Why do Catholics pray to Mary more than Jesus?

[tuscany]

**The following is what I heard was the reason JPII thanked Our Blessed Mother for saving him the day he was shot.

"…This happened on May 13, 1981. Pope John Paul II was shot as he arrived in St. Peter’s Square to speak to the people who had gathered there. When he was shot, he was holding the rosary, which he always carried. When he fell to the ground, out of nowhere, a woman rushed to his side and embraced him. A picture of this was said to have been taken by one of the gathered people who was busy taking Pope’s pics with his camera. The woman vanished as quickly as she appeared.

The gunman was apprehended in the square and sentenced to life in prison. The pope was critically wounded but survived after surgery and a long recovery. The surprising fact is that all the bullets passed just past his vital internal organs. When he recovered finally, the first thing Pope asked for was his rosary. When he got it in his hands, he said that he felt Mother Mary directing the bullets’ path through him. John Paul II was always in the habit of praying the rosary regularly and he had once said, “The best prayer I like is the Rosary”.

Joaquin Navarro Valls, who is the one spokesman from The Vatican, said that they made a lot of studies for years of this incredible picture and of course about the quality of the developing of the picture because when it was developed nobody could see very well because the image was not clear. Finally, and after so many controls and being looking and checking by all the experts in photography (around the world), they decided that there were no tricks in it and today they give us this beautiful gift from our Mother of God. In it you can see the Mother of God holding the critically wounded John Paul II in her arms.

Read more at Mother Mary Holding John Paul II In Her Arms When He Was Shot…" **

 

[Michael57]

It seams that Catholics almost always pray to Mary for intercession. I get that the intercession of Mary and the Saints is ok, but do catholics every just pray to Jesus. I personally never have prey for intervession it feels wired. In Catholicism whenever you see or hear anything about Jesus, Mary is also mentioned; and in my opinion she is given more attention than Jesus. I think it is fine to occasionally pray and honor her, but the amount of attention she is given seems like a little much. Especially since she was only honored in the bible a couple of times.

Wow. I never looked at it in terms of quantity.

One of the first teachings of the Church that I still had questions about after I went through RCIA was, why all this prayer for the intercession of Mary? Like you, I wasn’t convinced of the need.

Then I started looking at the Catholic teaching about Mary and her unique role in human history and the history of the Church.

Boy, was I surprised!

In less than a month, I was amazed at how right the Church was about Mary, and how wrong I was to not rely on this great saint of the Church, and Theotokos, Mother of God.

Since then I have worn the color off of my First Communion Rosary (a gift from my sponsor). And have learned the Rosary in English and Latin. Great for self discipline, and meditation.

The way I heard it once was: If you’re a mechanic and have a well stocked tool chest to work with, why would you just use a hammer for every task? Wouldn’t you also use a wrench? A screw driver? Pliers? Vice grips? Then why not use prayer the same way and ask for the intercession of ALL the Saints? Especially the Mother of Jesus?

And Welcome!

 

[Michael57]

In hierarchical terms, Mary is higher than us, but infinitely lower than Christ.

Since the ancients understood their lowlinness in relation to God much better than we do, they naturally were attracted to the mother, whereby Christ could be accessed through the compassion of the mother. Men knew they were lowly and unworthy. Mary was a human being, sharing in our lowliness. Yet she was also the Mother of God, and she had her son’s ear! Thus, many were instinctively drawn to approach God through His mother.

Today, man is arrogant. We don’t understand our own unworthiness in relation to God. Thus, for many, praying through Mary to Christ is not intuitive. But to men of the 1st and 2nd centuries, and later, it was just common sense. This Tradition has been handed on for 200 years. But that is why Protestants don’t don’t “get it”, because their theology and spiritual practices have their roots in the 15th century, rather than in the ancient Traditions of The Church.

Always glad to hear from you, Father. Well put.

 

[RedFox0456]

There are some very good Catholic texts on the subject of Mary, ranging in depth/detail. They explain, for instance, how some of the prayers came about (most notably the Hail Mary, Rosary, Hail Holy Queen), and why we believe, theologically, that some of these prayers for intercession are particularly well received in Heaven and by God. I am glad you are coming into things with an open mind, and just encourage you to read, reflect, and pray!

 

[FrStevenJones]

In hierarchical terms, Mary (human) is higher than us, but infinitely lower than Christ (God and man).

Since the ancients understood their lowlinness in relation to God much better than we do, they naturally were attracted to the 100% human mother, whereby Christ could be accessed through her compassion and lowliness. Men knew they were lowly and unworthy. Mary was a human being, sharing in our lowliness. Yet she was also the Mother of God, and she had her son’s ear! Thus, many were instinctively drawn to approach God through His mother.

Today, man is arrogant. We don’t understand our own unworthiness in relation to God. Thus, for many, praying through Mary to Christ is not intuitive. But to men of the 1st and 2nd centuries, and later, it was just common sense. This Tradition has been handed on for 200 years. But that is why Protestants don’t don’t “get it”, because their theology and spiritual practices have their roots in the 15th century, rather than in the ancient Traditions of The Church.

Oops, that should say “2000 years”, rather than " 200 years"!

 

[pablope]

It seams that Catholics almost always pray to Mary for intercession. I get that the intercession of Mary and the Saints is ok, but do catholics every just pray to Jesus. I personally never have prey for intervession it feels wired. In Catholicism whenever you see or hear anything about Jesus, Mary is also mentioned; and in my opinion she is given more attention than Jesus. I think it is fine to occasionally pray and honor her, but the amount of attention she is given seems like a little much. Especially since she was only honored in the bible a couple of times.

Are you up for a lot of reading?

chnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/mary.pdf

And a book recommendation: Hail Holy Queen by Scott Hahn. I suggest to check your local library as it may be available for you to borrow.

but do catholics every just pray to Jesus.

Yes, absolutely. In every catholic parish around the world, a Mass is said everyday…as Jesus instructed in the Last Supper…to do this in memory of Him.

The Mass is the highest form of prayer.

Another distinction I would like to inform you is what is prayer to a catholic. Prayer is essentially, in its old meaning…is to ask, to make a plea…to ask for an intercession, to ask for help…so when a catholic does this, this is basically what he is asking.

Why to Mary most of the time? Because Mary is the greatest saint and example of virtue that we know of.

Prayer, to a protestant, has taken on to mean worship, when the next generation of Reformers threw out their catholic roots.

Well…hopefully, this can get you started.

 

[pablope]

Thank you that did answer most of my question. Though I still don’t understand why she is prayed to more than Jesus and seems to come before Jesus. For example, the pope that got shot thanked Mary for his recovery, not Jesus. That just doesn’t seem right to me. Jesus shouldn’t have to share his glory with anyone. If I wanted to pray to someone or thank somebody it would alway be Jesus.

From the conversion story of Scott Hahn:

A friend of mine who had heard I was thinking about the Catholic Church called up one day and said: “Do you worship Mary like those Catholics do?” I said, “They don’t worship Mary; they honor Mary.” “Well, what’s the difference?” I said, “Let me explain. When Christ accepted the call from His Father to become a man, He accepted the responsibility to obey the law, the moral law which is summarized in the Ten Commandments. There’s a commandment which reads, ‘Honor your father and mother.’” I said, “Chris, in the original Hebrew, that word “honor,” kaboda, that Hebrew word means to glorify, to bestow whatever glory and honor you have upon your father and mother. Christ fulfilled that law more perfectly than any human by bestowing His glory upon His heavenly Father and by taking His own divine glory and honoring His Mother with it. All we do in the rosary, Chris, is to imitate Christ who honors His Mother with His own glory. We honor her with Christ’s glory.”

 

[Cak7711]

First, what happens to us on a daily bases is Protestants come on this forum and “try” to bait and trap Catholics with their “superior” knowledge on scripture and Catholicism.
Another red flag is the fact that you changed your religion from just Protestant to protestant/catholic within an hour. (Also, the bad spelling on big words that are NOT typo’s.) You have to understand, this question is posted several times a week. The best advice I got when I first started this forum is search the topic first. Especially in the Apologist forum. My Bad if I have you pegged wrong. Sorry, I am a staunch Catholic and have been burned by “curious” protestants.

That’s why I change my religion from Protestant to include catholic, to prevent confusion.

 

[po18guy]

That’s why I change my religion from Protestant to include catholic, to prevent confusion.

Consider that the greatest prayer of the entire Catholic Church is the mass itself.

Q. How many times during mass do you think Mary is mentioned?

12 times?
7 times?
3 times?
1 time?

A. Once.

At the beginning of mass, when we publicly confess our sins during the penitential rite, we ask Blessed Mary, ever virgin, in combination with all of the angels and Saints, and each of our brothers and sisters (yes, you are included) to pray for us to the Lord, our God.

Doesn’t sound to me like it is being overdone.

 

[Monkey1976]

Consider that the greatest prayer of the entire Catholic Church is the mass itself.

Q. How many times during mass do you think Mary is mentioned?

12 times?
7 times?
3 times?
1 time?

A. Once.

At the beginning of mass, when we publicly confess our sins during the penitential rite, we ask Blessed Mary, ever virgin, in combination with all of the angels and Saints, and each of our brothers and sisters (yes, you are included) to pray for us to the Lord, our God.

Doesn’t sound to me like it is being overdone.

Twice - she’s mentioned in the Canon, too.

 

[Randy_Carson]

It seams that Catholics almost always pray to Mary for intercession. I get that the intercession of Mary and the Saints is ok, but do catholics every just pray to Jesus. I personally never have prey for intervession it feels wired. In Catholicism whenever you see or hear anything about Jesus, Mary is also mentioned; and in my opinion she is given more attention than Jesus. I think it is fine to occasionally pray and honor her, but the amount of attention she is given seems like a little much. Especially since she was only honored in the bible a couple of times.

I/m not sure why you have this impression, but I don’t think many if any Catholics spend more time on Mary than they do on Jesus. Perhaps because non-Catholics RARELY think of Mary, ANY mention of her by Catholics seems like a lot by comparison.

In the liturgy of the mass for example, Mary is mentioned three times (along with all the angels and saints) as we ask them to pray for us. But the Eucharistic prayer itself is being offered to Jesus.

If you spend a few Sundays at mass, you will see this for yourself, and I think you will be less worried about excessive Marian devotion.

 

[bben15]

This is just fundamentalist propaganda. We pray more to Jesus than we do to the saints.

I remember when I was a Lutheran, my pastor would tell me how Catholics and Orthodox practice idolatry and worship saints. It’s good to now know that those were lies.

We ask the saints to pray for us. It’s no different that asking a friend to pray for you. It was hard for me to grasp, but I eventually got it, and now, I have a special devotion to Our Lady.

 

[Michael57]

Thanx guys, I think you fully answered all of my questions. Being raised Protestant makes many Catholic beliefs hard to grasp. Which is why I think my recent understanding of Catholicism is a sign from God. One night I was trying to decide to stay Protestant, become catholic, or become orthodox. I prayed for guidance and for God to show me which way was right. Literally the next day and the next few weeks I had a new understanding of Catholicism. I looked at things from a different point of view and started agreeing with catholic beliefs that I was convinced were of the devil. This leads me to believe Catholicism is the right church. Though I don’t think I will be praying to Mary for intercession anytime soon, I will honor her like the bible says; in my own way.

All good things in their own time, and as God gives us grace to understand. Peace be with you in your journey. From what you post, I am reminded of my own conversion and journey to Catholicism and the Church.

 

[Michael57]

That’s why I change my religion from Protestant to include catholic, to prevent confusion.

As you are now, once was I. Press on in your journey.

Have you considered going to an RCIA class to learn more about the Catholic faith?

 

[brikar]

Cak7711:

It seams that Catholics almost always pray to Mary for intercession. I get that the intercession of Mary and the Saints is ok, but do catholics every just pray to Jesus. I personally never have prey for intervession it feels wired. In Catholicism whenever you see or hear anything about Jesus, Mary is also mentioned; and in my opinion she is given more attention than Jesus. I think it is fine to occasionally pray and honor her, but the amount of attention she is given seems like a little much. Especially since she was only honored in the bible a couple of times.

When I pray to Mary, Jesus is always the heart of the prayer. I am in love with Jesus Christ. I also desire to love Him more, to pray better, to recognize Christ in the people that I interact with. I ask Mary to go to her son on my behalf. I tell her I want to love Him the way you do. She is NOT on the same level as God, but she is closer to Him than I am. I want to get there. If you are going to ask someone to pray for you, there is no better choice.

Posted from Catholic.com App for Android

 

[Cak7711]

Thanks guys for your answers. I have recently got my first Rosary and plan on putting it to good use.

 

[pablope]

Thanks guys for your answers. I have recently got my first Rosary and plan on putting it to good use.

:extrahappy:

Do you have a Rosary guide handy already? There are also apps available.

 

[Ion]

Thanks guys for your answers. I have recently got my first Rosary and plan on putting it to good use.

The Orthodox mass has many prayers for intercession and hymns dedicated to Holy Virgin Mary. I supose there was a time when the Catholic mass and Orthodox mass were very similar. Now the Catholic mass is shorter in length and doesn’t have those hymns and prayers. I think the fact that people pray the Holy Rosay somehow compensate. Orthodox do not pray the Holy Rosary.

 

[Cak7711]

:extrahappy:

Do you have a Rosary guide handy already? There are also apps available.

Yes I do, I found a good website called rosary-center.org. It has everything you need, including all the mysteries.

 

[bcuster]

Well that didn’t answer my question. Also I am more Catholic than Protestant for your information. The Mary thing is just one of the things that is keeping my foot in the Protestant door. Also why don’t you educate me and try to bring me closer to understanding catholic beliefs rather than bashing my Protestant roots. I wasn’t being coy, I am trying to better understand this issue and I came to this website and forum to learn not be disrespected. It is catholics like you that push me closer to Protestantism than Catholicism. I would apresiate it if you would either answer my question or not post at all.

Please forgive us for our lack of patience at times. This is one of the questions that Catholics are asked a lot. I am a cradle Catholic but my mom was Episcopalian when I was born. She converted to Catholicism, had a devotion to Mary, but did not have the type of devotion many Catholics do to Mary. Sometimes it seems that certain people do go to Mary more than they do to Jesus. My mother-in-law had what I call a “tender devotion” to the Blessed Virgin Mary. She watched my children when they were young and prayed the Hail Mary with them before naptime. Before going to sleep she had them kiss a crucifix. One day when my daughter skinned her knee, I suggested we pray to Jesus to ask his help with healing. My sweet daughter said, “Mama, let’s pray to Mary because Jesus is dead.” This floored me. I explained to her that Jesus was very much alive. He rose from the dead. Fortunately she believed me. But I could understand how she had gotten the notion.

It is the same way that we Catholics unknowingly give that impression to others. What all Catholics who are devoted to Mary need to understand is that whether we go to Mary for intercession or to Jesus directly, we are being lead to Jesus. Mary points to Jesus. As in Cana, she says to us, “Do whatever he tells you.” The Hail Mary is really about Jesus. It is the prayer of the Incarnation. First the words of the Angel to Mary. Then the words of Elizabeth to Mary. All the focus leads to Jesus, the fruit of Mary’s womb. Then we ask our Mother to pray for us now and at the hour of our death. The Rosary prayer is a way to meditate on the events in the Life of Jesus. I like to think of the Rosary as a mother’s picture album. If Mary had a picture album, she could show us pictures Jesus’s early life, Jesus’s early ministry, Jesus’s last days, and Jesus’s resurrection.

I hope this does help a little. God bless you on your spiritual journey!