Why only Mary?

[Hellisreal]

Excellent book!

Scott Hahn is a good example since he is a convert and used to argue against Catholic beliefs.

Now, he argues for them.

I also recommend Scott Hahn’s book **“Hail, Holy Queen.” **

amazon.com/Hail-Holy-Queen-Mother-Word/dp/0385501692/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-2866602-2526514?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1178203410&sr=1-1

It’s a quick but highly informative read, and it’s available at most major bookstores, like Borders or Barnes & Nobles (which I know they have tons of in California because I grew up there! ),

 

[Jayda]

O.K. I’m Catholic and I understand the whole veneration of Mary thing **(I mean if you don’t deserve some serious props for bearing and raising God incarnate then what exactly should you get praise for), **but I wonder why we as Catholics do not place half the attention on the 11 Apostles ( Judas excluded for obvious reasons), the prophets, or the Early Church Fathers as we do on Mary?

I mean with all respect these individuals did more for the spreadind of Christrianity as well as Gods devine revelation than Mary was ever recorded as doing…So with that in mind why don’t we have prayers and Masses in their honor?

hola

we do honor the apostles and disciples… we pray for them and ask for intercession through them… we honor their successors (especially the successor to St. Peter) whenever we listen to the important teachings of our Bishops… we have their relics enshrined…

we do not honor them exactly as we do the Blessed Virgin… but that is because as you say she is a different status “Theotokos,” the entire Church, the bride of Christ, is the only thing that is as close to Jesus as Mary.

Dominus Vobiscum

 

[cestusdei]

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Apostles Philip and James. We do celebrate a wide variety of feasts. It isn’t only Mary.

 

[water]

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Apostles Philip and James. We do celebrate a wide variety of feasts. It isn’t only Mary.

Yah, at today’s mass, I was wondering if other non-Catholics have feast of any Apostles. ps: I should have not let my mind wandering during mass though.

 

[Charlie_Zeaiter]

Hi holy_wood,

Have you ever heard of The Apostles of Fatima? No :nope:

Is Our Lady our mother? Yes :yup:

There is something about Mary that makes me believe that she has a serious part in God’s great plan.

Also, when we pray the Stations of the Cross, we do so through the eyes of Mary because nobody would feel Christ’s suffering more than His mother. With such prayer lines as…“Who, what sorrow contemplating, on that passion meditating, would not share the Virgin’s grief?”…she brings us closer to His passion.

“With what pain and desolation, with what noble resignation, Mary watched her dying Son.”

 

[holy_wood]

WoW, thats alot of books and alot of answers. I get it, when it comes to Mary nothing we do can come close to giving her the honor she deserves and I see that their are masses held in appreciation of the various saints that have lived throughout the ages.

Its just where I live at I rarely here my priest teach about anyone else besides the acts of Mary (Again, I am not condenming it)

Its just that it would be nice for the Church (my parish in particular I guess) to take a more active role in spreading the word about the dedicating Masses for the various saints as well as a quick synopsis of their life.

You all have to admit though Mary can be inspirational, I’m sure there is some saint out there that can bring people closer to God ( through analyzing there life, writings, reported revelatiopns and miracle, as well as life style) than just her alone?

 

[puzzleannie]

Its just where I live at I rarely here my priest teach about anyone else besides the acts of Mary (Again, I am not condenming it)

?

the homily at Sunday Mass is supposed to be drawn from the scripture readings of the day, so would refer to Mary only when the readings do so. What you mean by the “acts of Mary” I don’t know.

 

[ElizabethAnne]

Its just where I live at I rarely here my priest teach about anyone else besides the acts of Mary (Again, I am not condenming it)

Its just that it would be nice for the Church (my parish in particular I guess) to take a more active role in spreading the word about the dedicating Masses for the various saints as well as a quick synopsis of their life.

I agree that there should be a great emphasis on all of the saints, and feel very blessed that my parish community does this. Perhaps you could purchase a book on the saints or do some research online yourself? If you find a saint who inspires you, you could get more information about him or her as well. I think it is a gift from God that you are so interested in the lives of saints.

 

[NotWorthy]

I’m only a senior in highschool, so no weekend retreats for me.

There are some wonderful retreats in our area for Teens (ACTS and Quest).

I don’t know if they are offered in California.

Good Luck!

 

[Good_Fella]

Since when has it been only Mary? We have the communion of saints
and feast days in their honour. We ask saints to intercede for us before
Christ with their prayers as well. Still, Mary deserves the highest recognition
among all the saints, for by a singular grace she was conceived without
original sin and bore the Son of God. Have any of the apostles pronounced
anything so sublime as the Magnificat?

 

[VociMike]

Who’s gospels and epistles get read at every Mass? Mary’s? Or the Apostles? Who get’s mostly mentioned in those gospels? Mary or the Apostles?

 

[dylanschrader]

The apostles are honored quite a bit as are the other saints.

If you’re wondering why Mary receives hyperdulia instead of dulia as the other saints receive, then quite simply it’s because she is the firstfruits of the Redemption and the greatest of all creatures.

All creation is God’s work, but she is God’s masterpiece.

Oh, and she did more for God’s revelation and the spread of the Gospel than anyone else could do because she cooperated in the Incarnation of Christ, who is God’s complete revelation of himself because he is God, in Person, in the flesh.

 

[papaspicy]

So much of the focus on Mary is based around various Marian apparations, such as Fatima and Lourdes. JPII had a special devotion to Our Lady of Fatima, and I think this has rubbed off on many Catholics who loved him. But we should also remember that these are private devotions, and while beautiful aren’t necessary for the Church. It is common when priests have a bit of a private devotion to the place of Mary in history that their homilies lean toward her.

But we should also remember that Mary likely did do much to spread the cause of Christianity. While Peter and Paul were out preaching, Mary was praying for them. Catholic tradition holds that she lived with St. John (by the request of Jesus) for a number of years in Ephesus, and she likely helped him as he worked as an apostle.

I’m not complaining, but in the for the past month or more a lot of Catholic media and my church has really been focused on St. Faustina Kowalska, and a lot less on Mary.