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Mary's title "Co-Redemptrix." Though it provokes much controversy among those who wrongly think that Catholics worship Mary, it actually expresses a very Biblical concept. It is rooted in two fundamental facts of the Gospel: (1) that Christians may participate in helping others to be saved; and (2) that Mary is the most excellent example of this, because her acceptance of God's will let salvation history be accomplished. On this page I will attempt to prove #2 from the Bible.
These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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Genesis 3:
15 And I [God] will put enmity between thee [i.e. the devil] and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; he shall crush thy head, and thou shalt crush his heel.
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Argument:
In this passage God made us a promise: that the redemption would be accomplished in a woman and her Son. They are both the victors over sin as much as they are both its enemies. And this promised woman was clearly not Eve; for she was not the victor over sin, but the first to ever succumb to it. Mary, therefore, cooperated in our redemption with her Son. Just as the Catholic Church teaches.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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Luke 1:
45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.
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Argument:
This passage is best read with a pause between the two parts of the sentence: "Blessed is she who believed -- that what was spoken to her from the Lord would be fulfilled!" As such it proves that there was a connection between Mary's belief and the fulfillment of God's promises: there would be a fulfillment of the promised Incarnation, and redemption, because Mary believed; hence Elizabeth blessed her for her all-important cooperation with God.
That is why the Catholic Church has consistently held that Mary is to be honored more for her belief in the words of God than for the fact that she became the mother of His Son: for if she had not believed, she would not have conceived; if she had not heard the word of God and kept it in her heart, then the promise that had been spoken to her would have been delayed, and with it, our redemption. God be praised for Mary, then, and bless this great mother of the Son; bless her for her belief, that what was spoken to her from the Lord has been fulfilled -- for because of her belief, our redemption has been accomplished!
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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Luke 2:
25 Just at that time there was a man in Jerusalem by the name of Simeon. He was a devout and conscientious person, longing for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was hovering over him. ...
34 Simeon blessed [Mary and Joseph], and then said to Mary his mother:
"Alas! This babe is destined
to be the downfall no less
than the restoration of many in Israel!
His very name will provoke contradiction,
35 and your own soul, also,
shall be pierced by a sword!
And thus the secret thoughts of many a heart
shall be laid bare."
36 Also a prophetess named Anna...
38 ...[spoke] about him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Israel.
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Argument:
Simeon and Anna were looking for "the consolation," as well as "the redemption," of Israel -- and they found it in Jesus and Mary.
Just as her Son restored many in Israel by the suffering in His body, Mary has opened the hearts of so many by the suffering in her soul.
And how can anyone say, that this served nothing to our redemption? Does the Scripture not say, that "the wicked have closed their unfeeling heart"? (Psalms 17:10) Then how shall they be redeemed, except if their hearts are laid bare and opened? Well, Scripture attributes this to the spiritual suffering that Mary endured. Scripture explicitly states that Mary suffered for the opening-up of our hearts, for "the redemption," "the consolation" of Israel.
Therefore behold, O Protestants, that if not for Mary, your heart would have never been opened. You ought to be grateful of this, not hateful of a doctrine that is explicit in the Scriptures: it speaks of the redemption of Israel, but it does not claim it for Christ alone, since it ties it to Mary as well. That is not my doctrine, but the Scripture's. Jesus and Mary cooperated together in the redemption: Jesus by accomplishing it, and Mary in His service.
This is not merely a special privilege of Mary: we are all called to serve the Christ and further the cause of redemption, by speaking to men about these things and praying for their conversion. We simply call Mary the Co-Redemptrix, not as though she helps to save us in competition with Christ, but only because by her prayers and her labor she has become the greatest example of cooperation in the work of redemption, the work to which we are all called.
Just as her Son restored many in Israel by the suffering in His body, Mary has opened the hearts of so many by the suffering in her soul.
And how can anyone say, that this served nothing to our redemption? Does the Scripture not say, that "the wicked have closed their unfeeling heart"? (Psalms 17:10) Then how shall they be redeemed, except if their hearts are laid bare and opened? Well, Scripture attributes this to the spiritual suffering that Mary endured. Scripture explicitly states that Mary suffered for the opening-up of our hearts, for "the redemption," "the consolation" of Israel.
Therefore behold, O Protestants, that if not for Mary, your heart would have never been opened. You ought to be grateful of this, not hateful of a doctrine that is explicit in the Scriptures: it speaks of the redemption of Israel, but it does not claim it for Christ alone, since it ties it to Mary as well. That is not my doctrine, but the Scripture's. Jesus and Mary cooperated together in the redemption: Jesus by accomplishing it, and Mary in His service.
This is not merely a special privilege of Mary: we are all called to serve the Christ and further the cause of redemption, by speaking to men about these things and praying for their conversion. We simply call Mary the Co-Redemptrix, not as though she helps to save us in competition with Christ, but only because by her prayers and her labor she has become the greatest example of cooperation in the work of redemption, the work to which we are all called.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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Galatians 4:
4 But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,
5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
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Argument:
In this summary of the Gospel and the means of redemption that God chose before time, St. Paul states that Mary played a pivotal role. Just as the Jews were bound under the Law until the coming of Jesus Christ, being redeemed from the Law when He came and kept the whole Law perfectly, and thus it played a critical role in the redemption of all souls -- in an equally critical way Mary was involved in the plan of redemption by submitting to the will of God, and to His plan for her, that she should be the One chosen from before time to bear the Son of God.
Reformed brother, there is no way for you to get around the fact that here the Word of God associates Mary with Christ in the plan of redemption. God had simply planned from all eternity to send forth His Son through a woman named Mary; if He had chosen another way to redeem us, it might have been different, but He chose to redeem us in this way, by associating Mary with His work. Far from it being blasphemous that we simply acknowledge Mary's crucial role, it is really a necessary aspect of the Gospel; and if you deny what God has wrought through her, then I am afraid you are closer to blasphemy than we are, for you are denying the sovereignty of God in His choice to associate Mary in the work of redemption under Christ.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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Luke 1:
30 The angel said to [Mary], "Don't be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31 Behold, you will conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and will call his name 'Jesus.' ...
33 ...he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. There will be no end to his Kingdom."
34 Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?"
35 The angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. ...
37 For everything spoken by God is possible."
38 Mary said, "Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it to me according to your word." The angel departed from her.
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Argument:
The angel comes to announce the coming Incarnation and redemption of all men; but Mary's free cooperation is clearly necessary: (1) she asks questions and receives clarifications, clearly showing that she was involved in the decision; (2) the angel says that the promise of the Incarnation and redemption was "possible," rather than "assured," showing that something more was necessary before it would be fulfilled, and that until then it would remain only a possibility; (3) Mary says "let it be," proving that she had made a decision and hence was involved in fulfilling God's plan; (4) the angel does not leave until he has won her consent.
Together these points prove that Mary freely cooperated in bringing about the Incarnation and redemption. That is why we hail her as "Co-Redemptrix:" it does not mean that she is equal to Jesus, or redeemed us in the same way that He did; rather, she was the servant of the Redeemer, in the service of His redemptive power, and she merely helps us to be saved by her free acceptance of God's will and by her labor in advancing the Kingdom of God.
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These are specific passages in the Bible that teach that Mary was involved in our redemption!
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John 19:
25 But standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your son!"
27 Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
28 After this Jesus [knew] that all was now finished.
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Argument:
Does not St. John expressly tell us that after our Lord gave Mary to "the disciple whom he loved" -- and which Christian is not just exactly that? -- that only then did Jesus see "that all was now finished...and gave up his spirit"? (John 19:28, 30) Therefore this event has redemptive significance for all; for the redemption, Scripture here states, was not accomplished until Mary was given as mother to the beloved disciple, and therefore Mary's motherhood is part of the redemption. Lest anyone say otherwise, St. John tells us in the very next chapter why he recorded this event: "these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name." (John 20:31) He could not have made it much clearer that receiving Mary as mother is part of believing in Christ, and being redeemed into His life. Therefore like John, let us all rejoice to believe that Mary is our own; and believing, have life in Christ's name.
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