Mary the Queen of Heaven

[TER]

Mary the Queen of Heaven

August 14, 2014 by Dn. Joseph Gleason

link HERE


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Before God became man, an important sign of God’s presence was the Ark of the Covenant.

In the wilderness, Moses placed it in the Holy of Holies. The Israelites crossed the Jordan River with it, and they marched around Jericho with it. King David danced before it. And after King Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem, the Ark was again placed in the Holy of Holies. The lid of the Ark was decorated with golden statues of angels, and a number of people were permitted to see the uncreated light of God, as the Shekinah glory literally shone between the wings of the cherubim.


Mary the New Ark of the Covenant

In the Book of Revelation, the Ark of the Covenant is described in connection with a highly exalted woman who gave birth to a great King:

Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail. Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth. . . . And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. —Rev. 11:19–12:5


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As King David himself had prophesied in Psalm 2, the Messiah is the great King who comes to rule all nations with a rod of iron. He was born of a virgin, crucified, resurrected, and in the Ascension, he was caught up to God and His throne. In Revelation 12, this male child is Jesus.

And Mary is his mother. She is this great woman, clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. And ever since the very early days of the Church, Christians have recognized Mary as the fulfillment of the Ark of the Covenant. St. Hippolytus in the second century, and St. Gregory Thaumaturgus in the third, are among the many saints who have identified Mary with the Ark.

The Ark of the Covenant had some impressive contents:

• Moses’ two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments
  
• A jar of manna from the wilderness
• Aaron’s staff which had budded with life

Mary herself being the new Ark of the Covenant, she contained the fulfillment of all these things:

• Instead of God’s Word written in stone,
  Mary’s womb contained the Word made flesh
• Instead of manna from the wilderness,
  Mary’s womb contained the Bread of Life
• Instead of a staff from the first Levitical high priest, Mary’s womb contained the great High Priest himself, Jesus Christ, whose priesthood is after the order of Melchizedek
• Instead of a budded staff symbolizing resurrection, Mary’s womb contained the Resurrection and the Life himself

Thus, it is fitting that the apostle John honors Mary and the Ark at the same time, and in the same breath. In the book of Revelation, St. John sees the Ark of the Covenant in the heavenly temple, and then he immediately describes this woman who gave birth to Christ, this woman who now wears the sun, moon, and stars for her clothing.

Just as we see early Christians identifying Mary as the new Ark, we also see early Christians recognizing Mary in the twelfth chapter of Revelation. In the fourth century, Epiphanius of Salamis mentions this passage in reference to Mary. And in the fifth century, in the oldest-existing Greek commentary on the book of Revelation, Oecumenius says the following:

“And a sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet.” As I said, it is speaking about the mother of our Savior. And the vision appropriately depicts her as in heaven and not on the earth, for she is pure in soul and body, equal to an angel and a citizen of heaven. She possesses God who rests in heaven—“for heaven is my throne,” it says—yet she is flesh, although she has nothing in common with the earth, nor is there any evil in her. Rather, she is fully exalted, wholly worthy of heaven, even though she possesses our own human nature and substance.

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—William C. Weinrich, Greek Commentaries on Revelation, p. 51
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All True Christians are Royalty

When early Christians praise Mary in this way, and when Scripture itself gives her such great honor, there are still some people who wonder:

“Should any human being be honored in this way?”

“It makes sense that Jesus is King, because he is God. But Mary is not God.”

“Surely there is no king in heaven except Jesus, and surely heaven has no queen.”

Of course, it is true that Jesus is exalted far above everyone. He is God, and there is no man, woman, or angel who is equal with Him. He alone is God. You, me, Mary, and the Saints are all human beings who have been redeemed by God, being conformed to the image of Christ.

But what does it mean to be conformed to the image of Christ? If Jesus is a great king, and you are conformed perfectly to his image, that means you yourself will be a king (or queen). In fact, Scripture itself tells us this. Believe it or not, Jesus is not the only king in the Church. According to the fifth chapter of the book of Revelation, Jesus has redeemed us to God by his blood, out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and has made us kings and priests to our God. (Rev. 5:9–10)

In other words, Mary is not the only person in heaven to be exalted as royalty. Mary is queen, the apostles are kings, and by the grace of God, you and I will join their sides as both kings and queens. In God’s presence, every saint will be recognized as royalty. And Jesus alone will bear the title “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.”

Mary is the Queen Mother

Revelation is not the only place in Scripture that recognizes Mary as the Queen of Heaven. We also see prophecies of her in the Old Testament Scriptures.

In Israel, many generations of kings were born in the Davidic line, pointing forward to the eventual birth of Jesus, the King of Kings. 2 Samuel 7:12, Psalm 72, and Psalm 89 were initially written about King Solomon, and later these Scriptures find their fulfillment in Christ himself. Solomon was the “seed of David” who reigned in peace, prosperity, and wisdom. Jesus is the ultimate “seed of David” who completely fulfills these prophecies.

But in Israel, they did not recognize the king’s wife as a queen. Instead, the king’s mother had this great honor.

Solomon had many wives, but only Bathsheba his mother was recognized as his queen. She was the Queen mother over Israel. She was subordinate to the King, to be sure. But she sat on a throne, and was granted the status of royalty and great political power.

Scripture doesn’t tell us the names of all the kings’ wives. But it does tell us who their mothers were. For hundreds of years, from the time of Queen Bathsheba, to Queen Naamah, to Queen Maachah, to Queen Azubah, to Queen Athaliah, to Queen Jehoaddan, to Queen Jecholiah, to Queen Jerusha, to Queen Abi, to Queen Hephzibah, to Queen Meshullemeth, to Queen Jedidah, to Queen Hamutal, to Queen Zebudah, to Queen Nehushta, the mothers of the Davidic kings retained this exalted status.

Also notice 1 Kings 2:19, where the Queen Mother is granted a royal place of honor, sitting at the right hand of the King. The King himself even rises in her presence, and bows down to her! He is still the King, but he shows his mother an immense amount of honor. Now think about Jesus, the long-awaited seed of David who will sit upon the throne permanently in the Kingdom of Heaven. If Jesus is the rightful heir to the Davidic throne, then who is the Queen Mother? It’s Mary.

Psalm 45 also prophesies of both King Jesus and his Queen. Hebrews 1:8 reveals that Psalm 45:6 is a reference to Jesus. And Psalm 45:9 refers to his Queen. Remember that the Queen in the Davidic kingdom was always the King’s mother, not the King’s bride. And since Mary is the mother of Jesus, Psalm 45:9 is a reference to Queen Mary.

So it is not surprising when we see Mary, the Mother of God, highly honored as a queen in the book of Revelation, clothed with the sun, with the moon at her feet, and a garland of twelve stars around her head. As the King’s mother, she is royalty.

The Dormition and Assumption of Mary

On this feast, we celebrate the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and her bodily Assumption into heaven. She is the prototype for all Christians, as the first person literally to invite Jesus to live within her. Long before the 12 apostles walked and talked with Christ, Mary was already very close to her Son.

• The apostles heard Jesus speak; Mary taught Jesus how to speak
• The apostles ate food provided by Jesus; Mary fed Jesus with milk from her own body
• The apostles saw Jesus sleeping on a boat; Mary rocked Jesus to sleep on her lap
• The apostles walked with Jesus for 3 years; Mary walked with Jesus for 33 years
• At the crucifixion, almost all the apostles ran away; Mary stood at the foot of the cross, beside St. John

At Pentecost, Mary was among the 120 in the upper room, and she participated in the first massive outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. As she aged, she lived in Ephesus with John the apostle. When she died, Jesus received her soul directly into heaven. And three days after her death, she followed her Son in resurrection, and was assumed bodily into heaven. Mary is the first Christian to experience the fullness of salvation—including resurrection and glorification. This is a belief that has been passed down in the Church from generation to generation, throughout the ages.

And while Scripture does not record the time of her assumption into heaven, it does record a glorious vision of her in heaven after her assumption had already taken place. The apostle John had stood with Mary at the foot of the cross, he had taken Mary to live in his own house, and then in the final book he wrote, St. John tells us of Mary, exalted in the heavens.

When St. John and Mary stood at the foot of the cross, Jesus told Mary that John was now her son, and that Mary was now John’s mother. In Revelation 12:17, the apostle John talks about “the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 12:17), letting us know that Mary is our mother, too.

Therefore, like the archangel Gabriel, we say, “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Like St. Elizabeth, we say, “Who am I, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Like Mary herself, we say she is “blessed among women.” And like St. John the apostle, we recognize Mary as the Mother of God (Theotokos), highly exalted in heaven as a magnificent queen, clothed with the sun, the moon at her feet and a garland of twelve stars around her head.


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[TER]

Dormition of the Theotokos (2014)

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Posted on August 15, 2014

by Fr. Ted

link HERE
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Each August 15, we Orthodox celebrate as a Feast the Dormition of the Theotokos: the event of the death of Mary, Mother of God. Her death is celebrated in faith as her translation from the world to life in the world to come. For Orthodoxy does believe that those who are united to Christ are deified by the incarnate God. Union with Christ is salvation. Mary is the subject of much theological reflection which is expressed in the liturgical poetry of the Church. In Mary, truth and beauty reside together for the salvation of the world.

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“The single most important source concerning the Virgin Mary and her place in God’s redemption is found already in the second century designation of Mary as the New Eve or the Second Eve. This idea was introduced by the first Christian philosopher and theologian Justin the Martyr, and developed by Irenaeus especially. Irenaeus’ elaboration of the contrast between the two virgins, Eve and Mary, is of profound soteriological significance and illustrates Mary’s role in the history of salvation. This contrast symbolizes two possible uses of created freedom by man: in their first, a surrender to the devil’s offer of false deification; in the second, humble acceptance of the will of God. The Old Testament is the history of the preparation of the human race for the coming of Christ, a story in which human freedom is constantly put to the test by God. All of the sacred history and tradition of the Jews is the tale of the slow and laborious journey of fallen humanity toward the fullness of time. In the entire Patristic Tradition the Virgin Mary is viewed as the goal of Old Testament history, which began with the children of Eve.[…]

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The election of the Virgin Mary is therefore the culmination point of Israel’s progress toward reconciliation with God, but God’s final response to this progress and the beginning of new life comes with the Incarnation of the Word, because man’s salvation could be realized only by God, His sinless Son. The answer of Mary to the angelic annunciation, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word’ (Lk. 1:38), resolves the tragic problem of fallen humanity. All that God required of human liberty since the Fall is accomplished: conformity of human will and purpose to the Divine Will and Purpose. Divine Will is accepted and responded to. And this human response is highly relevant at this point. The obedience of Mary counter-balances the disobedience of Eve. And now the work of redemption, which only the sinless Incarnate Word can effect, may take place.” (Constantine N. Tsirpanlis, Introduction to Eastern Patristic Thought and Orthodox Theology, pp 53-54)

The Virgin Mary is significant for the salvation of each of us, for in her the union of God and humanity took place, healing a division which had separated the Creator from His creation from the time of the first sin of Eve and Adam. So Mary is the focus of poetry and love in the Orthodox tradition. Here is a portion of a poem in the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition from about the 15th Century:

“My Lady Mary –

That House visited by God,

Whose greatness is inexpressible

Whose beautiful appearance is ineffable,

It was for you that the prophets of Israel

Built up their tower of prophecy.

O Holy One, set me back firmly

In the discipleship of your beloved Son.

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(Harp of Glory, p 142)


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The Dormition of the Virgin Mary is not an event mentioned in the New Testament. For all Feasts in the Church there are assigned Scriptural readings for the Feast. Like the other major Orthodox feasts centered on the Theotokos, the scripture readings for the Feast of the Dormition are not about the event being celebrated, but were selected for other reasons. A Gospel lesson is proclaimed through the Feast. Bishop Job (Getcha) offers an explanatory note about how the readings for Mary’s Feasts were chosen:

“A pericope may be selected on the basis of typology. This is the case for most of the Old, as well as New Testament passages read on feasts of the Mother of God, whether the periope about Jacob’s ladder (Gen 28:10-17), read at vespers, or the pericope about Martha and Mary (Lk 10:38-42; 11:27-28), which presents two ‘types’ of the Mother of God.” (THE TYPIKON DECODED, p 57)


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The Gospel lesson from Luke mentions “Mary” but in this case not the Lord’s Mother, but Mary, sister of Martha. The selection of this reading is not accidental. In both ancient Jewish and early Christian scriptural interpretation, one method used to explicate a text relies on a “word list” approach to interpreting a passage. Basically this method takes one word in a biblical passage and then uses other biblical passages where the exact same word occurs to interpret the text. From a modern point of view we might point out that there is absolutely no logical connection between the texts except that one word appears in both passages. But since the ancients assumed the Scripture being inspired by God was arranged by God, they concluded there are no accidental or coincidental occurrences of words in the bible. So they would carefully consider what the relationship between two otherwise unrelated texts must be if they both contain the same significant word. The reference to “Mary” in Luke 10:38-42 is enough to use this passage in reference to Mary, the Theotokos. As Dr. Pelikan noted above both sisters Martha and Mary are seen as types of the Virgin Mother of Christ.

Thus simply attending the festal liturgies of the church and listening to the Scripture readings already puts us in touch with the mind of the ancient Christians! We come to experience the depth and riches they saw in all Scripture passages, and the treasury they represent in helping us to know God.

 

[TER]

Someone asked me this question with regards to this thread:

Why do people in these depictions always have those globes around their heads?

One must always bear in mind that the images in iconography are never intended to convey realistic "photographs" of history, although many will do this. The primary intention of iconography is theological, to teach about and facilitate an encounter with the True God, unimpeded by artistic style and variation. Whereas the pages in the Bible convey theological truths using words, icons convey theological truths in pictures and color.

On icons, images of holy personages bear a "halo" (or nimbus). In alot of Western art, this has been depicted as a halo over their heads, while in the Eastern tradition, the holy light reflecting the faces of saints in Orthodox icons does not stand above the heads of the holy ones, but rather settles on them, as part of them.

Just as Christ humbled Himself to become man, so too does the uncreated light of God surround the images of His holy ones, those who bear the likeness of Christ and the Holy Spirit of God within them.


Here is a western depiction below. The thing to note is the use of the halo around the head. Indeed, the iconographic use of halos signify theosis, not unlike what the Prophet Moses, St. Stephen, and many other saints experienced.

So that what you see in an Orthodox icon would be drawn like this:

Whenever Christ is written on an icon, His halo looks like this:

The three letters are the Greek letters spelling out "I AM", signifying Christ as the "I AM".

 

[Kevin007]

Israel, not Mary is the "woman" referred to in Revelation Ch. 12.

 

[TER]

Mary is seen as a type as a type of the Church, and the Church as the new Israel, therefore prophecies such as Rev 12 and titles like Daughter of Sion are generally applied to Mary, the Church, and Israel.

From Lumen Gentium:
"...she is hailed as a pre-eminent and singular member of the Church, and as its type and excellent exemplar in faith and charity."

"63. By reason of the gift and role of divine maternity, by which she is united with her Son, the Redeemer, and with His singular graces and functions, the Blessed Virgin is also intimately united with the Church. As St. Ambrose taught, the Mother of God is a type of the Church in the order of faith, charity and perfect union with Christ.(18*) For in the mystery of the Church, which is itself rightly called mother and virgin, the Blessed Virgin stands out in eminent and singular fashion as exemplar both of virgin and mother. (19*) By her belief and obedience, not knowing man but overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, as the new Eve she brought forth on earth the very Son of the Father, showing an undefiled faith, not in the word of the ancient serpent, but in that of God's messenger. The Son whom she brought forth is He whom God placed as the first-born among many brethren,(299) namely the faithful, in whose birth and education she cooperates with a maternal love."

 

[TER]

From here: http://www.theorthodoxfaith.com/mary-as-the-queen-of-heaven/

In the Jewish culture, a Davidic King would have his mother as Queen rather than his wife, because he rarely had one wife, but many wives. Sharing power with many wives would be much too difficult, but he had only one mother and she was given the title of Queen. Almost every time a new king is introduced in 1 and 2 Kings, the king’s mother is mentioned. She was a member of the royal court, wore a crown, sat on a throne, and shared in the king’s reign (2 Kings 24:12, 15; Jer. 13:18–20). She acted as counselor to her son (Prov. 31), an advocate of the people, and as an intercessor for the citizens of the kingdom (1 Kings 2:17–20). Since Jesus is a King based on the order of David, it makes sense that His mother would be called Queen.


Psalm 45 depicts Christ as King and at his side is a Queen.

PSALM 45:9
At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir

So who is this Queen? Scripture puts forth Mary as our Queen in a grandiose description found in Revelation. In a vision of heaven, we are shown that the Ark of the Covenant is present in the temple.

REVELATION 11:19
Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

The mention of the Ark is odd, since it had been done away with when the Glory of God had left that Ark, but the Orthodox teaching is that Mary is a type of the new Ark. This is further expressed by the verses that follow showing a sign of a woman in heaven.

REVELATION 12:1
And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

And then to specifically designate who this woman is,

REVELATION 12:5
She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne.

The male child described is Jesus, which implies that the woman is Mary.


Some will argue that the woman is not Mary, but Israel, as some of the verses do not appear to reference Mary. And they would be correct. There are many prophecies that have multiple meanings or multiple references. A good example is a prophecy many Christians are familiar with.

ISAIAH 7:14
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

We all are familiar with this verse and know it refers to the virgin birth. But when you read more of the prophecy it gets a bit more complicated.

ISAIAH 7:14-18
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by both her kings. The Lord will bring the king of Assyria upon you and your people and your father’s house—days that have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah.”

It would be a strange theology to teach that there was a time when Jesus didn’t know how to refuse the evil and choose the good. This prophecy was also partially fulfilled in the time before Christ’s birth when a child named Immanuel was born as a sign that God was still with Israel.(Isaiah 8:8) Given the way this very popular prophecy was used to speak of Christ in the New Testament as well as Immanuel in the Old Testament, it is reasonable that the prophecy in Revelation could be used the same way. It can describe both Israel and Mary.


The prophecy describes Mary in very grand terms pointing to her royal status. She wears a royal crown pointing to the 12 tribes or to the 12 apostles symbolizing her queenship in the new kingdom. The moon under her feet represents her dominion and victory over her enemies. Then finally clothed with the sun. This is an important woman! This is the Queen of Heaven!

 

[TER]

The Theotokos and Mother of the Light

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos
of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou


The feast we are festively celebrating in the middle of August indicates to us the all-revered person of our Panagia. The feast is designated as the "Dormition of our Most-Holy Lady the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary". In these words are hidden the entire mystery of our Panagia, which is associated with the mystery of Christ. In the sermon today we will make a short analysis of the words in this title "Dormition of our Most-Holy Lady the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary".


The death of the Panagia is called "Dormition", because on the one hand death after the Resurrection of Christ is a sleep, since all will be raised bodily at the Second Coming of Christ, and on the other hand because our Panagia after her Dormition was translocated to the heavens. Thus, according to the tradition of the Church, that which will take place with everyone at the Second Coming of Christ, took place with the Panagia at her Dormition.


Next, the Panagia is called "Most-Holy", because she is not only holy, sanctified, but she is above all those who are holy. She is "more honorable than the Cherubim and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim". Saint Gregory Palamas says that the Panagia is the peak and perfection of all the saints. Indeed, all the Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Fathers, Venerable Ones, and generally all the saints sing her praises and glorify her.


Also, the Panagia is called "Lady", because she is the Mother of the Master Christ. Indeed, Christ is the Lord and Master of heaven and earth, as consubstantial with the Father and the Holy Spirit, while His Mother, from whom He received His human nature, is the Lady, having a special place in the mystery of the divine economy, as well as a special place in the life of the Church, and she constantly intercedes for us.


In addition, the Panagia is designated as "Theotokos", because she simply did not give birth to a man of stature, but the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. Nestorius and those heretics like-minded with him were repulsed by the epithet "Mother of God", as well as the term "Theotokos", because they argued that the Virgin gave birth to Christ the man, not God, Who "came forth", or was "passed forth", or was "brought forth" through her, but was not born "from her". Yet the Third Ecumenical Synod established the faith of the Church, that the Panagia is the Theotokos, she gave birth to God, she gave flesh to the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, and this is why she should be called "Theotokos". This is not simply a philosophy, but theology, since the Apostles who saw Christ shining in the Light of His divinity came to know by experience that He is "Light from Light, true God from true God", which is why the Panagia is the Theotokos and Mother of the Light. Thus, in the ninth ode of the Service of Matins the priest makes the pronouncement: "The Theotokos and the Mother of the Light, honoring with hymns let us magnify."


In the title of today's feast of the Panagia, she is also referred to as "Ever-Virgin Mary". The word "Mary" is her name, and the word "Ever-Virgin" shows the mystery of ever-virginity, her perfect purity, since she was a virgin before giving birth, during her pregnancy and after birth. In every icon of the Panagia the iconographer paints three stars - one on her forehead, one on her right shoulder and one on her left shoulder, which denote the ever-virginity of our Panagia. This is a mystery. And this is verified through the experience of divine glory.


Therefore, the feast of the "Dormition of our Most-Holy Lady the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary" shows us the entire wondrous and blessed Person of our Panagia, who we must honor with fasting, prayer, repentance, doxology and Divine Communion of the Body and Blood of her Son, with spiritual joy. Also, honor is given with the revered offering of her honorable name and with supplications and prayers to her who intercedes for all of us.


Today, we must be glad on this day because we are given the opportunity to take a vacation and to visit beloved places and persons, otherwise why are we given an opportunity to celebrate, except that the honorable and blessed person of our Panagia is celebrated, who also was honored by Christ Himself.


Many years, my brethren, and may the Panagia intercede for all of us and protect us from all evil.


Source: Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi, "Ἡ Θεοτόκος καί Μητέρα τοῦ Φωτός", July 2014. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

 

[Terry1]

Thank God for the faith of Mary. Beautiful thread TER.

 

[TER]

I am happy you appreciate it. She is the greatest saint in Heaven and her prayers availeth much.

Christ alone saves us, for He alone has united our nature with His divine nature and redeemed us unto eternal resurrection. However, the Virgin has played an important role in this which should not be ignored. It is after all her purity and perfect obedience which established a worthy womb for the sinless One to be born within her. It is the flesh of the Theotokos whereby Christ received His own flesh from. It is in this same flesh that ours is healed and given new life. In this way, the Theotokos is our mother as well and we, like her Son does, should honor her and respect her.

 

[pcosmar]

And the scripture records,,

While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed." But He said, "On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it."

 

[TER]

And the scripture records,,

So you think you are more or even as much as blessed as the one who bore the Savior? Do you think you or anyone you know has listened and obeyed The Lord better than the one who gave her pure and virginal flesh to him and who alone was with Him at both the time he was born and the time He died on the cross?

Perhaps you misinterpret the passage you quoted? Perhaps Christ is not putting down His mother here but only more fully revealing how blessed she as a person must then be?

 

[Kevin007]

The title “Queen of Heaven” by which many Catholics refer to Mary, was first used of Semeramis, wife of Nimrod the founder of Babylon, and mother of Tammuz. Semeramis declared herself a goddess, claimed that Tammuz was born of a supernatural conception involving the Sun god, and began the first counterfeit religion, a mother-child cult.
According to legend, while out hunting one day Tammuz was killed by a wild animal. Semeramis mourned for 40 days at the end of which Tammuz was raised from the dead. She formed a celibate priesthood to commemorate this and named a chief priest who she declared to be infallible. The 40 day mourning (now called Lent), the Yule log, evergreen tree, mistletoe and hot cross buns were all used in the rituals they instituted, and the mother-child cult was born.
Later the Romans adapted these to the death and re-birth of the Sun at the winter solstice, but in the 4th century the traditions surrounding Semeramis and Tammuz were attributed to Mary and Jesus and came almost unchanged into Catholicism, where they remain to this day.
Semeramis is symbolically called Jezebel in the letter, leading people away from the truth into idolatry. But the real Jezebel is also in view here. She was a daughter of the King of Phonecia, a pagan princess best known for her advice to her Israelite husband King Ahab on how to obtain a vineyard he wanted. She brought trumped up charges against the vineyard’s owner, hired witnesses to bear false testimony, and had him convicted and executed. Then she confiscated the vineyard in the name of the King (1 Kings 21:1-16). Centuries later the Catholic Church would obtain much of its wealth in the same way. Fortunes beyond measure were gained during these inquisitions.

https://www.raptureready.com/featured/kelley/rev3.html

 

[Kevin007]

Queen of Heaven

Pius the 12th 1950 said of Mary “reigns in heaven with her son.”
God has exalted Mary in heavenly glory as Queen of Heaven and Earth (966). She is to be praised with special devotion. Catechism of the Catholic Church, (2675)
The name of the Lord is to be praised, for He alone is exalted above heaven and earth. (Psalms 148:13).

The Catholic Church has made Mary the “Queen of Heaven”. The mention of the “queen of heaven” in the Bible makes God angry, it is not a good thing for the simple reason there is no biblical queen. The similarities of the practices of these people who worshiped her in the OT and the Catholic Church are not to be overlooked.

Jeremiah 7:18, “The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes (wafers?) to the QUEEN OF HEAVEN, and to pour out drink offerings (wine) unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.” Why would God be angry? Because He is a jealous God, and does not want any false replacements.

Jeremiah 44:15-25, “Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying, As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not harken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense (candles, worship?) unto the QUEEN OF HEAVEN, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the QUEEN OF HEAVEN, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. And when we burned incense to the QUEEN OF HEAVEN, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes (wafers) to WORSHIP HER, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men? Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying; Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the QUEEN OF HEAVEN, and to pour out drink offerings unto her: ye will surely accomplish your vows, and surely perform your vows.”

The word to make cakes in Hebrew atsab has the connotation of carving in worship, this was done by the women. They were in rebellion to God, notice they say, “for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not harken unto thee.” They didn’t listen, without obedience to the word they went into idolatry. Incense, burnt drink offerings made her cakes and worshiped her. As Solomon said there is nothing new under the sun. False worship is practiced today and is just as wrong as when this was written. As we can see the Queen of heaven is not a good thing but a rebuke.

There is no Queen mentioned in Scripture, but we do have a King.
Mary never had so many problems until the Roman Catholic church gave her the offices and positions that God did not.

http://www.letusreason.org/RC8.htm

 

[pcosmar]

So you think you are more or even as much as blessed as the one who bore the Savior?

There were many obedient to the will of God recorded in the scriptures. People of Faith.. Both Men and Women of God.
Fine examples and inspiration.

I simple posted the words of Jesus on the subject.

 

[TER]

There were many obedient to the will of God recorded in the scriptures. People of Faith.. Both Men and Women of God.
Fine examples and inspiration.

I simple posted the words of Jesus on the subject.

And I am simply telling you how you are misinterpreting it according to the fathers of the church. And according to those same fathers, there is none greater in blessedness then the Virgin Mary, neither in the old or the new testament.

 

[TER]

Btw, the correct translation from the Greek is not 'on the contrary' but 'more that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it." The woman Mary was not blessed simply because she gave birth to our Lord, but because she humbly and obediently obeyed Him'.

 

[pcosmar]

And I am simply telling you how you are misinterpreting it according to the fathers of the church. And according to those same fathers, there is none greater in blessedness then the Virgin Mary, neither in the old or the new testament.

OK,,do as you will.

I will take the Words of Christ over any man,, or hundred men, or any ten thousands that have come since.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in humans.

 

[TER]

OK,,do as you will.

I will take the Words of Christ over any man,, or hundred men, or any ten thousands that have come since.

You mean, you will take your interpretation of Christ's words over anyone else.

 

[acptulsa]

Btw, the correct translation from the Greek is not 'on the contrary' but 'more that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it." The woman Mary was not blessed simply because she gave birth to our Lord, but because she humbly and obediently obeyed Him'.

Pete didn't say, my friend, that he was more saintly or more blessed than the mother of our Lord. He said that the wisest course of action is to do as she did. Which, since we don't have the advantage of having raised Him and being able to hear Him in person, means attending the Teaching of the Teacher some other way.

And I sincerely doubt you would ever argue that paying homage to the lady is a suitable substitute for learning what the Teacher said about the Way and the Light.

I don't see what the argument is about...

 

[pcosmar]

You mean, you will take your interpretation of Christ's words over anyone else.

Scripture will interpret scripture,, And the Spirit of God will teach.

Yes.. I will take the words of the Lord over the teachings of men every time.