What would have happened if Mary had refused being God's Mother?

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anhphan

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Could she refuse it? Or God did predestinate her to be God’s Mother so she couldn’t refuse?
 
Mary had free will. She was born without sin, and therefore lacked the kind of tendency toward sin that the rest of us have, but she still could have decided to commit actual sin (thus disqualifying her from being the Mother of God), and she could have decided to say no at the Annunciation.

God, however, is omniscient and knew that Mary would not sin, and that Mary would say yes. But the fact that God knows what we will do does not mean we are predestined to do it. We still have free will. We still must choose. And it is the same with Mary.

God bless.
 
We will never really know and you can consider that a good thing.
 
I posted the below a few weeks ago on another thread that might fit well here…

Continuing the discussion from Was Mary in a Position to Choose?:
adf417 said:
As Christians we speak and profess of the virgin Mary’s “yes”, as one of the most joyous events in our lives and rightfully so as it is certainly a pivotal point in our faith. Without her “yes” our Lord Jesus Christ would not have been born - or would He? Mary’s “yes” shows us how our cooperation with the Holy Spirit is the means in which God’s will is done and is a mirror for our own “yes” to God’s call in the things he ask of us.

The first step is to acknowledge the reality of Mary having free will, as we do, to have said “no”. This acknowledgement is what makes her “yes” so wonderful and special. If she could not have been able to say “no”, her “yes” becomes less wonderful or robotic and detaches her from her humanity. Im not sure many people can accept this thought of Mary not saying “yes”. Since the church teaches, and we profess, she is the immaculate conception, this may bring some to conclude she was incapable of saying “no” and I think this conclusion may cloud the issue for those that hold this view. If ultimately Mary did not have free will to have been able to say “no” this writing can end here and any further assertions would be frivolous.

Next, if Mary had said ”no” we know this does not in any way change God’s sovereign plan for the salvation of humanity as God is omnipotent and omniscient. ccc 268-278

Now if God’s plan for salvation is/was inevitable and Mary could have said “no” it is reasonable to conclude, going forward, God would simply accept Mary’s “no” and moved on as this is what God does with us when we fail to do His will. Jesus calls all of us to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect but understands when we are not and His plan moves on even when we are not perfect. For God to “move on” from here would simply be for God to generate another immaculate conception and wait for her to say “yes”. If yes, He sees His plan being fulfilled, if “no” He generates yet another immaculate conception and so on.

From this point is would be reasonable to conclude that God’s plan could have been in play from a much earlier time than the current or orthodox immaculate conception as we know it, noting once Mary said her “yes” there would be no need from that point forward to continue generating another immaculate conception. So now let us consider from that point backwards. If Mary could have said “no” and God’s plan is inevitable, and moving forward He could/would have generated another immaculate conception, it is reasonable to conclude there could have been previous or proto-immaculate conception - resulting in previous “no’s”.

Thoughts???
Peace!!!
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MaryEstelle2 said:
We will never really know and you can consider that a good thing.
Click to expand...
Indeed. Throughout C.S. Lewis’ seven Chronicles of Narnia, he several times has Aslan, the Christ-figure of the books, say in response to such questions, ‘No one is ever told what would have happened’. Definitely a good thing. It is a waste of time and intellectual power to indulge in such fruitless speculation.
 
What the heck is it with the devil’s workshop of hypothetical questions?

Your question is impossible. Period. Her will was so completely formed in accord with God’s that to deviate from it was not possible. She retained free will, but would not/could not sin.

“Full of grace”

It has meaning.
 
po18guy said:
What the heck is it with the devil’s workshop of hypothetical questions?

Your question is impossible. Period. Her will was so completely formed in accord with God’s that to deviate from it was not possible. She retained free will, but would not/could not sin.

“Full of grace”

It has meaning.
Click to expand...
Please try to be nice by avoiding saying “the heck”.
 
She would not have had to marry a carpenter over twice her age.
 
H**k yeah, He did! 😆

First, Rahab the harlot, who risked her life to allow spies sent by Joshua to enter Jericho and obtain crucial information for a later attack against the king. She hid the spies, saving their lives so that they could report back to Joshua, Moses’ chosen successor. Joshua later saved her life, and that of her father’s household for the great favor she had done. See Joshua 2.

Hannah and Judith are but two examples in the scriptures of strong women who responded to God’s call. Both are “types” of Mary. Prototypes, if you will.

In 1 Samuel, Hannah was barren and prayed fervently for a son - whom she promised to dedicate to God if He answered her payer. She conceived and bore Samuel, giving him to Eli (Heli) to live in the temple. 1 Samuel 2 records Hannah’s canticle of praise (very similar to Mary’s Magnificat).

Judith, a widow, took singular action which liberated the Hebrews from either a slow death to dehydration or slavery to the Assyrian army. She decapitated Holofernes, the Assyrian general and caused his army to flee in terror. Afterward, Uzziah said of her: “O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High God above all women on earth” Judith 13:18 - a foreshadowing of Gabriel’s words to Mary. Judith also sang a canticle of praise to God (Judith 16).

Yes, God has chosen strong women to accomplish His will.
 
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