Vatican II, and in response to many petitions, the Theological Commission in 1962 proposed a schema formally declaring that Mary was mediatrix; but several eminent cardinals, including Augustin Bea, Paul Emile Leger and Bernard Alfrink, argued that the title was not yet sufficiently clarified in theology to warrant a conciliar pronouncement and that a formal declaration would be ecumenically counterproductive. In the final text, therefore, the council contented itself with the very moderate statement that because of her motherly care, Mary is invoked in the church by titles such as "advocate" and "mediatrix" ("Dogmatic Constitution on the Church," No. 62).

In his 64th catechesis on Mary (Sept. 24, 1997), John Paul II affirms that Mary is indeed mediatrix inasmuch as she "presents our desires and petitions to Christ, and transmits the divine gifts to us, interceding continually on our behalf." In his encyclical on Mary, the Pope characterizes Mary's mediation as maternal; it is motherhood in the order of grace (Nos. 21, 38). It is intercessory in nature, since it reaches out toward the Son and has a universal embrace corresponding to his saving will for all humanity (No. 40). From these statements we may conclude that Mary's mediation, according to John Paul II, extends in some way to a the gifts of grace.

 

The difficulty is often raised that to speak of Mary in these terms derogates from the unique mediatorship of Jesus Christ, which is formally affirmed in Scripture (1 Tim. 2:5). Mary's mediation might even seem to interfere with an immediate union between the Christian and the Lord. In replying to this difficulty, the Pope repeats the teaching of Vatican II that "all the saving influences of the Blessed Virgin ... originate from the divine pleasure; they flow forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rest on his mediation, depend entirely upon it, and draw all their power from it. In no way do they impede the immediate union of the faithful with Christ. Rather, they foster this union" ("Dogmatic Constitution on the Church," No. 60). Mary's mediation, according to the council, "takes nothing away from the dignity and power of Christ the one mediator, and adds nothing to it" (No. 62). If these principles are kept in mind, the doctrinal objections to the title "mediatrix" lose much of their force.

As for the title "coredemptrix," this has a more checkered history. Having first appeared in theology toward the end of the 14th century, it becomes prominent in papal teaching in the first half of this century. Benedict XV in 1918 went so far as to assert that Mary "with Christ redeemed mankind," and Pius XI, addressing a group of pilgrims in 1933, declared: "From the nature of his work the Redeemer ought to have associated his mother with his work. For this reason we invoke her under the title of Coredemptrix. She gave us the Savior, she accompanied him in the work of Redemption as far as the Cross itself, sharing with him the sorrows of the agony and of the death in which Jesus consummated the redemption of mankind." Again in 1935, he addressed Mary in prayer, "Mother most faithful and most merciful, who as coredemptrix and partaker of thy dear Son's sorrows didst assist him as he offered the sacrifice of our redemption on the altar of the cross."

But Pius XII studiously avoided the term. Instead he spoke of Mary as the loving Mother, "inseparably joined with Christ in accomplishing the work of man's redemption." Paul VI and Vatican II made no mention of Mary as coredemptrix. The very term seemed to contradict the common teaching that although there are many mediators of intercession there is but one mediator of redemption, Jesus Christ. All Catholics agree that Christ was the sufficient cause of our redemption. The question concerns the manner in which he associated his mother with himself in this action.

In line with previous popes, John Paul H holds that Mary cooperated with Christ at every stage from his coming into the world to his death upon the cross, where her soul was pierced with grief as his heart was pierced with a lance. Although the Pope does not speak of Mary as "coredemptrix" in any of his encyclicals or other major documents, he did use the term in occasional speeches, at least until 1985. (The only case since 1985 known to me is in a meditation on the Angelus, Oct. 6, 1991, commemorating the sixth centenary of the canonization of St. Bridget of Sweden. Here the Pope mentions that Bridget invoked Mary under various titles, including that of "Coredemptix.") For example, in an address at the Marian shrine of Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Jan. 31, 1985, he declared: "As she was in a special way close to the cross of her Son, she also had to have a privileged experience of his Resurrection. In fact, Mary's role as coredemptrix did not cease with the glorification of her Son."

 

In the few cases where the present Pope has used the term "coredemptrix," it seems to be a concise way of referring to Mary's intimate association with her Son in his redemptive action. This interpretation is borne out by his Wednesday audience catechesis of April 9, 1996:

Moreover, when the Apostle Paul

says, "For we are God's fellow

workers" (1 Cor. 3:9), he maintains the real possibility for

man to co-operate with God. The collaboration of

believers, which obviously excludes any equality with

him, is expressed in the proclamation of the Gospel

and in their personal contribution to its taking root in

human hearts.

However, applied to Mary, the term "co-operator"

acquires a specific meaning. The collaboration of

Christians in salvation takes place after the Calvary

event, whose fruits they endeavor to spread by prayer

and sacrifice. Mary, instead, co-operated during the

event itself and in the role of mother; thus her

co-operation embraces the whole of Christ's saving work. She

alone was associated in this way with the redemptive

sacrifice that merited the salvation of all mankind. In

union with Christ and in submission to him, she

collaborated in obtaining the grace of salvation for all

humanity.

Whether he is speaking of Mary's mediation or of her role in redemption, the Pope always makes it clear that he is referring to her participation in Christ's own action, which is by itself incomparable and sufficient. The doctrine of Mary as coredemptrix cannot mean that she stands on the same level with Christ or makes up for any deficiency in his redemptive action. But since Christ's mediation does not exclude the cooperation of subordinate mediators, so, it would seem, he could freely associate others with his redemptive action without ceasing to be the full and sufficient cause. If this point is clearly understood, 4 is acceptable to speak of Mary as having been in some way conjoined with Christ in his redemptive work, and in that qualified sense as "coredemptrix."

WILL THE TITLES BE DEFINED?

As things presently stand, however, I think it unlikely that the Pope will dogmatically proclaim any or all of the dime proposed titles, especially the title of coredemptrix. My first reason for thinking so is the Pope's complete loyalty to the intentions of Vatican H, which was cautious in its use of Marian titles and made no reference to "coredemptrix." Following the council, John Paul H has thus far been careful to avoid both maximalism and minimalism and to refrain from personally deciding issues that are still subject to theological debate. Like John XXIII and Paul VI before him, he has until now abstained from making any ex cathedra pronouncements and attaching anathemas to his teaching. Although he recognizes his power as Pope to speak authoritatively to the universal episcopate, he evidently prefers to teach collegially and without canonical censures, expressing what he perceives as being the consensus of the episcopal college.

 

Second, it must be noted that these dogmas would provoke considerable confusion among Catholics and great ecumenical dismay, especially in Protestant and Anglican circles. Some might think that Mary was being exalted to become a fourth person in the godhead or at least that the unique mediatorship of Christ or the sufficiency of his redemptive act was being obscured. Even the Orthodox, who might agree with the substance of the proclamation, would be opposed to the manner of its issuance if it came from the Pope speaking ex cathedra. The Pope, who places ecumenism high on his agenda, would surely take account of these sentiments. (See John Paul's 1995 encyclical Ut Unum Sint on the importance of ecumenical dialogue about the Virgin Mary.)

Third, the exact content of the proposed dogmas is still unclear. Mary's mediation or advocacy could be understood, or misunderstood, as implying that she can make God change his plans or that she is more merciful than her Son. It raises the question whether all prayers must be channeled through Mary in order to be heard by God. If she is coredemptrix, does that mean that she cooperates directly and immediately in the redemptive action of Christ, offering him up on the cross, or only indirectly and remotely--for example, by becoming mother of the Redeemer and consenting to his sacrificial death? What, if anything, does her cooperation add that would not be present without it? Mariologists have debated points like this with great subtlety, without, however, reaching any full agreement. These unsettled points suggest that any dogmatic definition might be premature.

Fourth, the community of Mariology scholars seems to be opposed. At Czestochowa in Poland in August 1996 a commission of 15 Catholic theologians from the Pontifical International Marian Academy, chosen for their specific competence in this area, together with three officers of the society and five non-Catholic theologians, unanimously recommended against any dogmatic definition of the Marian titles of mediatrix, coredemptrix and advocate. Their reason was partly ecumenical, but more substantively that the titles are ambiguous and lend themselves to misunderstanding. Using similar arguments, an International Mariological Symposium, meeting at Rome on Oct. 7-9, 1997, registered overwhelming opposition to the proposed papal definitions and especially to that of coredemptrix. Finally, we have a statement of the papal press secretary, Joaquin Navarro-Valls on Aug. 18, 1997, declaring that no proclamation of any new Marian dogmas is at present planned or under study by the Pope or any Vatican commission. It is "crystal clear"--he is quoted as saying--that the Pope will not solemnly define any of these three titles as dogmas.

If the pope wishes to honor Mary in some special way at the approach of the new millennium, he would have other possibilities than to proclaim new dogmas. He could, for example, declare that these beliefs are worthy of credence, or he could establish some new liturgical feast honoring Mary by one or another of these titles. Due recognition of Mary in the celebration of the great jubilee does not, however, necessitate any doctrinal or liturgical innovations.

 

THEMES FOR 1997-99

In his apostolic letter The Coming of the Third Millennium John Paul II makes a number of concrete suggestions with implications for Marian practice and devotion. He relates the last three years of the current millennium to the three divine persons and the three theological virtues. The year 1997, he declares, is a time to concentrate on faith with special reference to Jesus Christ as the divine Son. The year 1998 would then be a time for emphasizing the Holy Spirit and the virtue of hope. And 1999 is to be an occasion for turning to God the Father and for special emphasis on the virtue of charity.

Each of these three years, according to the Pope, has a Marian dimension. She is the virginal mother of the Son, the immaculate spouse of the Holy Spirit and the fairest daughter of the Father. She is also exemplary in her faith, hope and charity.

In the year 1997, therefore, we were urged to contemplate Mary's journey 6f faith in relation to the incarnate Son. At the Annunciation, she responded in faith to the angel's message that she was chosen to become the mother of the redeemer. In uttering her fiat she entered the history of the world's salvation through the obedience of faith (see the 1986 encyclical Dominum et Vivificantem). At the Visitation she was praised by Elizabeth with the words: "Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord" (Lk. 1:45).

Mary's faith was to be severely tested by the flight into Egypt, the loss of the child Jesus in the Temple, his rejection at Nazareth, and especially his crucifixion at Golgotha, which the Pope describes as "perhaps the deepest kenosis of faith in human history" (Redemptoris Mater, No. 18). But her faith continually grew as she pondered the meaning of the words addressed to her. Her obedient submission in faith was, in the expression of Irenaeus, the act that untied the knot of Eve's disobedience, thus enabling humanity to rise again to communion with God. Mary's faith is perpetuated in the church as it makes its own pilgrimage of faith.

By pondering Mary's faith in Christ in 1997, Christians disposed themselves for meditation on the Holy Spirit and on hope, the themes proposed for 1998. Mary's faith, itself a gift of the Holy Spirit, enabled her to conceive her Son by the power of that same Spirit. Her faith flowered in an ardent and unfailing hope. Just as Abraham hoped against hope that he would become the father of many nations (Rom. 4:18), so Mary trusted against all appearances that the Lord would place her Son upon the throne of David, where he would reign in unending glory (Lk. 1:32-33). The hope of the whole people of ancient Israel came to its culmination in Mary, who in her Magnificat praised God's fidelity to the promises he had made to Abraham and to his posterity forever (Lk. 1:55). She is thus a radiant model for all who entrust themselves to God's promises. The image of the Virgin praying with the apostles in the Cenacle, says John Paul II, can become a sign of hope for all who call upon the Holy Spirit to deepen their union with God.

 

Finally, as the most highly favored daughter of the Father, Mary may be viewed as the supreme model of love toward God and neighbor--the theme proposed for 1999. Out of affection for her cousin Elizabeth, she hastens into the hill country to assist her and share with her the good news of the Annunciation. In the Magnificat she expresses her joy of spirit in God her savior, who has looked upon her lowliness and done great things for her. In the same hymn she expresses solidarity with Yahweh's beloved poor, thus anticipating the church's preferential option for the poor. At Cana she manifests her active charity by helping to relieve the embarrassment of her hosts, thus occasioning the miracle by which Christ first displayed his messianic power over nature. Mary's love for God is brought to its deepest fulfillment in heaven, where she continues to intercede lovingly for her children on earth. This she will continue to do until all things are subjected to the Father, so that God will become all in all.

The church follows in the paths marked out for her by Mary. Like her the church believes, accepting with fidelity the word of God. It preserves the faith by keeping and pondering in its heart all that God speaks to it. Sustained by the Holy Spirit amid the afflictions and hardships of the world, the church unceasingly looks forward in hope to the promise of future glory. In imitation of Mary, the fair daughter of Zion, the church continually praises the Father's mercies and imitates his love for men and women of every nation, the righteous and the unrighteous. The church's prayers for the needs of the whole world blend with Mary's petitions before the throne of God.

Besides being an icon of the whole church, Mary is in a particular way a model for women. The contrasting vocations of virginity and motherhood meet and coexist in her (see John Paul II's 1988 apostolic letter Mulieris Dignitatem). The single, the married, and the widowed can all look to her for inspiration. In Mary women can find an exemplar of "the loftiest sentiments of which the human heart is capable: the self-offering totality of love; the strength that is capable of bearing the greatest sorrows; limitless fidelity and tireless devotion to work; the ability to combine penetrating intuition with words of support and encouragement" (Redemptoris Mater No. 46).

MEANING OF THE JUBILEE

The Mariology of John Paul II is closely interwoven with his theology of time. Mary could receive the fullness of grace because the fullness of time had arrived (Gal. 4:4). This fullness, says the Pope, "marks the moment when, with the entrance of the eternal into time, time itself is redeemed."

Jubilee years are more than sentimental recollections of the past. They are woven into the texture of salvation history. Christ began his public ministry by proclaiming the arrival of the great jubilee, the year of the Lord's favor predicted by the prophet Isaiah (Lk. 4:16-30). We continue to live in this era of redemption, this jubilee season of grace and liberation. Just as the Scripture was fulfilled in the hearing of those gathered in the synagogue of Nazareth, so it is fulfilled anew in our hearing, if we will only listen. Every jubilee celebration of the church recalls and reactivates the arrival of the fullness of time.

 

Like the incarnation itself, the coming jubilee has a Marian as well as a Christological dimension. The child does not enter the world apart from Mary his blessed mother, the theotokos. In her pilgrimage of faith, hope and love she blazes the trail on which the church is to follow. She continues to go before the people of God (Redemptoris Mater Nos. 6, 25, 28), coming to the help of her clients who seek to rise above their sins and misery. Just as before the coming of Christ she was the "morning star" (stella matutina), so she remains, for us who are still on the journey of faith, the "star of the sea" (stella maris) guiding us through the dark journey toward the moment when faith will be transformed into the everlasting vision in which we look upon God our Savior "face to face" (Redemptoris Mater, No. 6).