Is Mary Higher than the Angels?

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When praying for intercession, or speaking about creatures, we place Mary right after Jesus.
Does this make her higher than the angels?

What about the Psalm and the book of Hebrews which says that Jesus was made lower than the angels?

God bless, pax Christi,
Juan J.
 
When praying for intercession, or speaking about creatures, we place Mary right after Jesus.
Does this make her higher than the angels?

What about the Psalm and the book of Hebrews which says that Jesus was made lower than the angels?

God bless, pax Christi,
Juan J.
 
J1Priest said:
…we place Mary right after Jesus.
Does this make her higher than the angels?

What about the Psalm and the book of Hebrews which says that Jesus was made lower than the angels?
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Oooh, good question! I haven’t heard of it before. The Book of Hebrews seems to be talking about His Human nature, because the Human nature was lower than the angelic nature. So when Jesus took on a human nature, He took on a nature that was lower than theirs. But He was still greater in His divine nature.
When we speak of Mary as “greater” than the angels, though, I don’t think we’re talking about her nature. She has a human nature, so she and Jesus - and every other human - were equal in nature in that sense. But Mary is “greater” than the angels only because she has been exalted to a higher place.
It’s not a question of nature; she is just honored and praised more than them. But Jesus is even greater than Mary in that sense, because He is the only Person with a human nature Who we worship.
So, no, we do not place Mary higher than Jesus by saying she is greater than the angels. Hebrews was talking about Him taking on a human nature, and we merely mean she is praised higher than the angels. The two phrases, though identical in wording, have totally different contexts. One is about fundamental natures; the other is about praise and honor.
 
J1Priest said:
When praying for intercession, or speaking about creatures, we place Mary right after Jesus.
Does this make her higher than the angels?

What about the Psalm and the book of Hebrews which says that Jesus was made lower than the angels?

God bless, pax Christi,
Juan J.
Click to expand...
Yes, Mary is above the angels, since she is Queen of Heaven and Mediatrix of even the graces received by angels. As the Mother of God, she is above even the pure and holy angels.

Jesus was made lower than the angels in the sense that He became Incarnate, uniting his Divine Nature to His human nature, and human nature is lower than angelic nature. Human nature includes matter, which is a lower state of being than spirit, and so human nature is less than angelic nature.

It is said that the angels were tested by being shown Christ on the Cross and by being asked to worship him. Those who refused, out of pride because angelic nature is greater than human nature, fell from grace and became devils.
 
I seem to remember Jesus saying in the gospel that we (humans) will judge the angles when we get to heaven. I’ll have to look it up but I suspect it’s in Matthew.

M
 
Note that she is frequently referred to as Queen of Angels (e.g. That is the full name of Los Angeles).
 
I think this is one of Satan’s biggest gripes about Mary. She holds the spot he wanted.
 
Some theologians have speculated that the reason for Satan and the bad angels’ rebellion was the revelation to them of Jesus as man. They could not abide the thought of having to worship God in human form.
 
Firstly, the story of Lucifer rebelling is probably not historically accurate, but rather a story meant to teach us not to blaspheme.

In Catholic school, I learned that humans are higher than the angels.

Bear in mind that people in Biblical times did not have as accurate a worldview as we have today. They were very superstitious and were quick to associate unrelated things with each other. They believed sickness/disease were punishments for sin, and that natural disasters were also punishments for upsetting God. Today, we know this is not the case.
 
vrlobo88 said:
Firstly, the story of Lucifer rebelling is probably not historically accurate, but rather a story meant to teach us not to blaspheme.

In Catholic school, I learned that humans are higher than the angels.

Bear in mind that people in Biblical times did not have as accurate a worldview as we have today. They were very superstitious and were quick to associate unrelated things with each other. They believed sickness/disease were punishments for sin, and that natural disasters were also punishments for upsetting God. Today, we know this is not the case.
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Now you might be in for a **** of a surprise. :eek:
 
I’m not sure…I do know that in Islam, God is said to have made angels bow to Adam, in a way asserting the superiority of humans to angels (17:61-62).

Most theologians do assert that angels are superior in intellect to humans. However, the way I see it, we have free will and they don’t.
 
Angels certainly have free will. Otherwise, some could not have sinned, becoming devils, and the others could not love, serving God as holy angels.

The story of the rebellion of the angels was held by Aquinas, as was the view that angels are higher than humans.

God does punish sinners, in this life and in the next.
 
trustinyou said:
Didnt St.Paul say somewhere in his letters,that we are higher than the angels?
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[1 Corinthians 6]
{6:1} How is it that anyone of you, having a dispute against another, would dare to be judged before the iniquitous, and not before the saints?
{6:2} Or do you not know that the saints from this age shall judge it? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you unworthy, then, to judge even the smallest matters?
{6:3} Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more the things of this age?

I think this refers to fallen angels being judged by the saints of the Church. It does not imply that human nature is greater than the nature of holy angels.
 
Yes, she is. She is the greatest of all creatures (greatest in honor and position, not in inherent worth or dignity - we are all infinitely precious to God).

In fact, after the Incarnation and Redemption, humanity is exalted higher than the angels. This is a quote from popular and brilliant Catholic author Peter Kreeft (who is entirely orthodox and honest - I can assure this because I know him personally):

“The very inner life of God,God’s mind, is proper to God alone, but Christians believe God - incredibly - has chosen to share it with men through Christ the God-Man, who has both human life and divine life. Thus, if they [humans] accept this gift of being adopted into God’s family and becoming Christ’s brothers, men are exalted even above angels! Angels have only angel life, which is superhuman but subdivine. But the blessed, the saved, those humans who go to heaven, have human and divine live, like Christ. They become little Christs - very little Christs, yet very little Christs.” This is taken from his book Angels and Demons (NOT like the Dan Brown book!)
 
J1Priest said:
When praying for intercession, or speaking about creatures, we place Mary right after Jesus.
Does this make her higher than the angels?

What about the Psalm and the book of Hebrews which says that Jesus was made lower than the angels?

God bless, pax Christi,
Juan J.
Click to expand...
Yes, Mary is greater than the angels. According to Byzantine Spirituality, she is “more honorable than the Cherubim, incomparably more glorious than the Seraphim.”

But this does not mean she is a goddess or to be worshipped. She is the greatest creature God has made. But she is human, and she was saved by by God in view of the future merits of Christ. Mary said “My spirit exults in God my Saviour.”

This does not contradict the passages in Psalm 8 and the Epistle to the Hebrews, for those passages are speaking of Christ’s humble incarnation as a human being. The Scripture is not saying that the Eternal Son of God, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity is lower than the Angels.
 
Found it!

1Cor 6:3 (Douay) Know you not that we shall judge angels? how much more things of this world?

So scripture says we are above the angels once we’re in heaven.

M
 
Ron_Conte said:
[1 Corinthians 6]
{6:1} How is it that anyone of you, having a dispute against another, would dare to be judged before the iniquitous, and not before the saints?
{6:2} Or do you not know that the saints from this age shall judge it? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you unworthy, then, to judge even the smallest matters?
{6:3} Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more the things of this age?

I think this refers to fallen angels being judged by the saints of the Church. It does not imply that human nature is greater than the nature of holy angels.
Click to expand...
I agree. Certainly any of us can through cooperation with the grace of God, become higher morally than the fallen angels. But our human nature is of an ontologically lower order than the angelic nature.
 
I am not sure about that, Jim. Perhaps in our fallen state, we are lower, but we will be deified, become like God. (2 Peter 1.4). St. John says, “Dearly beloved, we are now the sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. We know, that, when he shall appear, we shall be like to him: because we shall see him as he is. 3 And every one that hath this hope in him, sanctifieth himself, as he also is holy.” 1 John 3.2
 
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