97. How does Mary cooperate in the divine plan of salvation?

97. How does Mary cooperate in the divine plan of salvation?

(Comp 97) By the grace of God Mary was kept free from every personal sin her whole life long. She is the one who is “full of grace” (Luke 1:28), “the all holy”. When the angel announced to her that she would give birth to “the Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:32), she freely gave her consent with “the obedience of faith” (Romans 1:5). Mary thus gave herself entirely to the person and work of her Son Jesus, espousing wholeheartedly the divine will regarding salvation.

“In Brief”

(CCC 509) Mary is truly "Mother of God" since she is the mother of the eternal Son of God made man, who is God himself.

To deepen and explain

(CCC 494) At the announcement that she would give birth to "the Son of the Most High" without knowing man, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Mary responded with the obedience of faith, certain that "with God nothing will be impossible": "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be [done] to me according to your word" (Lk 1:28-38; cf. Rom 1:5). Thus, giving her consent to God's word, Mary becomes the mother of Jesus. Espousing the divine will for salvation wholeheartedly, without a single sin to restrain her, she gave herself entirely to the person and to the work of her Son; she did so in order to serve the mystery of redemption with him and dependent on him, by God's grace (Cf. LG 56): As St. Irenaeus says, "Being obedient she became the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race" (St. Irenaeus, Adv. haeres. 3, 22, 4: PG 7/1, 959A). Hence not a few of the early Fathers gladly assert…: "The knot of Eve's disobedience was untied by Mary's obedience: what the virgin Eve bound through her disbelief, Mary loosened by her faith" (St. Irenaeus, Adv. haeres. 3, 22, 4: PG 7/1, 959A). Comparing her with Eve, they call Mary "the Mother of the living" and frequently claim: "Death through Eve, life through Mary" (LG 56; St. Epiphanius, Haer. 78, 18: PG 42, 728CD-729AB; St. Jerome, Ep. 22, 21: PL 22, 408).

On reflection

(CCC 508) From among the descendants of Eve, God chose the Virgin Mary to be the mother of his Son. "Full of grace", Mary is "the most excellent fruit of redemption" (SC 103): from the first instant of her conception, she was totally preserved from the stain of original sin and she remained pure from all personal sin throughout her life. (CCC 493) The Fathers of the Eastern tradition call the Mother of God "the All-Holy" (Panagia), and celebrate her as "free from any stain of sin, as though fashioned by the Holy Spirit and formed as a new creature" (LG 56). By the grace of God Mary remained free of every personal sin her whole life long. (CCC 511) The Virgin Mary "co-operated through free faith and obedience in human salvation" (LG 56). She uttered her yes "in the name of all human nature" (St. Thomas Aquinas, STh III, 30, 1). By her obedience she became the new Eve, mother of the living.

(Next question: What does the virginal conception of Jesus mean?)