CATHOLIC DOGMA OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

The proclaimed Roman Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception states:

“That the most Blessed Virgin Mary,
in the first instance of her conception,
by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God,
in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race,
was preserved free from all stain of original sin.” (Pope Pius 1X)

The Gospel reading for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception is taken from St. Luke 1:26-38 and tells of God’s plan for the salvation of the human race through his Son and of his choice of a worthy Mother for his Son:
“In the sixth month the Angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
He came to her and said, ‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.”

She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angelsaid to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have found favor with God. Behold! You are to conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacobforever and his reign will have no end.‘

Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I have no relations with man?’

The Angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High willovershadow you and so the child to be born of you will be holy and will be called Son of God.

And I tell you also, your cousin Elizabeth, in her old age, has conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible for God.’

Mary said, ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done unto me as you have said.’ And the angel left her.

Mary’s Role in Salvation Foretold in the Old Testament
Genesis 3:9-15, 20

Yahweh God called to Adam. ‘Where are you?‘ he asked.

‘I heard the sound of you in the garden,’ he replied. ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’

‘Who told you that you were naked?‘ he asked. ‘Have you been eating from the tree I forbade you to eat?’

The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.’

Then Yahweh God said to the woman, ‘Why did you do that?‘ The woman replied, ‘The snake tempted me and I ate.’

Then Yahweh God said to the snake, ‘Because you have done this, accursed be you of all animals wild and tame! On your belly you will crawl and on dust you will feed as long as you live.’

‘I shall put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
she shall crush your head and you will lie in wait for her heel.’

Adam named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of the living.

PRAYER

Blessed be the Holy and Immaculate Conception of the
Blessed Virgin Mary!