Originally Posted by
Whifflingpin
"Mary is not so very different from any of the other women granted children by the miraculous power of God. I find it interesting that the Catholics do not declare Sarah or Elizabeth to be sinless, but leap upon the chance to do so with Mary. There is no evidence for the "Immaculate Conception" "
I am not a Roman Catholic, or even a Christian, for that matter, but the difference between Mary and any other woman is obvious enough. It is only Mary who, in Christian terms, can be described as "Mother of God," or even "Mother of the Son of the Most High" to quote from your passage above. That makes her unique among women.
The idea of the Immaculate Conception of Mary does not have to be biblical to be believed. It is a logical extension of the belief that Mary was the chosen vessel of God Incarnate. It is hard to see how any sinful person could be chosen to give birth to God, and for Mary to be sinless it would be necessary for her either to have been purged of sin at the moment Jesus was conceived or for her to have escaped the sinful nature that mankind in general is born to. (I've never quite worked out why that does not imply a series of immaculate conceptions going back from Mary to Eve, but no doubt Richard Hresko has an explanation.)
"She is "troubled" by the message given to her, later on she and Joseph rebuke Jesus for His teaching at the temple"
Two more cynical perversions of the texts.
Any modest maid would be "troubled" on being addressed by an angel, but the passage that you quote [38] shows Mary's instant obedience to God's will, in spite of being fully aware [34] of the difficulties that this will bring her.
Mary's "rebuke" of Jesus for his teaching in the temple (Luke 2 vv42-51) was nothing more (or less) than the worried concern of a mother whose 12 year old son had disappeared for 4 days in a strange city.
But, I am probably foolish in answering. Your post, Weepingforloman, is obviously not prompted by an interest in the nature and character of Mary. It is an undisguised bit of Catholic bashing, for which, and I repeat that I am not a Catholic, I would ask the mods to close this thread.