Christianity Explained

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Bishops The Church made by the laying of hands by the holy spirit from the apostles have always believed Mary was sinless, even before the Bible was canonized. 

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Timeline of Early Christianity, Marian Prayer & Canon Formation

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2nd Century (100–200 A.D.)

• Church Fathers (St. Justin Martyr, St. Irenaeus) call Mary the “New Eve.” If she is greater than Eve she can't fall into sin. Mary had perfect obedience to God, that means no sin.

• Writings emphasize her role in salvation history

• No formal Marian prayers survive yet, but devotion is clear

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3rd Century (200–300 A.D.)

• Earliest Marian prayer:
  “Sub tuum praesidium” (c. 250 A.D., Egypt)

• Shows Christians invoking Mary as Theotokos (Mother of God) well before dogmatic definition (Council of Ephesus, 431)

• Persecutions (Decius, Diocletian) lead to many prayers for protection, Marian intercession sought.

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4th Century (300–400 A.D.)

• Constantine legalizes Christianity (Edict of Milan, 313)

• Nicene Creed (325) professes Christ as “God from God”

• Fathers like St. Athanasius and St. Ephrem praise Mary in hymns and writings

• Councils of Rome (382), Hippo (393), Carthage (397) finalize the NT canon

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Biblical verses to support Mary's sinlessness:​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

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Satan not allowed to effect Mary:

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Genesis 3:15
15 And I will put enmity between thee (satan) and the woman(Mary) and between thy seed and her seed;

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Someone can't be highly favoured and full of grace if in sin, as grace and sin are opposites (Romans 6:14).

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In Luke 1:28 at the annunciation the Angel Gabriel doesn't call Mary by name, he calls her kecharitōmenē,

"Highly favoured" (kecharitomene.) Perfect passive participle of charitoo and means endowed with grace (charis.)  Most favoured one meaning highest creature in all creation. Luke’s gospel literally records Gabriel as saying κεχαριτωμένη (kecharitomene). It does translate as “full of grace”—but not in the modern English idiom, most highly favored one” is also accurate if one takes “most” very seriously—Gabriel is addressing Mary as the most graced person in all of God’s creation.)

• It suggests that Mary was graced by God in the past and continues to remain in that unique state of grace.

• Translation: The word is difficult to translate precisely with a single English word and has been rendered in various ways, including:

  • "Highly favored" (KJV, NKJV)

  • "Full of grace" (Douay-Rheims, traditional Catholic translations, from the Latin gratia plena)

  • "Favored one" (NASB, ESV)

  • "One who has been graced."

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God doesn't enter the Ark of the covenant or defiled places in the old testament. Unless they are holy, people can't enter it if in sin or they are destroyed. This is the same as with the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit on Mary (Ark of the new covenant, Jesus) in Luke 1:35.

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Leviticus 10
The Death of Nadab and Abihu
10 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, contrary to his command. 2 So fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. 3 Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said:

“‘Among those who approach me
    I will be proved holy;

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Purification needed for God's presence:

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Leviticus 16 

2 The Lord said to Moses: tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die.3 This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place: He must first bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. ​

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2 Chronicles 7:1–2
“When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven… and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’s house.”

 

Exodus 40:34–35
“Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
Moses was not able to enter the tent… because the cloud settled upon it.”
(this happens after:
Anointing
Consecration
Purification (Exod 40:9–15))

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When sin is present, God’s glory departs:

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Wisdom of Solomon 1:4

“For wisdom will not enter a deceitful soul, nor dwell in a body enslaved to sin.”

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Ezekiel 10:18–19
“Then the glory of the LORD went out from the threshold of the house…”
(Because of Israel’s persistent sin and defilement (see Ezek 8–9)

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Isaiah 59:2
“Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God.”​​

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Elizabeth filled with the Holy spirit calls Mary blessed among Women, already showing she surpasses eve and therefore cannot succumb to sin. Mary then confirms all generations will show respect to her as blessed, and full of grace:

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Luke 1:15 (The birth of John)

He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.

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uke 1:41-42

41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

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Luke 1:46

And Mary said,
My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.

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Scripture showing God does stop people from sinning, as he did for Mary at her conception:

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​Genesis 20:6
Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her.

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Through her intercession Mary speeds up the coming of Jesus's first miracle:

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John 2

2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. 9 When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew)

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If Mary was in sin during this time, her intercession would not have been granted by god:

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psalms 66:18
If I had cherished sin in my heart,
    the Lord would not have listened;

 

Martin Butzer (Protestant Lutheran reformer)

"Indeed, no Christian doubts that the most worthy Mother of the Lord lives with her beloved Son in heavenly joy." (Marienlexikon, vol 3, 200)

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Definitions:

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Holy -  Two Translations: The first is ἅγιος (hagios), which literally means “different” or “set apart”, but takes on the meaning of the English “holy” in light of the idea of being “set apart for God” like a consecrated temple. Usages: Holy Spirit, Holy City, Angels, Covenant. The second term is ὅσιος (hosios), which means something like “worthy of pious respect” or “sanctioned by divine law”. When used of persons, it basically means “pious”. She is certainly depicted as exceedingly pious by all the Gospels, and “pious respect” is shown to her by an angel of the Lord and a woman filled with the Spirit, so we can hardly say she’s not “worthy of pious respect”. 

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The assumption of Mary to heaven - All kings in Old Testament had their mothers sitting next to them at throne and everywhere they went on important business, honor to mothers was very important. Just not worship. 
All the bones of saints were highly revered and sought after when they died. Displayed in rome and elsewhere. The remains of Mary's bones from her tombs have never been found. Pregnant women mix DNA with their babies and carry their DNA in them for their whole lives. This is why for Jesus to fully ascend to Heaven and salvation be complete for us, Mary also had to ascend. 

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Psalm 132:8

‘Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place,
   you and the ark of your might.

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St. Epiphanius AD 350

Like the bodies of the saints, however, she has been held in honor for her character and understanding. And if I should say anything more in her praise, she is like Elijah, who was virgin from his mother’s womb, always remained so, and was taken up, but has not seen death (Panarion 79).

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Revelation 11:19

19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.

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Other prophets brought up to heaven bodily:

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Genesis 5:24

24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

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2 Kings 2:11

11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.

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Early Church Fathers on Mary:

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https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103322.htm

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"For as Eve, being a virgin, and undefiled, having conceived the word of the serpent, brought forth disobedience and death; so also Mary, a virgin, undisturbed by any evil desire, receiving faith and joy, when the angel announced the good tidings to her, brought forth obedience and life."
— St. Irenaeus Against Heresies 5.19.1

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Ignatius (170 A.D)
“The virginity of Mary and her giving birth, and likewise the death of the Lord, escaped the notice of the ruler of this world—three mysteries loudly proclaimed but accomplished in the silence of God.”
(Eph. 19)

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Ephraim the Syrian

“You alone and your Mother are more beautiful than any others, for there is no blemish in you nor any stains upon your Mother. Who of my children can compare in beauty to these?” (Nisibene Hymns 27:8 [A.D. 361]).

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The Odes of Solomon

“So the Virgin became a mother with great mercies. And she labored and bore the Son, but without pain, because it did not occur without purpose. And she did not seek a midwife, because he caused her to give life” (Odes of Solomon 19 [A.D. 80]).

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Justin Martyr

“[Jesus] became man by the Virgin so that the course which was taken by disobedience in the beginning through the agency of the serpent might be also the very course by which it would be put down. Eve, a virgin and undefiled, conceived the word of the serpent and bore disobedience and death. But the Virgin Mary received faith and joy when the angel Gabriel announced to her the glad tidings that the Spirit of the Lord would come upon her and the power of the Most High would overshadow her, for which reason the Holy One being born of her is the Son of God. And she replied ‘Be it done unto me according to your word’ [Luke 1:38]” (Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 100 [A.D. 155]).

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St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. 180–190) Against Heresies, 3.22.4 “As Eve, having disobeyed, became the cause of death for herself and for the whole human race, so Mary, being obedient, became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race.” 

• Eve was created sinless

• Mary must be at least as holy as Eve

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Irenaeus

“Consequently, then, Mary the Virgin is found to be obedient, saying, ‘Behold, O Lord, your handmaid; be it done to me according to your word.’ Eve, however, was disobedient, and, when yet a virgin, she did not obey. Just as she, who was then still a virgin although she had Adam for a husband—for in paradise they were both naked but were not ashamed; for, having been created only a short time, they had no understanding of the procreation of children, and it was necessary that they first come to maturity before beginning to multiply—having become disobedient, was made the cause of death for herself and for the whole human race; so also Mary, betrothed to a man but nevertheless still a virgin, being obedient, was made the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race. . . . Thus, the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. What the virgin Eve had bound in unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed through faith” (Against Heresies 3:22:24 [A.D. 189]).

• Eve was created sinless

• Mary must be at least as holy as Eve, and was obedient unlike eve, therefore sinless. 

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St. Hippolytus of Rome (c. 200)

Oration on the End of the World

“The ark was made of incorruptible wood. Thus the Savior was born from the Virgin, who was untouched by corruption.”

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Origen (c. 230)

Homilies on Luke 7

“This Virgin Mother of the Only-begotten of God is called full of grace, because she received the grace of the Holy Spirit without measure.”

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Ambrose of Milan

St. Ambrose of Milan (†397) Commentary on Psalm 118 “Mary, a Virgin not only undefiled but a Virgin whom grace has made inviolate, free from every stain of sin.”

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“Mary’s life should be for you a pictorial image of virginity. Her life is like a mirror reflecting the face of chastity and the form of virtue. Therein you may find a model for your own life . . . showing what to improve, what to imitate, what to hold fast to” (The Virgins 2:2:6 [A.D. 377]).

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Augustine

“That one woman is both mother and virgin, not in spirit only but even in body. In spirit she is mother, not of our head, who is our Savior himself—of whom all, even she herself, are rightly called children of the bridegroom—but plainly she is the mother of us who are his members, because by love she has cooperated so that the faithful, who are the members of that head, might be born in the Church. In body, indeed, she is the Mother of that very head” (Holy Virginity 6:6 [A.D. 401]).

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St. Augustine (†430)

Nature and Grace, ch. 36

“All men must confess themselves sinners except the Holy Virgin Mary, concerning whom I wish to raise no question when it touches the subject of sins, out of honor to the Lord.”

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Timothy of Jerusalem

“Therefore the Virgin is immortal to this day, seeing that he who had dwelt in her transported her to the regions of her assumption” (Homily on Simeon and Anna [A.D. 400]).

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John the Theologian

“[T]he Lord said to his Mother, ‘Let your heart rejoice and be glad, for every favor and every gift has been given to you from my Father in heaven and from me and from the Holy Spirit’” (The Falling Asleep of Mary [A.D. 400]).

“And from that time forth all knew that the spotless and precious body had been transferred to paradise” (ibid.).

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Gregory of Tours

“The course of this life having been completed by blessed Mary, when now she would be called from the world, all the apostles came together from their various regions to her house. And when they had heard that she was about to be taken from the world, they kept watch together with her. And behold, the Lord Jesus came with his angels, and, taking her soul, he gave it over to the angel Michael and withdrew. At daybreak, however, the apostles took up her body on a bier and placed it in a tomb, and they guarded it, expecting the Lord to come. And behold, again the Lord stood by them; the holy body having been received, he commanded that it be taken in a cloud into paradise, where now, rejoined to the soul, [Mary’s body] rejoices with the Lord’s chosen ones and is in the enjoyment of the good of an eternity that will never end” (Eight Books of Miracles 1:4 [A.D. 584]).

“But Mary, the glorious Mother of Christ, who is believed to be a virgin both before and after she bore him, has, as we said above, been translated into paradise, amid the singing of the angelic choirs, whither the Lord preceded her” (ibid., 1:8).
 

St. John Damascene (†749)

Homily on the Nativity of the Theotokos “O blessed loins of Joachim, from which came forth a spotless seed! O wondrous womb of Anna, in which was formed a most holy child!” Homily I on the Dormition “The whole nature was sanctified in her.”

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St. Anselm (†1109)

“It was fitting that the Virgin should shine with such purity that under God none greater can be imagined.”

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Bl. John Duns Scotus (†1308)

“She was redeemed in a more sublime manner — by being preserved from falling.”

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Other explanations:

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Catholics carry statues of Mary to represent the old testament carrying the ark of the covenant, which is now Jesus.

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The cells of Jesus circulated in Mary and this union coundt be sin and sinless at the same time.

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