Mary and the
Fathers of the Church
By
Fr. Luigi Gambero, S.M.
The
following article is an excerpt from the recently published Marian
anthology, Mariology: A Guide
for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons, Seat of
Wisdom Books, A Division of Queenship, 2008. Fifteen international
Mariology experts contributed to the text. The book features a foreword
by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke and has 17 chapters divided into four
parts: 1. Mary in Scripture and the Early Church; 2. Marian Dogma; 3.
Marian Doctrine; and 4. Marian Liturgy and Devotion. The book is now
available from Queenship Publications. To obtain a copy, visit
queenship.org.
Visit
books.google.com and search on "Mariology: A Guide" to view the book
in its entirety, or simply
click here.
Asst. Ed.
(continued)
The Golden Age of Patristic Thought
In
the controversies of the fourth century, some heretics were unable to
understand how two different natures could be united to the point of
forming one unique being. Against them, the Church presented her
teaching on Mary’s divine maternity, understood in a Christological
sense more than in a Mariological one. In fact the statement that Mary
was the Mother of God implied that Christ was only one being, one
subject; that in him human and divine nature were distinct but not
separated. Tertullian, elaborating on the theory of the hypostatic union
(unio hypostatica), and Origen, introducing the concept of the
communication of idioms (communicatio idiomatum), created the
premises for the dogmatization of the term Theotókos. Perhaps
Origen himself, as we already said, used this word (33). However, we
cannot quote any author before Nicaea using it in his writings. Any
statement concerning Mary’s motherhood, because of its relationship with
the Christological dogma, was able to guarantee the orthodox doctrine on
the incarnate Word. It is noteworthy that Mary entered the many
liturgical formulas that Christians used in order to express their own
faith in the Incarnation of the Son of God. This is evident in the
creedal formulas of Ignatius of Antioch.
This
subsequent period goes from the councils of Nicea (325) to Chalcedon
(451). During this time, patristic literature reaches its climax both in
its literary form and in its contents. The Fathers are very strongly
involved in the long-lasting and harsh Trinitarian and Christological
controversies; and they contributed much to the growth of theology in
all its branches and especially to the confirmation of the truths of
faith. During this period, Marian doctrine continues to develop with the
entrance of specifically Marian homilies and further Mariological
development in light of the crucial Christological discussions of the
period.
Mary
is first introduced as the woman who plays the extraordinary role of the
Virgin Mother of our Savior; and this role is considered in the light of
biblical texts, in particular Isaiah 7:14 and the first two chapters of
Matthew and Luke. In the Eastern Church, the title of Theotókos
(the God-bearer) becomes more and more frequent and better rooted in the
doctrine of the incarnate Word. The evangelical titles of Virgin
and ever-Virgin, coined by the Fathers, begin to signify not only
the mysterious intervention of God in the event of the Incarnation of
his eternal Son, but also an admirable prerogative of Mary’s person.
These two terms are very soon understood as synonymous with panaghia
(all-holy), since the Fathers looked at the practice of virginity as the
equivalent of a holy life. Mary ought to be the holiest creature just
because she is the Virgin-Mother of God. In such a perspective, it is
understandable that the two dogmas of the divine motherhood and the
perpetual virginity became conveyed as only one truth: Mary is the
Virgin-Mother of God. In fact the Fathers believed that a faithful
Christian could not conceive a divine maternity without virginity. An
amazing confirmation of this popular belief is available in the
Christmas homily of St. Basil of Caesarea. After quoting the Gospel’s
statement: "He knew her not until she had borne a son" (Mt 1:25), the
Cappadocian Father of the Church adds the following remark:
This
could cause the supposition that Mary, after having done her part in all
purity in the birth of the Lord, accomplished thanks to the intervention
of the Holy Spirit, in the future may not have refused normal conjugal
relations. This would not damage any doctrine of religion, because
virginity was only necessary until the service of the Incarnation was
achieved; and what she might have done afterwards need not be
investigated as to any effects on the doctrine of the mystery. But since
the lovers of Christ cannot bear to hear that the Theotókos at a certain
moment may have ceased to be a virgin, we deem their testimony as
sufficient (34).
Therefore, because of her virginity and holiness, Mary was proposed as
the pattern par excellence of that life of perfection that
thousands of virgins, belonging to both sexes, embraced in the Christian
communities of that time.
Furthermore, the relationship between Mary and the mystery of the Church
becomes more and more clear. On this point, Western Fathers like Ambrose
and Augustine supplied us with a splendid doctrine which became normal
teaching in the Church throughout the centuries, down to the Second
Vatican Council. Thanks to the preaching of the Church Fathers, the
presence of Mary in the liturgical life of the Church also became more
and more explicit. In this period, homilies which may be called Marian
homilies made their first appearance. They are either explicitly related
to Mary or they are extensive treatments of Marian subjects. This is the
case with the Christmas homily of St. Basil, the homilies on the same
subject by Gregory of Nazianzus and Gregory of Nyssa, and the homily for
the feast of Jesus’ Presentation in the Temple (Hypapante) by
Amphilochius of Iconium.
After
the Council of Ephesus (431) the homiletic literature on Mary had an
extraordinary development. Let us recall some names like Cyril of
Alexandria, Theodotus of Ancyra, Proclus of Constantinople, Esichius of
Jerusalem, and in the West the immense production of St. Augustine. Some
of these Fathers were acknowledged as endowed with a special authority.
In fact they have been quoted by ecumenical councils, and their writings
were even included in the acts of the councils themselves. The three
great Cappadocian Fathers, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa,
and Gregory Nazianzus, contributed significantly to the increase of
Marian doctrine (35).
St.
Basil,
metropolitan bishop of Caesarea Cappadocia (+379), sees in the Son of
Mary the Emmanuel foretold by Isaiah and calls the womb of Mary the
workshop (ergasterion) in which the mysterious event of the
Incarnation of God took place. The power of the Most High and the Holy
Spirit are shown to be the agents of this indescribable phenomenon. In
the passage quoted above, Basil applies the famous term Theotókos
to Mary. He praises Mary’s holiness; nonetheless he erroneously
speculates that her moral figure was not totally without shadow,
referring to the doubt that, according to him, the Blessed Virgin
suffered under the Cross of her Son (36).
St.
Gregory of Nyssa
(+c.394), Basil’s brother, in order to defend Christ’s complete and
perfect humanity against Apollinaris of Laodicea, stresses the real
motherhood of Mary, who, therefore, has to be called the Mother of God (Theotókos).
Gregory proposes this term as a criterion of orthodoxy. He expresses all
his admiration before the wonder of Mary’s virginity, and interpreting
her answer to the angel at the Annunciation, maintains that she had
previously made a kind of vow of virginity (37).
St.
Gregory of Nazianzus
(+390), anticipating the declaration of Ephesus, pronounces a sharp
anathema against those who refuse to call Mary Theotókos. He also
condemns two other kinds of heresy connected to Mary’s divine
motherhood: the belief that Jesus merely passed through Mary and was not
formed in her womb; and that the Son born of Mary is not the same Son
eternally begotten by the Father (38). For Gregory, an admirable
exchange between God and Mary occurred in the mystery of the
Incarnation: God purified her in advance (prokatharsis) to make
her fit for her role in the Incarnation (39); Mary offered God the gift
of her undefiled virginity. Gregory is one of the first Christian
authors to mention the custom of the faithful addressing prayers to the
Mother of God. In fact he recounts the story of a virgin named Justine
who addressed Mary directly, requesting her help in particular
difficulties. From the Church historian Sozomen (early fifth century),
we know that Gregory was called to Constantinople to serve as pastor of
the small community faithful to the dogma of Nicea that gathered in the
church of the Anastasis (Resurrection). Sozomen adds that the
Mother of God performed miracles in response to the invocations
addressed to her by the faithful in that church (40).
St.
Ephrem the Syrian
(+373), from Nisibis, was a biblical exegete and a prolific
ecclesiastical writer of the Syrian Church. In his poetry, he combines
solid Marian doctrine with expressions of sublime beauty. Eastern
tradition called him "Harp of the Holy Spirit." From his writings we may
assume that he was indeed in love with the Virgin Mary. Addressing
Jesus, he wrote: "Only you and your Mother are more beautiful than every
thing. For on you, O Lord, there is no mark; neither is there any stain
in your Mother" (41). This beauty is not only of an esthetic dimension;
it belongs to the great deeds operated by God in his Mother. He wrote:
A
wonder is your Mother; the Lord entered her and became a servant; he
entered able to speak and he became silent in her; he entered her
thundering and his voice grew silent; he entered shepherd of all and in
her a lamb he became; he emerged bleating (42).
St.
Ephrem contemplates with enthusiasm the unique spectacle of Mary’s
virginity, praising God’s wisdom and love for this treasure given to
Mary. Another peculiar condition that he mentions in the Mother of God
is her relationship with the Church of which she is a prophetic figure,
a symbol. But he goes even so far as to identify the Church with Mary,
interpreting John 19:25-27, when Jesus on the Cross entrusted his Mother
to the beloved disciple. He wrote that Jesus entrusted to the apostle
John his Mother, the Church, as Moses consigned his flock to Joshua
(43). Ephrem also deals with the Eve-Mary parallelism, applying to the
two women the contrasting concepts of light and darkness, death and
life, the good triumphing and evil perishing (44). Ephrem not only spoke
and wrote about the Virgin Mary; he also nourished a deep and passionate
devotion toward her. He is one of the first Fathers of the Church to
express in his writings sentiments of love and devotion to the Mother of
the Lord.
Several other Fathers of the Eastern Church deserve to be mentioned.
Athanasius proposed the life of Mary to consecrated virgins as a
very high pattern of spiritual life; the author who introduced the name
of Mary in the 24 catecheses attributed to Cyril of Jerusalem
(+386); Epiphanius of Salamis (+403), transmitted to later
Christian generations a Marian doctrine which is one of the best
developed in his time and is undoubtedly the most copious. St. John
Chrysostom (+407) left many homilies on the Mother of God for the
celebration of her feasts.
Special mention is due the patriarch Cyril of Alexandria (+444).
St. Cyril played a decisive role in the proclamation of the orthodox
doctrine of faith on Jesus Christ as one in being, and on Mary as Mother
of God (45). Pope Celestine approved his behavior and doctrinal
teaching, so that the theological position of the Constantinopolitan
patriarch Nestorius (+c.451) was officially condemned and Mary
recognized as Theotókos, since she generated the human nature of
Christ’s divine person.
In
this historical period, Latin Christianity was also rich in names of
eminent Fathers of the Church. Some of them exerted a strong influence
on the development of Marian doctrine and devotion.
St.
Hilary of Poitiers
(+367) was one of them. He became the leading theologian of his age and
was a tenacious and formidable adversary of Arianism. For this reason he
was deposed from his episcopal see and sent into exile by the Emperor
Constantius. In his writings, he reserved a significant place to the
Mother of God, regarding her as an exceptional person who was
outstanding in the primitive Church because of her role and her glorious
virginity and holiness. Hilary likes to speak of Mary in the frame of
the New Testament. To defend Mary’s virginity in the Incarnation, he
introduces a distinction between marriage (sponsalia) and
matrimony (coniugium). Conceiving Jesus, Mary was still a
sponsa or fiancée; only afterwards did Joseph recognize her as a
coniux, namely a wife (46).
From
the second half of the fourth century on, the authority and teaching of
the three greatest Fathers of that time, Sts. Ambrose, Jerome, and
Augustine, grew more and more influential in the Western Church.
Ambrose, bishop of Milan (+397) could be considered the founder of
Marian doctrine in the West. His Marian texts are remarkable not only
because of their number, but especially for their quality. He mentions
Mary most frequently in his writings dealing with virginity. At the
beginning of his treatise to the virgins (De virginibus), Ambrose
tries to sketch a kind of biography of the Blessed Virgin, but his
purpose is not to elaborate an impossible historical work, but to
provide consecrated virgins with the highest pattern of perfect
Christian life (47). Mary is the Mother of God and "what could be nobler
than the Mother of God? What could be more splendid than the one who
chose Splendor himself? Who could be more chaste than the one who gave
birth to a body without the corruption of her own body?" (48) Perpetual
virginity was a requirement of her divine motherhood. Ambrose also faced
the question of the relationship between Mary and the Church. He is the
first Christian writer to call Mary the type (typus) of the
Church, and knowing his thought on this point is an indispensable
premise for understanding the development of this doctrine in the later
tradition of the Church. He writes:
(Mary
was) of course married but a virgin, because she is the type of the
Church, which is also married but remains immaculate. The virgin
(Church) conceived us by the Holy Spirit and, as a virgin, gave birth to
us without pain. And perhaps this is why holy Mary, married to one man,
is made fruitful by another (the Holy Spirit), to show that the
individual churches are filled with the Spirit and with grace, even as
they are united in the person of a temporal priest (49).
Ambrose also made a definitive contribution to a portrayal of the Mother
of God as completely devoid of any moral shadow, radiant with
extraordinary greatness and holiness.
Another influential Father of the Church was St. Jerome (+419),
the most outstanding biblical scholar in the ancient Latin Church. He
greatly contributed to the growth of a Marian mentality in the Church
both East and West. Like Hilary of Poitiers, he happened to write about
Mary in the context of the Holy Scriptures; but he is also famous
because of his engagement in the controversy on Mary’s virginity, that
in his time was primed by the spreading of the heretical pamphlets of
Jovinian and Helvidius.
Jerome was endowed with a formidable polemic strength, and if somebody
was destined to fall under his controversial stylus, he certainly risked
being slain. This is what occurred to Jovinian and Helvidius, the two
unlucky deniers of Mary’s perpetual virginity. For instance, in his
treatise against Helvidius, Jerome confutes the interpretation of his
opponent on Matthew 1:18, "Before they came together, she was found to
be with child by the power of the Holy Spirit." He responds to Helvidius
in this way:
I
don’t know whether to laugh or cry. Should I accuse him of lack of
experience or just carelessness? Suppose someone should say: "Before
eating lunch at the harbor, I set sail for Africa." Would this mean that
his statement could not be valid unless he had to eat lunch at the
harbor some day? Or if we wished to say: "The apostle Paul, before
departing for Spain, was put in chains in Rome?" Or to say—which is
quite likely—"Helvidius, before repenting, was struck down by death?"
And
he concludes:
Therefore, it is not necessary that the things one was planning to do
should really happen, should something else intervene to prevent them
from happening. Thus, when the evangelist says: "Before they came
together," he means that the time of the wedding is near and that things
have reached the point that she who had been considered engaged was
about to become a wife (50).
Jerome likes to discover the image of Mary in the prophecies of the Old
Testament and to consider her as the woman promised by God. Like St.
Ambrose, he has a great esteem for Mary’s complete holiness.
St.
Augustine
(+430) is undoubtedly the most genial Father of the Western Church, and
his extraordinary genius is also evident in the texts in which he deals
with the Virgin Mary, especially in the sermons he preached at Christmas
and in his exegetical writings, commenting on passages where Mary is
mentioned. Many factors, such as his engagement in the Christological
controversy, his lively sense of the Church, his zeal in the ministering
to the people of God, and the very original experience of his personal
conversion, exerted an undeniable influence in his approach to the
mysteries of the Mother of God. If his Marian doctrine appears very open
to the problems of his time, it is also oriented to the future of
Christianity. In fact, he anticipates intuitions and perspectives that
are considered topical even today. All this might explain the reasons
why Augustine is the Father of the Church most quoted or mentioned in
the documents of Vatican II, especially in chapter 8 of Lumen Gentium.
In
order to understand the peculiar attitude of the Bishop of Hippo toward
the mystery of the Mother of the Lord, it may be useful to refer to a
truth which is fundamental in Augustine’s thought, namely the mystery of
predestination. He started from this conviction to defend the absolute
gratuity of divine grace in the controversy against Pelagius. The first
grace in the process of salvation cannot be deserved by a creature. It
is simply given gratuitously by God. From such a universal law, not even
the incarnate Word, in so far as he is a creature, was dispensed. Let us
read Augustine: "I repeat: there is no more outstanding example of
predestination than the Mediator himself. The faithful Christian who
wishes to understand this well, should pay attention to this example,
for in it he shall find himself" (51).
Neither could Mary escape such a divine plan. She could not deserve to
be chosen by God; her choice was absolutely gratuitous. Augustine
explains this truth when commenting on the scene of Calvary (Jn
19:25-27): "Then he recognized her; yet, he had always known her. Even
before he was born of her, he knew his Mother in her predestination.
Before he, as God, created her from whom he would be created as man, he
knew his Mother" (52). According to Augustine, Mary’s call to divine
maternity and all its consequences was not determined by any foreseen
merit of hers; it was just a pure grace. Her merit is subsequent, in as
much she responded to such grace.
Following the tradition of the preceding Fathers (and in particular of
his master St. Ambrose), he attributes to Mary a total holiness that
excluded in her any kind of imperfection, or stain and moral shadow.
Famous is the statement in which he is explicit about her personal
sinlessness: "Except the holy Virgin Mary, concerning whom, for the
honor of the Lord, I will have no question of sin; for we know how much
to conquer in every way was given to her who merited conceiving and
bringing forth him who certainly had no sin" (53).
In
the context of Mary’s holiness, Augustine emphasizes her perpetual
virginity: "As a virgin she conceived; as a virgin she brought forth; a
virgin she remained" (54). In one of his statements he seems to present
this prerogative of the Mother of God as a dogma of faith: "It is
allowed to say, without endangering faith, that Mary had a face like
this or that. But nobody could say, without endangering Christian faith:
Perhaps Christ is born of a virgin" (55).
A
significant point of Augustine’s Marian doctrine is the relation of Mary
with the Church. Imitating St. Ambrose, he also calls Mary type (typus)
of the Church, since Mary already is what the Church will be in her
eschatological fulfillment. He wrote: "Nevertheless it is true; the
Church is the mother of Christ. Mary preceded the Church as its type"
(56). Mary is not excluded from the Church. She is a member of the body
of Christ: "Mary is part of the Church, a holy member, an outstanding
member, a super eminent member, but a member of the whole body,
nonetheless" (57).
The
Bishop of Hippo urges consecrated virgins to take Mary as their own
model of Christian life. Without Mary, consecrated virginity would not
even exist in the Church. But he presents Mary as a pattern of Christian
life for married women also, because she was a most upright and loving
wife of St. Joseph (58).
Augustine died on the eve of the Council of Ephesus, to which he had
been invited because of his prestigious reputation. The 20 years between
Ephesus and Chalcedon constitute for the Church a period of intense
theological activity. Many ecclesiastical personalities were involved in
the doctrinal debate beside the two main protagonists, Cyril of
Alexandria and Nestorius.
In
the East, we may recall Proclus of Constantinople (+446) and
Theodotus of Ancyra (+ before 446); in the West Peter Chrysologus
(+c.450), and Pope Leo the Great (+461), who assured the happy
conclusion of the Council of Chalcedon through his famous document, the
Tomus ad Flavianum. In this period Christian poetry flourished in
the verses of Caelius Sedulius (+450), who reserved an important
place to Mary in the Carmen Paschale, which is his masterpiece.
(to be
continued)
RETURN TO TOP
|
