Blessed Virgin Mary

The Blessed Virgin Mary, sometimes shortened to The Blessed Virgin, is a traditional title specifically used by Roman Catholics, Anglo-Catholics and others to describe Mary, the mother of Jesus. It carries with it a belief not merely in the virginity of Mary, but of her continuing role within the church and in the life of ordinary Catholics, for which Roman Catholicism in the Dogmatic Constitution of the Church (21 November 1964) passed during the Second Vatican Council granted her the title Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix, and Mediatrix. Colloquially she is often referred to as Our Lady or sometimes The BVM.

Accusations of idolatry

Many non-Catholic, non-Orthodox Christians have accused Catholics and Orthodox of idolatry in focusing on Mary rather than on Jesus Christ, suggesting that Catholics adore the Virgin Mary in breach of the Ten Commandments which condemn keeping "false gods". This point was offered especially by Calvin. In Catholic theology there is a clear distinction drawn between the worship of latria (adoration, which may be offered only to God), and veneration and praise, or dulia. Catholicism has traditionally accorded to the Virgin Mary the veneration of hyperdulia which rests in part upon the angelic salutation, "Hail, full of grace" (Lk 1:28), a phrase with momentous theological impact. Over the centuries, the nature of Mary within theology became clearer, and by A.D. 403 we find St. Epiphanius refuting a sect called the Collyridians who adored Mary, telling them: "Mary should be honoured, but the Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost should be adored. Nobody should adore Mary" (in Ott, Bk. III, Pt. 3 Ch. 3, §8). Thus we find, from the earliest Church, veneration of Mary, the belief that Mary intercedes for us with her Divine Son, and a clear distinction between latria and dulia together with a rejection of the notion of giving latria to Mary. The Saints, for their part, receive dulia. This distinction between latria, hyperdulia, and dulia, is key to understanding Catholic and Orthodox tradition.

Related Topics:
Idolatry - Ten Commandments - Calvin - Latria

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Marianism describes the excessive veneration of Mary, as opposed to Christ. The term was first used in the 19th century to condemn the "perversion of Christianity into Marianism."

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