Word to the Wise
Thursday, December 8, 2022 - Dec. 8: The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (transferred to Monday 12/9 if 12/8 is a Sunday of Advent )
[Gen 3:9-15, 20; Eph 1:3-6, 11-12; Luke 1:26-38]The man called his wife Eve, because she became the mother of all the living. [Genesis] In [Christ] we were also chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of his glory, we who first hoped in Christ. [Ephesians] The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail full of grace! The Lord is with you." [Luke]
Today the Church celebrates the feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The bishops of the United States at the Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore in 1846 chose the Blessed Virgin Mary as patroness of the United States of America. The dogma that Mary was free of the state of original sin from her conception was proclaimed by Pope Pius IX in 1854. Mary's status as patroness of the USA is the primary reason this day is a holy day of obligation in our country.
Early church fathers as far back as the second century A.D. such as St. Justin Martyr and St. Irenaeus referred to Mary as the "new Eve" who became mother of Christ. The Council of Ephesus in 431 A.D. declared her "theotokos" - "mother of God." Although such eminent theological figures such as St. Bernard and St. Thomas Aquinas wondered how this could be since St. Paul spoke of all humanity as being in need of salvation [Romans 3:23-24], the belief prevailed that Mary constituted a unique exception because of her role in salvation. After consulting bishops around the world, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception to be a part of the "deposit of faith."
Devotion to Mary can depend on her title, if my pastoral experience is any indicator. The crowds in attendance at Mass on December 8th, a holy day of obligation in this country, are nowhere near as large as those on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe four days later!!!! Perhaps the theological title of "the Immaculate Conception" seems more abstract than the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the role of care for the lowly is more apparent in the latter title than the former? Whichever day we celebrate, it is our faith in God's providential care, expressed in Mary's care, that shows in our celebration. AMEN