December 8 is the feast of the Immaculate Conception: could Mary have been born without sin? What does Scripture say? If we look at any of our evangelist friends, we can see Mary’s presence throughout Jesus’ life, from the Annunciation to the Ascension, and even as he waits for the Spirit.
We speak of Mary’s virginity, of her being “full of grace” at the Annunciation, but not of her immaculate conception. However, as the Church discovers more about who Jesus is and unites us in a common faith in the “Christ of History”, it brings together, in “definitions”, what constitutes the beauty of our faith in Him, but also, by “communicating vessels”, the beauty and greatness of this humble woman from Palestine. By speaking of Jesus, his humanity and his divinity, one or other of which could be contested by divisive currents – and there were many others – the reflection of the early Church led to the emergence of our Creed, which we profess every Sunday.
One of them, logically stated, was: if Jesus is the Son of God, then Mary is the mother of God. And, if we were to take this a step further, we could deduce that she was not affected by sin because of her personal and particular vocation. Not because of some personal merit, but because of God’s free gift to the wearer.
What’s striking here is the ability God gives man to think for himself, and using his intelligence, enlightened by the Spirit, to come to conclusions about truths that are beyond himself. In fact, there’s no way man could have come up with such a “crazy” dogma on his own, without looking like a fool himself. It is therefore the fruit of an intelligence at the service of Truth, of a pooling of ideas, of a reflection that takes place over time and, above all, that goes beyond the origins of those who brought this “revelation” to its apogee. So we are heirs!
For us Catholics, Mary bears in her being what she will bear in her flesh: the accomplishment of the work of Salvation. By anticipation, already inscribed in the redemption offered by the Incarnation, Mary will live a “new life”, becoming without knowing it, the first fruits of a new era in which the sin of the origins will be entirely annihilated. Today, therefore, she is aware of the grace she has received, but she lives it for the Church that we all are together. As a missionary, she invites us to let Christ accomplish in us our full deliverance, while our spiritual life lies between an “already” and a “not yet”. We are bearers of a progressive grace where the final goal is our own illumination in the heart of God.
P. François Lapointe omv, shrine rector
