Today, January 1, is both the Octave day of Christmas and the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Many Protestants I know have a big problem with referring to Mary as the Mother of God. To refer to her in this way is actually quite logical.
The Protestant argument is often that Mary gave birth only to Jesus' human nature. However, in making this argument, Protestants resurrect the heresy of Nestorianism. Catholic Answers has a great definition of Nestorianism, which is, "This heresy about the person of Christ was initiated by Nestorius, bishop of Constantinople, who denied Mary the title of Theotokos (Greek:
"God-bearer" or, less literally, "Mother of God"). Nestorius claimed
that she only bore Christ’s human nature in her womb, and proposed the
alternative title Christotokos ("Christ-bearer" or "Mother of Christ").
Orthodox Catholic theologians recognized that Nestorius’s theory
would fracture Christ into two separate persons (one human and one
divine, joined in a sort of loose unity), only one of whom was in her
womb. The Church reacted in 431 with the Council of Ephesus, defining
that Mary can be properly referred to as the Mother of God, not in the
sense that she is older than God or the source of God, but in the sense
that the person she carried in her womb was, in fact, God incarnate ("in
the flesh").
There is some doubt whether Nestorius himself held the heresy his
statements imply, and in this century, the Assyrian Church of the East,
historically regarded as a Nestorian church, has signed a fully orthodox
joint declaration on Christology with the Catholic Church and rejects
Nestorianism. It is now in the process of coming into full ecclesial
communion with the Catholic Church" (http://www.catholic.com/tracts/the-great-heresies).
As the definition above states, this way of thinking fractures Christ into two distinct persons, one human and one divine. This perspective also denies the hypostatic union, that Jesus is one person with two natures. If the hypostatic union breaks down, the understanding of the Atonement breaks down as well, as we cannot be certain which of Jesus' natures died on the cross. With the hypostatic union in tact, we can be assured that the entire person of Jesus (both human and divine natures) died on Calvary.
Back to Mary as Mother of God... Catholics do not claim that Mary is divine or that she is responsible for Jesus' divine nature. However, Catholics do assert, and Sacred Scripture concurs, that Mary is the mother of Jesus, and therefore responsible for contributing the genetic material which makes up the person of Jesus. One example of Scripture's claim to Mary's divine maternity is Luke 1:26-33, "In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from
God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a
man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name
was Mary. And he came to her and said, 'Hail, full of grace, the
Lord is with you!' But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and
considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the
angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor
with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a
son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be
called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the
throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of
Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end'".
A few verses later, Elizabeth recognizes the unique status of Mary's maternity when she says, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the
fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my
Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting
came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is
she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken
to her from the Lord" (Luke 1:42-45).
There is evidence of Mary's divine maternity outside of Luke's Gospel. Matthew also speaks about it in the following passage, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this
way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came
together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; and her
husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame,
resolved to send her away quietly. But as he considered this, behold,
an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son
of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is
conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and
you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their
sins.' All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the
prophet: 'Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his
name shall be called Emmanuel' (which means, God with us). When
Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him;
he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he
called his name Jesus" (Matthew 1:18-24).
Through just these few references from Sacred Scripture (as well as others) we can ascertain that Mary is indeed the mother of God. Mary is the mother of Jesus, Jesus is the second person of the Holy Trinity, hence Mary is the mother of God. While Protestants will not accept its authority, the Catechism states in paragraph 963 that, "Since the Virgin Mary's role in the mystery of Christ
and the Spirit has been treated, it is fitting now to consider her
place in the mystery of the Church. 'The Virgin Mary . . . is
acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the
redeemer. . . . She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ'
. . . since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of
believers in the Church, who are members of its head.'"502
The citation for 502 comes from the Dogmatic Constitution of the Church - Lumen Gentium, paragraph 53, "The Virgin Mary, who at the message of the angel received the Word of
God in her heart and in her body and gave Life to the world, is acknowledged and
honored as being truly the Mother of God and Mother of the Redeemer. Redeemed by
reason of the merits of her Son and united to Him by a close and indissoluble
tie, she is endowed with the high office and dignity of being the Mother of the
Son of God, by which account she is also the beloved daughter of the Father and
the temple of the Holy Spirit. Because of this gift of sublime grace she far
surpasses all creatures, both in heaven and on earth. At the same time, however,
because she belongs to the offspring of Adam she is one with all those who are
to be saved. She is 'the mother of the members of Christ . . . having
cooperated by charity that faithful might be born in the Church, who are members
of that Head.' (3*) Wherefore she is hailed as a pre-eminent and singular
member of the Church, and as its type and excellent exemplar in faith and
charity. The Catholic Church, taught by the Holy Spirit, honors her with filial
affection and piety as a most beloved mother."
The citation for (3*) comes from St. Augustine's De Sancta Virginitate (Of Holy Virginity) - the entire text may be found at the following address (http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1310.htm).
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