Sunday, May 6, 2007

Open Letter to a Protestant: On the role of the Blessed Virgin in salvation

B---,

There is at least one main point on which you repeatedly misrepresent the Catholic Church's teaching on Mary, namely, that any person is under a moral obligation to seek the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. In setting aside this objection, I will only quote the following from Cardinal Newman: "The Catholic Church allows no image of any sort, material or immaterial, no dogmatic symbol, no rite, no sacrament, no Saint, not even the Blessed Virgin herself, to come between the soul and its Creator. It is face to face, solus cum solo, in all matters between man and his God. He alone creates; He alone has redeemed; before His awful eyes we go in death; in the vision of Him is our eternal beatitude" (Apol.) I hope this clarifies for you what the Church does not teach about Mary.

When you asked me what Mary's role in salvation was, I responded by saying:
In God's plan of salvation Mary was the mother of God the Son.

No other person can claim such stature, no prophet or patriarch comes close to holding such a significant role in the history of our salvation, no other woman was prophesied about in the Old Testament, no other human became a literal ark for the New Covenant of God and man, no other woman has been called "blessed" by every generation of Christians since Christ, and no other mortal creature circumscribed the Incomprehensible Deity in her womb. She is the mother of our Creator, the mother of our Savior, the mother of our Redeemer. She is unique in salvation history, she is the new Eve, she is the first of woman in God's plan for the restoration and uplifting of human nature. Do you see how amazing this is? God himself chose her for Himself in a way no other person has been chosen by Him.

In brief, that's Mary's role in salvation history.
You were not convinced I had fairly represented the Catholic doctrine and replied:
Regarding Mary's role in God's plan for salvation, you covered very basic, historical elements that we can all agree was very wonderful and through which she was very blessed. Is there maybe more of the Catholic posture on Mary's ongoing contribution and involvement that you want to address? You seem to have morphed the "is" of my question into a "was" and (not-so-)neatly swept the whole point of my question under the rug.
I begin by saying that I wrote only what came first to my mind; there was no delibrate attempt to ignore or overlook any part of the doctrine. But before I address your question I have to say something about the levels of theological certainty found within the Church. For that purpose I will quote from Fr. Ott's Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma:

1. The highest degree of certainty appertains to the immediately revealed truths. The belief due to them is based on the authority of God Revealing (fides divina), and if the Church, through its teaching, vouches for the fact that a truth is contained in Revelation, one’s certainty is then also based on the authority of the Infallible Teaching Authority of the Church (fides catholica). If Truths are defined by a solemn judgment of faith (definition) of the Pope or of a General Council, they are “de fide definita.”

2. Catholic truths or Church doctrines, on which the infallible Teaching Authority of the Church has finally decided, are to be accepted with a faith which is based on the sole authority of the Church (fides ecclesiastica). These truths are as infallibly certain as dogmas proper.

3. A Teaching proximate to Faith (sententia fidei proxima) is a doctrine, which is regarded by theologians generally as a truth of Revelation, but which has not yet been finally promulgated as such by the Church.

4. A Teaching pertaining to the Faith, i.e., theologically certain (sententia ad fidem pertinens, i.e., theologice certa) is a doctrine, on which the Teaching Authority of the Church has not yet finally pronounced, but whose truth is guaranteed by its intrinsic connection with the doctrine of revelation (theological conclusions).

5. Common Teaching (sententia communis) is doctrine, which in itself belongs to the field of the free opinions, but which is accepted by theologians generally.

6. Theological opinions of lesser grades of certainty are called probable, more probable, well-founded (sententia probabilis, probabilior, bene fundata). Those which are regarded as being in agreement with the consciousness of Faith of the Church are called pious opinions (sententia pia). The least degree of certainty is possessed by the tolerated opinion (opinion tolerata), which is only weakly founded, but which is tolerated by the Church.

With regard to the doctrinal teaching of the Church it must be well noted that not all the assertions of the Teaching Authority of the Church on questions of Faith and morals are infallible and consequently irrevocable. Only those are infallible which emanate from General Councils representing the whole episcopate, and the Papal Decisions Ex Cathedra (cf. D 1839). The ordinary and usual form of the Papal teaching activity is not infallible. Further, the decisions of the Roman Congregations (Holy Office, Bible Commission) are not infallible. Nevertheless normally they are to be accepted with an inner assent which is based on the high supernatural authority of the Holy See (assensus internus supernaturalis, assensus religiosus). The so-called “silentium obsequiosum,” that is “reverent silence,” does not generally suffice. By way of exception, the obligation of inner agreement may cease if a competent expert, after a renewed scientific investigation of all grounds, arrives at the positive conviction that the decision rests on an error.
While I already know you think the Church has no infallible authority (if any authority at all), this is how a Catholic understands the various levels of certainty within the Church. For example, that God our Creator exists can be known with certainty by the natural light of reason from created things is an example of 1 and 2 (de fide): it is both in Scripture (Wis. 13:1-9, Rom. 1:20, Rom. 2:14ff.) and solemnly defined by the First Vatican Council.

Coming to your question of Mary, then, Ott says:

Mary is designated mediatrix of all graces in a double sense:

1. Mary gave the Redeemer, the Source of all graces, to the world, and in this way she is the channel of all graces. (Sent. certa.)
2. Since Mary's Assumption into Heaven no grace is conferred on man without her actual intercessory cooperation. (Sent. pia et probabilis)

The idea that all grace continues to come through Mary's intercession is not certain teaching of the Church (sent. certa) but only a pious and probable opinion (sent. pia et probabilis). Consequently, I cannot defend it as I would defend an infallible teaching. As Canon Law says, "No doctrine is understood to be infallibly defined unless this is manifestly demonstrated" (CIC 749 §3). And no pope or council has infallibly defined this, nor is there a consensus of theologians on this matter.

As for myself, I can say without hesitation that I have received some grace through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin. However, if pressed with the question, "Has all grace come to you through the prayers of the Blessed Virgin?" I would say that, while it is possible, I can think of no reason to say that every grace I have received has come through the prayers of the Blessed Mother. Nor am I - as I have shown above - defective in the Catholic faith for believing this.

Peace, etc.

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