Why Catholics Call Mary Their Mother
Summary
TLDRFather Mike Smith discusses the Catholic devotion to Mary, the mother of God, emphasizing that it does not detract from one's relationship with Jesus. He uses the analogy of meeting a partner's family to illustrate how loving those whom God loves can deepen one's love for God. Mary, as the 'perfect disciple,' directs us to Jesus, similar to how the moon reflects the sun's light. Jesus' words from the cross, particularly giving Mary to his disciples as their mother, solidify the Catholic belief in Mary's maternal role in the spiritual life.
Takeaways
- 🙏 Catholics believe in praying to Mary, the mother of God, not as a replacement for Jesus but to deepen their relationship with God.
- 👨👩👧👦 Jesus is considered fully God and fully human, whereas Mary is a completely human being, known as the perfect disciple.
- 🌞 Mary's role is to point towards Jesus, similar to how the moon reflects the light of the sun, emphasizing that her purpose is to direct attention to her son.
- 💡 Loving Mary or other saints does not detract from one's love for God; instead, it amplifies it, as it reflects God's amazingness.
- 🤔 The fear that a relationship with Mary would diminish one's relationship with God is unfounded, as it can enhance the love for God.
- 👨👩👧👦 The speaker uses a personal analogy of meeting a partner's family to explain how knowing and loving those close to someone can increase your love for them.
- 🔗 The relationship with Mary is likened to a familial bond, as Jesus, in his last words from the cross, gave Mary to his disciples as their mother.
- 🏠 Jesus's command to 'take her into your home' is interpreted as an invitation for believers to incorporate Mary into their spiritual lives.
- 👩🏫 Mary is seen as a mother figure for all believers, guiding them towards Jesus and exemplifying obedience to God's will.
- 🌐 The script encourages believers to consider Mary's role in their lives and to embrace her as a spiritual mother given by Jesus.
Q & A
Why do Catholics talk to Mary when they can talk to Jesus directly?
-Catholics believe that having a relationship with Mary does not take away from their relationship with Jesus. Instead, it amplifies their love for Jesus because Mary's role is to point to her son, Jesus.
How does loving Mary help in loving Jesus more?
-Loving Mary, who is a human being and the mother of Jesus, helps in loving Jesus more because she reflects the light of Jesus, similar to how the moon reflects the light of the sun.
What is the significance of Mary being called 'the perfect disciple'?
-Mary is called 'the perfect disciple' because she is seen as the ideal follower of Jesus, embodying complete submission and devotion to God's will.
Why is Mary referred to as 'the Mother of God'?
-Mary is referred to as 'the Mother of God' because she gave birth to Jesus, who is both fully God and fully human.
What is the role of Mary in the life of a Catholic?
-In Catholicism, Mary's role is to guide and intercede, helping believers to grow closer to Jesus by her example and her prayers.
How does the relationship with Mary relate to the relationship with God?
-The relationship with Mary is seen as complementary to the relationship with God. It does not detract from it but rather enhances the believer's love and devotion to God.
What does the speaker mean when he says Mary is 'more than the perfect disciple'?
-The speaker implies that Mary holds a unique and special place in the Christian faith beyond just being a disciple, as she is also the Mother of God.
What is the significance of Jesus' words from the cross about Mary?
-Jesus' words from the cross, particularly his instruction to John to 'behold your mother', are significant as they establish Mary as the spiritual mother of all believers.
Why do Catholics consider Mary as their mother?
-Catholics consider Mary as their mother because Jesus, in his last moments on the cross, gave his mother to his beloved disciple, symbolizing that she is to be the mother of all his followers.
How should a Catholic's relationship with Mary manifest in their daily life?
-A Catholic's relationship with Mary should manifest through imitating her virtues, seeking her intercession, and allowing her to guide them closer to Jesus.
What is the potential pitfall the speaker warns against regarding the veneration of saints?
-The potential pitfall is mistaking the creation (the saints) for the Creator (God). It's important to remember that the saints point to God's greatness, not replace God in one's devotion.
Outlines
🙏 The Role of Mary in Catholicism
The speaker begins by addressing a common question about why Catholics would pray to Mary, the mother of God, instead of directly to Jesus or God. He clarifies that Catholics believe Jesus is both fully divine and human, while Mary is a completely human being, often referred to as the 'perfect disciple.' The speaker then explains that having a relationship with Mary doesn't detract from one's relationship with God; rather, it enhances it. He uses an analogy of meeting a partner's family to illustrate how loving the people close to someone can deepen your love for that person. In the same way, getting to know and love Mary, who is loved by God, can amplify one's love for God. The speaker also mentions that Mary's role is to point to her son, Jesus, just as the moon reflects the light of the sun. He concludes by emphasizing that Catholics are not to mistake the creation (Mary) for the creator (God), but rather see her as a means to a deeper appreciation of God's greatness.
👨👩👧👦 Jesus' Last Words and Mary as Our Mother
In the second paragraph, the speaker discusses Jesus' last words from the cross, particularly focusing on his interaction with Mary and the 'Beloved Disciple,' traditionally believed to be John. Jesus' words to Mary, 'Woman, behold your son,' and to John, 'Behold your mother,' are highlighted as a pivotal moment where Jesus assigns Mary the role of a mother to all his disciples. The speaker explains that this act establishes Mary as the 'Mother of the Church,' indicating that just as Jesus emphasized the importance of family relationships, he also extended this to include Mary as a spiritual mother figure for all believers. The narrative concludes with the disciple taking Mary into his home, symbolizing the call for believers to incorporate Mary into their spiritual lives, seeing her as a guide that points towards Jesus.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Mary
💡Mother of God
💡Perfect Disciple
💡Relationship with Mary
💡Amplifying Love
💡Moon and Sun Analogy
💡Saints
💡Creator
💡Last Words from the Cross
💡Beloved Disciple
💡Taking Mary into Your Home
Highlights
Catholics are often asked why they talk to Mary instead of directly to Jesus.
Jesus is fully God and fully human, while Mary is a completely human being.
Mary is considered the perfect disciple and the Mother of God.
Having a relationship with Mary doesn't detract from one's relationship with God.
Loving those whom Mary loves can actually increase one's love for her.
Mary's purpose is to point to her son, Jesus, similar to how the moon reflects the sun's light.
Praising saints like Mary is a way of praising God's wisdom and power.
Catholics are not called to mistake the creation for the Creator when it comes to saints.
Jesus' last words from the cross include giving Mary to his disciples as their mother.
The term 'woman' used by Jesus refers back to Eve and signifies Mary as the mother of all the redeemed.
By giving Mary to his disciples, Jesus establishes a mother-son relationship between her and his followers.
Disciples of Jesus are invited to take Mary into their homes and lives as their mother.
Mary's role in a Catholic's life is to continually point them towards Jesus.
Father Mike emphasizes the importance of understanding Mary's role in Catholicism.
The talk concludes with an invitation for viewers to reflect on Mary's place in their own lives.
Father Mike encourages viewers to be kind and understanding in discussions about Catholic beliefs.
Transcripts
[Music]
I'm reading from the Mike Smith's and
this is essential reasons so when it
comes to Mary I like Mary the mother of
God
a lot of times Catholics are asked the
question like why do you talk to Mary
when you could talk to Jesus like why
why go to a human being when you could
go to God himself and that is a great
question in fact one of the one of the I
think one of the fears people have is
that if you have a relationship with
Mary that would take away from your your
relationship with God Himself take it
really you take away from your
relationship with the God who made
everything because here's what we
believe we believe Jesus is fully God
fully human right that God is God Mary's
not God she's not even partly God she's
not even like a smidge god she's
completely human being we would call
Mary the perfect disciple but we also
call Mary something other than that
she's the perfect disciple she's Mother
of God but it's just something even more
something even more and so when it comes
to having a relationship with her like
how would you want that why would you
need that well for two reasons
well at least two reasons that I can
think of right now off the top of my
noggin the first reason is this one if I
have a real issue with Mary that'll take
away from the love I should have for
Jesus the love I actually have forgot
himself
good question camper I'm not so sure so
back in the day before I went to
seminary I was dating this gal and um at
one point she was like hey I want you to
be my family I want you to meet my
parents and my little brother so I met
her parents I met her her little brother
and really liked them and so I know I
had a relationship with them I with her
mom and with her dad with her little
brother when I got to know them and got
to learn to care for them and got to
love them it didn't take anything away
from the love I had for her it actually
increased the love I had for her so
actually loving the people that she
loved helped me love her more I mean
getting to know other people that she
knows helped me get to know her more and
the same thing a very very similar thing
is true when it comes to God so to get
to know someone that God Himself loves
and knows doesn't take our love away
from God it actually amplifies our love
of God the more you love Mary the more
you should love Jesus because what does
Mary do Mary's Mary's purpose really is
to point to her son
I remember hearing back in the day
someone pointing out that like Jesus is
the Sun God is the Sun the source of all
life our source of all light marries the
moon she simply reflects the light that
comes from the Sun that she doesn't have
any light of her own just like we don't
have any light of our own she reflects
the light that comes from the Sun and so
when you look at the moon he like man
that's beautiful tonight what you're
really saying is it's it's illuminated
the beauty there is illuminated it's
given by the source of the light which
is the Sun whenever we praise any of the
saints what we're really doing is we're
praising the the wisdom and the power
and the skill and then the the
amazingness of the creator of those
saints on our own every one of us is
basically a zero but with God or more
and every one of the saints when you
praise them and say my gosh look at this
person's life it's amazing we were
basically saying is look what God did in
this person's life he's amazing
so to pay attention to Mary or any of
the saints doesn't take away from God
because it points to God's amazingness
on secondly took to to love the Saints
doesn't take away from the look we have
for God it actually amplifies our love
for God is supposed to amplify our love
for God I guess yes you could fall into
the trap that some people do which is to
mistake the creation for the Creator
there are some people who are so
captivated by the beauty of nature that
they forget the one who created the
nature yes that's possible and maybe
maybe there's some people are so
captivated by the stories of the Saints
that they forget the one who made it the
Saints God himself that's possible but
that's not what a cat that's not what
Catholics are called to what cats are
called to do is have a relationship with
Mary as what with Mary has our mom say
well that seems ok so ok I was going I
was tracking with your father like ok
make sense that yes I get that when I
got to know my in-laws hopeful if
they're good in-laws and whatnot that
yeah I can I can love my spouse better
and yes that when we point to the beauty
of the Saints we're really actually
pointing to the power of the and the
goodness of the creator okay I got that
but what do you mean what even marries
your mom because that's like that's kind
of out there but it's not that out there
because one of the last words of Jesus
from the cross right Jesus had seven
what they call
last words from the cross not seven
literal words but seven last things he
said from the cross and one of the
things we need to understand is when
here is Jesus when he's on the cross and
he is dying
he's literally gasping for breath he's
literally fighting for air he's dying of
asphyxiation and so when he says these
last seven things from the cross from
you know Mount Calvary from Gotha these
are seven very important things and one
of these seven things that Jesus says
with his last breaths from the cross as
he looks this in John's Gospel in John
chapter 19 where Jesus it says that when
he saw his mother and the disciple there
whom he loved now here's a little thing
that a simple whom he loved is always
always been traditionally understood to
be John himself the guy who wrote the
Gospel of John and throughout the course
of the Gospel John refers to himself as
the Beloved Disciple this is when Jesus
saw his mother there and the disciple
there whom he loved he said to his
mother woman behold your son woman
what's that mean woman is the title it's
not a title of derision it's not it's
not a demotion woman refers back to Eve
Eve is what the mother of all the living
that's a close call to Eve for the
mother of all the living that first
woman to Jesus is saying woman Eve now
the mother of all the redeemed Eve or
woman there is your son and then he said
to the disciple behold your mother and
this is so important this is super
important for us um again why did G why
did John refer to himself as the Beloved
Disciple me well one we think like me
because humility like just like I'm
gonna put myself kind of in the
background I was there I don't need to
access the fact that it was me there
secondly because of a deeper meaning
that deeper meaning being that from the
cross Jesus says to his beloved disciple
there's your mother which means anyone
who's my beloved disciple Jesus is he
implicitly saying anyone who is a
disciple of mine whom I love my mom is
your mom if you're gonna be my disciple
my mom is your mom and he's saying to
his mother and woman new Eve mother of
all the redeemed my beloved disciples
are your children
why do we call Mary our mother is
because Jesus gave her to us all
disciples as mom from the cross you have
a mom you have a earthly mom you have a
mommy of the church is her mother but
you also have a mom that Jesus himself
gave to you from the cross and so we
have to have a relationship with her
that's one of the reasons we have to
have a relationship with her because
Jesus the one who upheld very very
powerfully the roles and
responsibilities that children have to
their parents and parents have to their
children is also the one who said okay
my mom is your mom is that means we must
have a relationship with Mary as our
mother why because the next line in
John's Gospel is and from that hour the
disciple took her into his home you need
to say okay cool like Oh Mary is kind of
like my mom I got it thanks Jesus from
the cross you did that for me that's
really nice you know from that hour he
took her into his home and the Beloved
Disciple the one whom Jesus loved and
one who loved Jesus also loved Jesus's
mom as his own mom didn't just have you
know backstage but you know that kind of
on the back shelf or didn't just have
kind of like a oh that's a nice little
thought it was he took her into his home
and that's what we're invited to do as
well as disciples of Jesus as disciples
of Jesus he gave his mom to us as our
mom and if we're gonna do what he's
intends us to do we must take her into
our home as well to have some kind of
relationship with her he is God he's the
source he's though he's the one right he
is the one but to love the ones Jesus
loves is not to take love away from him
it's to multiply is to amplify it's to
grow in love so where's Mary in your
life is she your mom where's Mary in
your life have you taken her into your
home where is Mary in your life is she
the one who just like in the scriptures
continually points that says go to him
go to him go to him do whatever Jesus
tells you because that's what mom does
she points us to Jesus for all's here as
Center presents my name is father Mike
god bless be sure to LIKE subscribe and
comment what do you think I mean I don't
know share what's up be print be
friendly to each other you guys kind of
load whenever we bring up these like
Catholic versus you know non Catholic
kind of topics people sometimes get a
little ramped up so hey
be kind Gilles
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