"Mary, Did You Know?" -- theologically correct?

[Gertabelle]

Please forgive me. I know this has been addressed before on CAF, but after getting 1,000 hits on a search for the old thread, I gave up and decided to just ask.

I don’t like this song – just not my style honestly – but I know some people said the lyrics are not theologically correct, specifically the ones in red. Can someone please help me with information on whether they are or aren’t, and why (of course )? One of the music groups at my parish will be singing this song before mass on Christmas Eve, and aside from asthetic issues (I am such a music snob ), I just want to make sure we’re not perpetuating heresy.

Thanks for any help all y’all can give me.

Gertie

“Mary Did You Know”

[Originally written by Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene]

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would one day walk on water?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has come to make you new?
This Child that you delivered will soon deliver you.

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will give sight to a blind man?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy will calm the storm with His hand?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little Baby you kissed the face of God?

Mary did you know… Ooo Ooo Ooo

The blind will see.
The deaf will hear.
The dead will live again.
The lame will leap.
The dumb will speak
The praises of The Lamb.

Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary, did you know
that your Baby Boy would one day rule the nations?
Did you know
that your Baby Boy is heaven’s perfect Lamb?
The sleeping Child you’re holding is the Great, I Am.

 

[Tezza]

hahaha…the people in my choir call me the Catholic police. I brought up this issue as well.

Immaculate Conception…she was already saved. The merit of Christ’s death and resurrection was applied to her prior to being touched by sin. For us, it’s after.

So, yeah, not theologically accurate.

I personally like the song (theological inaccuracies aside), just not for Mass.

 

[Katrn]

I’m a convert,like the song, but my sponsor…not so much. She belives Mary already knew everything to come. However My understanding of the Immaculate Conception…and I’m probably wrong, is that Mary was delivered from sin pretty much retroactivley, that it wasn’t “her” parents that made it so she was conceived without sin, but rather Jesus delivering her from sin for the responsiblity of bringing the savior into the world. So if the author had my young understanding, maybe it made sense to that person. I don’t think it was written out of disrespect…Like I said, this is what my understanding is, very likely wrong.

 

[Tezza]

I’m a convert,like the song, but my sponsor…not so much. ** She belives Mary already knew everything to come.** However My understanding of the Immaculate Conception…and I’m probably wrong, is that Mary was delivered from sin pretty much retroactivley, that it wasn’t “her” parents that made it so she was conceived without sin, but rather Jesus delivering her from sin for the responsiblity of bringing the savior into the world. So if the author had my young understanding, maybe it made sense to that person. I don’t think it was written out of disrespect…Like I said, this is what my understanding is, very likely wrong.

She blieves Mary knew everything to come? That’s news to me, and I’m a cradle Catholic. Indeed, you’re understanding is much more accurate. Since Mary was the “new Eve” she was in the same state of grace as the first Eve.
She was the yes to Eve’s no.

I don’t think they were being disrespectful either. Why would we expect a non-Catholic songwriter to know about or believe in the Immaculate Conception? The issue becomes when the song is used in liturgy.:tsktsk:

Happy Advent!
Teri

 

[Trustful]

That is absolutely funny because I was thinking of the same yesterday, the whole day. I think, it is theologically correct. Mary received the gift of salvation before hand but without Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, that gift could not be given.

Click here Mary did you know?

 

[kimmielittle]

Hiyas
**

Did you know
that your Baby Boy has come to make you new?
This Child that you delivered will soon deliver you.

**

But Jesus did make her new. if it wasn’t for His birth??? if it wasn’t for his death?
If it wasn’t for his Resurrection…Blessed Mary wouldn’t have received this Grace.

All was needed

 

[Tantum_ergo]

But the argument might also be made that it could (and to me, it does, but I could be wrong) appear that the writer is saying that Mary’s ‘being made new’ only comes with the birth of the Child. . .that before His birth, she is the same ‘old Adam’ flesh (i.e. original sin) as any other person. Further the use of the ‘will soon deliver you’ again appears to imply that Mary’s salvation will occur ‘later’, that it had not already occurred at the moment of her conception.

I’d be a lot more comfortable speaking as a Catholic with lyrics like, “that your Baby Boy will make all people new” and “the child you deliver** is for all a Savior true**.”

 

[Tezza]

But the argument might also be made that it could (and to me, it does, but I could be wrong) appear that the writer is saying that Mary’s ‘being made new’ only comes with the birth of the Child. . .that before His birth, she is the same ‘old Adam’ flesh (i.e. original sin) as any other person. Further the use of the ‘will soon deliver you’ again appears to imply that Mary’s salvation will occur ‘later’, that it had not already occurred at the moment of her conception.

I’d be a lot more comfortable speaking as a Catholic with lyrics like, “that your Baby Boy will make all people new” and “the child you deliver** is for all a Savior true**.”

I think you missed your calling as a lyricist!! Of course, I don’t know you. You could be a lyricist. In that case, great job finding your calling!

 

[Gertabelle]

hahaha…the people in my choir call me the Catholic police. I brought up this issue as well.

Immaculate Conception…she was already saved. The merit of Christ’s death and resurrection was applied to her prior to being touched by sin. For us, it’s after.

So, yeah, not theologically accurate.

I personally like the song (theological inaccuracies aside), just not for Mass.

The Catholic police! That is too good! Of course, assuming you’re dealing with other Catholics, you may be more of the liturgy police, or the doctrine police. But either way, done with charity and grace, pointing out errors before they’re placed before full community at mass is a very, very good thing Our choir did this when our new music liturgist at the parish required all music groups to use mass parts in which the Lamb of God not only added words, but also left out half of the original words!

Anyway, thanks for the help. Immaculate Conception – of course. Now I remember, and hopefully will continue to do so.

God bless you.
Gertie

 

[Gertabelle]

That is absolutely funny because I was thinking of the same yesterday, the whole day. I think, it is theologically correct. Mary received the gift of salvation before hand but without Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, that gift could not be given.

Click here Mary did you know?

Thanks for the link. It’s been awhile since I’ve heard it, and it’s not so bad as a song as I thought. I still don’t like stuff like this before mass, but that’s a topic for another thread.

The fact that non-Catholic musicians are even singing about Mary in a positive way is really quite extraordinary to me.

Thanks again.

Gertie

 

[Gertabelle]

But the argument might also be made that it could (and to me, it does, but I could be wrong) appear that the writer is saying that Mary’s ‘being made new’ only comes with the birth of the Child. . .that before His birth, she is the same ‘old Adam’ flesh (i.e. original sin) as any other person. Further the use of the ‘will soon deliver you’ again appears to imply that Mary’s salvation will occur ‘later’, that it had not already occurred at the moment of her conception.

I’d be a lot more comfortable speaking as a Catholic with lyrics like, “that your Baby Boy will make all people new” and “the child you deliver** is for all a Savior true**.”

I also thought the singing group might just change a couple of words, but couldn’t quite figure it out. Thanks for the suggestions!

Gertie

 

[AmbroseSJ]

So many of the songs we are asked to sing at the Liturgy are just terrible, either musically, or in the lyrics. The lyrics of many so called hymns are uninspiring, insipid, incongruent, or as in this case questionable. Quantity reigns over quality in our hymnals.

 

[Joe_5859]

I’m usually pretty sensitive to heresy, but I don’t really have a problem with this song.

Coming at it with my preconceived Catholic notions firmly in place )), I always took the “will soon deliver you” to be a reference to the Cross, not his birth. Maybe I’m not up on Protestant theology, but I don’t know of anyone that says it is Jesus’ birth that saves us. The word “soon” doesn’t imply it will happen almost immediately. Jesus Second Coming is also “soon”.

Further, though the grace was given to Mary at her Immaculate Conception, her deliverance from sin still comes from the Cross, just like everyone else’s. So, in that sense, the moment of her deliverance (i.e. the Paschal Mystery) is coming soon in time, even though the graces were already applied to her retroactively.

Or maybe I’m just trying too hard. That’s the thing about song lyrics, though. There can often be multiple interpretations. It more than likely was written with the Protestant mindset, but I don’t think the lyrics necessarily exclude a Catholic interpretation.

I do think there are better songs that could be sung prior to Mass, though. There’s so many awesome and beautiful Christmas songs that you could not possibly sing them all to begin with. It doesn’t seem necessary to go with something like this.

 

[MonFrere]

My issue with the song is more with the frame of reference. It’s like the person singing the song is trying to TEACH THE BLESSED VIRGIN – Mary - DON’T YOU KNOW!! x y and z. The lyrics struck me as condescending. Which is typical of the Protestant ethos – they just cannot look UP TO the Blessed Virgin. But to tell her that Jesus is going to be great … THAT they can handle; especially if THEY are the one telling her. This is certainly not a song that is strong in it’s veneration of the Blessed Mother.

MonFrere

 

[DOShea]

The song is merely asking Mary if she knows x, y, and z. She likely answered “yes” to all inquiries. Also, the questions are “Did you know…” The likely person to be asking these questions would be Simeon. The shepherds knew the birth was important in some way; the Magi knew it was the birth of a great King; only Simeon knew for sure (aside from Mary) he was holding the Messiah in his hands at the presentation in the Temple.

 

[kimmielittle]

Hiyas

My friend Simple Soul sent this to me and I got permission to load it.

I hope you enjoy

youtube.com/watch?v=yagwQDcbCPU

 

[DaveBj]

The lyric was written by Mark Lowry, a Christian comedian/singer who was raised as an independent Baptist, so yeah, he wouldn’t know about the Immaculate Conception or Mary’s being redeemed before the fact of Jesus’ death and resurrection. It was written from the point of view of someone asking Mary how much she did know about what was going on.

youtube.com/watch?v=g4S_WnDSzpY&feature=PlayList&p=74A08812E8111FC1&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=35

This is Mark’s explanation of how he came to write the song. Bear in mind that it is a comedy routine. Also, I haven’t been able to get it to go past 2:55. I have watched it before; don’t know what’s wrong now.

youtube.com/watch?v=P0WIJw8JVeU&feature=related

This is what follows the clip above–Mark’s performance of the song, backed by Anthony Burger on piano and singers Guy Penrod (long hair) and David Phelps.

DaveBj

 

[MonFrere]

It was written from the point of view of someone asking Mary how much she did know about what was going on.

This was my point. To a Protestant, in their blithe ignorance, Mary is just another woman, a sinner to boot, who needs to be informed that her Son is going to do x,y and Z. IMO - even though done in ignorance, it is typical Protestant disrespect for the Mother of God.

As one poster has in his signature that Bach is proof of God I submit rather we listen to Bach’s Magnificat, even though written by a mere Lutheran , still captures the overwhelming joy our Blessed Mother felt being the one in all history to called to be the Mother of God.

MonFrere

 

[pnewton]

I’m usually pretty sensitive to heresy, but I don’t really have a problem with this song.

I like your explaination. Sometimes our grammar simply does not fit well with God. Mary was already saved by Jesus (Immaculate Conception) who was soon to be her deliverer. God’s idea of time is not like ours.

I have no problem at all with the song. Yes, it is in the form of questions, but such poetic license is fine. It is not teaching Mary or doubting her. It simply uses that format to comment about Jesus. Jesus is the topic, not Mary.

I would not use it in liturgy, though. I do not think it would sing well in as a hymn, even if it was in someone’s hymnal. It sounds better as a solo. Mass is about corporate worship, not performance.

 

[MonFrere]

Yes, it is in the form of questions, but such poetic license is fine. It is not teaching Mary or doubting her. It simply uses that format to comment about Jesus. Jesus is the topic, not Mary.

Again, this is my point. The author is “using” Mary as the means to express the x y and z of his song. Mary is “just there”. Again, very typical of the Protestant’s view of Mary.

The song, IMO, clearly represents the Protestant perspective of Our Lady. It’s a good song for them – however, there are OODLES of better Marian songs that make this one a very lackluster choice. Protestant Marian songs are no better than their “communion” songs – they simply come up short.

MonFrere