Marian Dogmas

[donadams]

@donadams
still waiting
Did a "clean" Mary come from an "unclean" Anne?

I said yes three separate and distinct times
R U deaf?

 

[donadams]

The four marian dogma’s are all in Luke chapter one!

Let me know when you find them.

Or you could simply ask me

 

[1Thess521]

I said yes three separate and distinct times
R U deaf?

please resolve you apparent contradiction.

"Jesus was conceived pure and immaculate because Mary was pure and immaculate."
with
Mary was conceived pure and immaculate WITHOUT Anne being pure and immaculate."

 

[donadams]

please resolve you apparent contradiction.

"Jesus was conceived pure and immaculate because Mary was pure and immaculate."
with
Mary was conceived pure and immaculate WITHOUT Anne being pure and immaculate."

Cos God intervened! Lk 1:49

“We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.”

Thanks

 

[Arial]

“We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.”

Except God did not reveal that Mary was preserved from original sin. That is an example of a Pope saying his voice is the voice of God and/or that God gives the Pope revelations that he gives no one else----not even the NT apostles.

 

[1Thess521]

Cos God intervened! Lk 1:49

“We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.”

Thanks

so Jesus was conceived pure and immaculate because His mother was pure and immaculate.

and Mary was conceived pure and immaculate NOT because her mother was pure and immaculate.

got it : thanks


"We Orthodox believe that the Panagia was conceived and born in a state of sin since she is a human being just like the rest of us. Only Christ was free of sin. "
see the 5 points here

An Orthodox Christian Understanding of the Immaculate Conception. St. John Maximovitch

Such a “vain deceit” is the teaching of the Immaculate Conception by Anna of the Virgin Mary, which at first sight exalts, but in actual fact belittles Her.

orthochristian.com

 

[donadams]

Those who Have the Holy Spirit can see things others miss. 1 Jn 2:20

Four Marian dogmas in Luke One!

Not explicitly, but the trinity, rapture, bible etc. are not in scripture explicitly either.

1) Mary, Mother of God:
2) Immaculate conception of Mary:
3) Perpetual virginity of Mary:
4) Mary assumed into heaven:

1) Mary, Mother of God:

Lk 1:43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

2) Immaculate conception of Mary:

Lk 1:28 And the angel entered to her, and said, Hail, full of grace;

Lk 1:49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

Things plural:
The immaculate conception of Mary & the miraculous conception of Jesus.

3) Perpetual virginity of Mary:

Lk 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? (No sex)

Lk 1:38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
(Handmaid of the Lord, implies total consecration to God and His will including Her virginity, sacrificed herself to God with a vow of perpetual virginity)
(Anything consecrated to God and His service must be pure and only for His service) (the Old Testament verifies this)

4) Mary assumed into heaven:

Lk 1:28 And the angel entered to her, and said, Hail, full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed be thou among women.
(The Lord is glorified in heaven at the right hand of God, since the Lord is with Her, she is also glorified in heaven)
(Most blessed among all women would be glorified and crowned by God in heaven)
(Mary is queen, in the line of David the king, the mother of the king is queen, Mary crowned queen in heaven rev 12:1)

 

[1Thess521]

Those who Have the Holy Spirit can see things others miss. 1 Jn 2:20

A claim has been made
So in the mind of @donadams ;
The Eastern Orthodox Church (2000 years old; founded by an Apostle) does not have the Holy Spirit because they do not see Mary's IC in Scripture.
Is that you view?

 

[Mr GLee]

The four marian dogma’s are all in Luke chapter one!

Let me know when you find them.

Or you could simply ask me

Hi Don

I would offer .we must be careful how we hear who we say we do

Our sister in the Lord Mary. . blessed by the mercy and fullness of grace not a remnant of the grace of Christ, the husband .

Mary born after the born again of the seed (Christ) .

She would never blaspheme the name of Christ and rather say we venerate Mary our sister in the Lord And not venerate Christ her husband .

Satan after another name other than Mary for the Queen mother of heaven . That lying tradition as a law of the legion of father (3,521 and rising patron saints, his and hers gods ) It was simply passed down to the Catholic with the Eastern Orthodox.

Both reject sola scriptura the living abiding word of God as the final authority in matters of faith (the unseen things) of Christ .

Some women had become Jealous of the men's only ceremonies. A high wall dividing them and another high privacy wall all gentile men and women.

A false women's lib Revealing they have no freedom in Christ . Giving men's approval of the nagging hen pecked wives (LOL)

Jeremiah 44: 15-17 Then all the men (Hen pecked) 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 (sola scriptura) in the name of the Lord, (sola scriptura) we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense 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.

Called the strange woman Not the bide of Chrsit the wonen known by her husabdn Chrsit

Proverbs 2:16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; (I heard it through the legion of dead fathers grape vine as oral traditions of dying mankind

 

[donadams]

Jesus Christ is our salvation! Lk 2:30

Found our salvation Lk 1:30
Consent to our salvation Lk 1:38
Conceived our salvation by the power of the Holy Spirit
Matt 1:18-20 Lk 1:35
Carried our salvation for nine Months and gave Birth to our salvation matt 1:21 Lk 2:16
Remaining a virgin Isa 7:14 matt 1:20
Received our salvation in her arms after taken down from the cross

Mary also found our Salvation in the temple Lk 2:48

 

[donadams]

@donadams
Don, The very first work of divine grace which introduces a sinner into the Christian life is a holy calling. So, it is the calling that transforms unbelievers into believers, children of darkness into sons of light. It isn't difficult to show that this teaching is eminently scriptural.

According to the bible, it is God who initiates the process of salvation by calling men with such omnipotent and irresistible power that they are brought into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.

Consider what Paul says about how he was introduced into the Christian life. Paul declares Galatians 1:15, But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, God called him through His grace. After all, isnt that what scripture says, "we are saved by grace?" (Eph 2:8)

Paul writes in Romand 1:6-7,
6 Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:
7 To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 8:30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

The list goes on Do, If you would like to see more, let me know I would be happy to post them.


Accoding to Peter, Christians are people who have been called unto eternal glory in Christ - 1 Peter 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
1 Peter 2:9, But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;
Don, my friend, this just keeps going. And nothing about baptism. No baptismal regeneration.
A close study of scripture makes it clear that the initial saving act of God which is termed "a holy calling" in 2 Tim 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, & Heb 3:1 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

Don, I really hope you think about this.

God’s grace precedes our actions of course but its not irresistible grace

God gives grace to the humble but resists the proud james 4:6
1 pet 5:5

Thanks

 

[donadams]

that is not Sola Fide

That is once "justified" always "justified"
You don't even know what you are against.

Sola Fide
we are justified (declared righteous) by God
the moment we have the God given faith (not mere mental assent)
PRIOR to any works done by us.

Please reply to #337

 

[donadams]

So most Catholics are justified apart from faith .



the publican had faith: that's why he prayed, that's why he knew he was sinner: that's why he knew God

Justified by humility and prayer!

 

[1Thess521]

Can you remain in a state of justification until death?

I say "yes"
you say "no".


And that has nothing to do with Sola Fide
You don't even know what you are against.

 

[1Thess521]

Justified by humility and prayer!

so then you agree
most Catholics are justified apart from faith

 

[donadams]

RC authors admit that the Marion doctrines cannot be verified from the early church tradition of the Church in the writings of the Church fathers.

Irenaeus, Tertullian, Origin, Hilary of Poitiers, Marius Victorinus, Ambrosiaster, Basil the Great, and Chrysostom all stated that Mary was not sinless.

“This Virgin Mother of the Only Begotten of God, is called Mary, worthy of God, immaculate of the immaculate, one of the one.” – Origen, Homily 1(A.D. 244).

“Let woman praise Her, the pure Mary.” St. Ephraim, Hymns on the Nativity, 15:23 (A.D. 370). Song of Solomon 1:3

“Thou alone and thy Mother are in all things fair, there is no flaw in thee and no stain in thy Mother.”
St. Ephraem, Nisibene Hymns, 27:8 (A.D. 370). (Song of Solomon 2:1-2 & 4:7)

“O noble Virgin, truly you are greater than any other greatness. For who is your equal in greatness, O dwelling place of God the Word? To whom among all creatures shall I compare you, O Virgin? You are greater than them all O Covenant, clothed with purity instead of gold! You are the Ark in which is found the golden vessel containing the true manna, that is, the flesh in which divinity resides.”
-Athanasius, Homily of the Papyrus of Turin, 71:216 (ante AD 373).
(Mary is the new covenant, new Jerusalem, (gal 4:26) the free woman who’s offspring (gen 3:15) is Christ and the mystical body of Christ)

[In the above quote by Saint Athanasius, the defender of the divinity of Christ, we find him identifying Mary with the gilded Ark of the Covenant. Moreover, he is praying to her.]

“Mary, a Virgin not only undefiled but a Virgin whom grace has made inviolate, free of every stain of sin.”
– Ambrose, Sermon 22:30 (A.D. 388). (Perpetual Virgin)

St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Pure and spotless is this birth. For where the Holy Spirit breathes, all pollution is taken away, so that the human birth of the Only-begotten from the Virgin is undefiled. (Catechetical Lectures, XII, 31-32; Gambero, 140)

St. Gregory Nazianzen

He was conceived by the Virgin, who had first been purified by the Spirit in soul and body; for, as it was fitting that childbearing should receive its share of honor, so it was necessary that virginity should receive even greater honor. (Sermon 38, 13; Gambero, 162-163)

St. Gregory of Nyssa

It was, to divulge by the manner of His Incarnation this great secret; that purity is the only complete indication of the presence of God and of His coming, and that no one can in reality secure this for himself, unless he has altogether estranged himself from the passions of the flesh. What happened in the stainless Mary when the fulness of the Godhead which was in Christ shone out through her, that happens in every soul that leads by rule the virgin life. (On Virginity, 2; NPNF 2, Vol. V, 344)

T]he power of the Most High, through the Holy Spirit, overshadowed the human nature and was formed therein; that is to say, the portion of flesh was formed in the immaculate Virgin. (Against Apollinaris, 6; Gambero, 153)

St. Ambrose

. . . Mary, a Virgin not only undefiled but a Virgin whom grace has made inviolate, free of every stain of sin. (Commentary on Psalm 118, 22, 30; Jurgens, II, 166)

What is greater than the Mother of God? What more glorious than she whom Glory Itself chose? What more chaste than she who bore a body without contact with another body? (Virginity, II, 6; NPNF 2, Vol. X, 374)

St. Epiphanius

Mary, the holy Virgin, is truly great before God and men. For how shall we not proclaim her great, who held within her the uncontainable One, whom neither heaven nor earth can contain? (Panarion, 30, 31; Gambero, 127)

St. Jerome

‘There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a flower shall grow out of his roots.’ The rod is the mother of the Lord–simple, pure, unsullied; drawing no germ of life from without but fruitful in singleness like God Himself… Set before you the blessed Mary, whose surpassing purity made her meet to be the mother of the Lord. (Letter XXII. To Eustochium, 19, 38; NPNF 2, Vol. VI, 29, 39; cf. Gambero, p. 213: “whose purity was so great that she merited to be the Mother of the Lord”)

Indeed how inferior they are, in terms of holiness, to blessed Mary, Mother of the Lord! (Contra Pelagianos, 1, 16; Gambero, 212)


St. Augustine

We must except the holy Virgin Mary, concerning whom I wish to raise no question when it touches the subject of sins, out of honour to the Lord; for from Him we know what abundance of grace for overcoming sin in every particular was conferred upon her who had the merit to conceive and bear Him who undoubtedly had no sin. Well, then, if, with this exception of the Virgin, we could only assemble together all the forementioned holy men and women, and ask them whether they lived without sin whilst they were in this life, what can we suppose would be their answer? (A Treatise on Nature and Grace, chapter 42 [XXXVI]; NPNF 1, Vol. V)

Augustine went a step farther. In an incidental remark against Pelagius, he agreed with him in excepting Mary, “propter honorem Domini,” from actual (but not from original) sin. This exception he is willing to make from the sinfulness of the race, but no other. He taught the sinless birth and life of Mary, but not her immaculate conception. . . . The reasoning of Augustine backward from the holiness of Christ to the holiness of His mother was an important turn, which was afterward pursued to further results. The same reasoning leads as easily to the doctrine of the immaculate conception of Mary, though also, just as well, to a sinless mother of Mary herself, and thus upward to the beginning, of the race, to another Eve who never fell.

(Schaff, HCC 3, 418-419)

We do not deliver Mary to the devil by the condition of her birth; but for this reason, because this very condition is resolved by the grace of rebirth. (Opus Imperf. Contra Julianum, 4, 122; Graef, 99)

And so he created a Virgin, whom he had chosen to be his Mother . . . she, with pious faith, merited to receive the holy seed within her. He chose her, to be created from her. (De peccatorum meritis et remissione, 2, 24, 38; Gambero, 219)

St. Cyril of Alexandria

Hail, Mary Theotokos, Virgin-Mother, lightbearer, uncorrupt vessel . . . Hail Mary, you are the most precious creature in the whole world; hail, Mary, uncorrupt dove; hail, Mary, inextinguishable lamp; for from you was born the Sun of justice . . . Through you, every faithful soul achieves salvation. (Homily 11 at the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus; Gambero, 243, 245)

A virgin, innocent, spotless, free of all defect, untouched, unsullied, holy in soul and body, like a lily sprouting among thorns. (Homily VI, 11; O’Carroll, 339)

If iron, once joined to fire, immediately expels the impurities extraneous to its nature and swiftly acquires a likeness to the powerful flame that heats it, . . . how much more, in a superior way, did the Virgin burn when the divine fire (the Holy Spirit) rushed in? She was purified from earthly impurities, and from whatever might be against her nature, and was restored to her original beauty, so as to become inaccessible, untouchable, and irreconcilable to carnal things. (Homily 4, 6; Gambero, 264)

Innocent virgin, spotless, without defect, untouched, unstained, holy in body and in soul, like a lily-flower sprung among thorns, unschooled in the wickedness of Eve . . . clothed with divine grace as with a cloak . . . (Homily 6, 11; Gambero, 268)

St. John Damascene

O most blessed loins of Joachim from which came forth a spotless seed! O glorious womb of Anne in which a most holy offspring grew. (Homily I on the Nativity of Mary; O’Carroll, 200; cf. Graef, 154; Gambero, 402)

She is all beautiful, all near to God. For she, surpassing the cherubim, exalted beyond the seraphim, is placed near to God. (Homily on the Nativity, 9; Gambero, 403)

 

[donadams]

Three important reasons the Immaculate Conception is (((ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED)))
for “our salvation” to become Man and accomplish the redemption!
(our salvation is our savior Jesus Christ Lk 2:30)


No one worthy:
Sacrifice:
Holiness:

((No one worthy))

All mankind is in a state of enmity with God, under a curse & children of wrath, disobedient, separated from God, & devoid of grace, “the life of God”!

Satan desired the fall of man to accomplish this very thing, that none of mankind could ever by nature be worthy of receiving the incarnate Word: “our salvation” (Jesus Christ)

God made Mary worthy by the grace of the Immaculate Conception of Mary in virtue of the future merits of Christ!


((Propitiatory Sacrifice of Christ))

The high priest Jesus Christ offers Himself as the victim on the cross and obtains the atonement, redemption, and salvation!

The victim must be pure, sinless, & holy to be acceptable. The eternal Word took flesh and blood of the sinless virgin Mary!

Jn 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

This is the blood of the new and eternal testament, her blood becomes “my blood of the new & eternal testament.

Sinless Mary clothed the eternal Word with human flesh & blood.

It is the flesh & blood that He took of the virgin that is crucified for our redemption & salvation!

That accomplished the atonement!

Christ could not assume flesh & blood from a sinner to obtain the salvation of all men!


((Holiness of God))

Daughter of the Eternal Father:
Mother of the Word:
Spouse of the Holy Spirit:

Requires Mary to be holy, pure, & immaculate!

(Ex 25 Anything consecrated to God for His purposes must be pure, holy, and dedicated only to God’s service)

Lk 1:30-35

30 And the angel said to her, Dread thou not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God.

31 Lo! thou shalt conceive in [the] womb, and shalt bear a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus.

32 This shall be great [He shall be great], and he shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give to him the seat of David, his father,

33 and he shall reign in the house of Jacob without end [and he shall reign in the house of Jacob into without end], and of his realm shall be none end.

34 And Mary said to the angel, On what manner shall this thing be done, for I know not man?

35 And the angel answered, and said to her, The Holy Ghost shall come from above into thee, and the virtue of the Highest shall overshadow thee; and therefore that holy thing that shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.

The Holy Spirit of God could not conceive the Holy Son of God in a sinner!

Immaculate Conception is (((ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED)))
for “our salvation” to become Man and accomplish the redemption! Amen!

And

((You oppose the Word of God!))

Scripture says: “holiness befits thy house, O Lord” (Ps 93:5). Mary was Jesus’ “house” for 9 months so if holiness befits God’s house would not Mary be holy also? Just like the Ark and the Tabernacle she was set apart and consecrated to the Lord., the holy dwelling of God.

1 cor 3:17 …..for the temple of God is holy….. Mary is the temple, house, dwelling of God, God had need of Her to become man!

Jesus was conceived pure and immaculate because Mary was pure and immaculate. As Job said “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? There is not one.” (Job 14:4).

Mary is the new covenant, the new Ark of the covenant, the new temple, the free woman (gen 3:15 who’s offspring is Christ according to the flesh, and the mystical body of Christ according to the Spirit) the new Jerusalem! (Gal 4:26)

Song of Solomon 4:1 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead.

Rev 12:1 a woman clothed with the sun.
(Immaculate purity)


And you are most inconsistent in applying the same absolute standard to all verses of scripture!



Christ needed sinless human flesh to take on.

Mary's sinlessness shows the dignity of her son, Jesus, who is God incarnate.

To become the mother of the Savior, Mary “was enriched by God with gifts appropriate to such a role.” The angel Gabriel at the moment of the annunciation salutes her as “full of grace.” (Lk 1:28) found grace (Lk 1:30) In fact, in order for Mary to be able to give the free assent of her faith to the announcement of her vocation, it was necessary that she be wholly borne by God’s grace, consented to “our salvation” Lk 1:38 all generations (Christians) call me blessed. Lk 1:48

Jude 1:24, which says that God is able to "keep you from stumbling and to present you “blameless”!

 

[donadams]

(The Ark of the covenant was a type of Mary, incorruptible wood refers to Her immaculate conception in grace Lk 1:49, covered with pure gold Her great charity or love of God, into the Ark was the mana, the Ten Commandments & Torah, Aaron’s rod, in Mary the new Ark was Christ the living mana come down from heaven, Christ the fulfillment of the law and the eternal Word of God, Christ the high priest)

 

[Mr GLee]

(The Ark of the covenant was a type of Mary, incorruptible wood refers to Her immaculate conception in grace Lk 1:49, covered with pure gold Her great charity or love of God, into the Ark was the mana, the Ten Commandments & Torah, Aaron’s rod, in Mary the new Ark was Christ the living mana come down from heaven, Christ the fulfillment of the law and the eternal Word of God, Christ the high priest)

Hi Donald

The key .All have sinned and continue to fall short of the glory of being eternal God. Mary our blessed sister in the Lord is not God. A invisible eternal spirit has not flesh and bone

Christ Emanuel is delivering us from these bodes of death that return to dust. Trust him. not seen . Not dying Peter who rebuked the Holy father and forbid the son of man Jesus from doing the powerful will of the father.

Personally I would pick Jesus or John over Peter our brother in the Lord

Yoked with Christ the husband in daily our burden can be lighter with a future hope of a new incorruptible beyond the grave or what you mut call limbo purgatory

In that way the golden ark used to hide in parables. It already has a spiritual meaning applied . Gold is used throughout to represent the measure of faith the unseen eternal things hid from sign and wonder, wonder marvel seekers as if true prophecy (sola scriptura) That which was hidden (sola scriptura) They sought after the Pagan foundation. Out of sight out of mind,

Christ used it against those who replaced (sola scriptura) with I heard it through the dying father oral grapevine.

God knew as soon as Moses was "out of sight out of mind" Bring back the Queen mother sacred tradition of dying mankind

Deuteronomy 31:23-25And he gave Joshua the son of Nun a charge, and said, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel into the land which I sware unto them: and I will be with thee.And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing (sola scriptura) the words of this law in a book,(sola scriptura) until they were finished,That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying, Take this book of the law, (sola scriptura)and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.For I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck: behold, while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have been rebellious against the Lord; and how much more after my death?;Gather unto me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words (sola scriptura) in their ears, and call heaven and earth to record against them.For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way (sola scriptura) which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because ye will do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands.

 

[makesends]

“This Virgin Mother of the Only Begotten of God, is called Mary, worthy of God, immaculate of the immaculate, one of the one.” – Origen, Homily 1(A.D. 244).

“Let woman praise Her, the pure Mary.” St. Ephraim, Hymns on the Nativity, 15:23 (A.D. 370). Song of Solomon 1:3

“Thou alone and thy Mother are in all things fair, there is no flaw in thee and no stain in thy Mother.”
St. Ephraem, Nisibene Hymns, 27:8 (A.D. 370). (Song of Solomon 2:1-2 & 4:7)

“O noble Virgin, truly you are greater than any other greatness. For who is your equal in greatness, O dwelling place of God the Word? To whom among all creatures shall I compare you, O Virgin? You are greater than them all O Covenant, clothed with purity instead of gold! You are the Ark in which is found the golden vessel containing the true manna, that is, the flesh in which divinity resides.”
-Athanasius, Homily of the Papyrus of Turin, 71:216 (ante AD 373).
(Mary is the new covenant, new Jerusalem, (gal 4:26) the free woman who’s offspring (gen 3:15) is Christ and the mystical body of Christ)

[In the above quote by Saint Athanasius, the defender of the divinity of Christ, we find him identifying Mary with the gilded Ark of the Covenant. Moreover, he is praying to her.]

“Mary, a Virgin not only undefiled but a Virgin whom grace has made inviolate, free of every stain of sin.”
– Ambrose, Sermon 22:30 (A.D. 388). (Perpetual Virgin)

St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Pure and spotless is this birth. For where the Holy Spirit breathes, all pollution is taken away, so that the human birth of the Only-begotten from the Virgin is undefiled. (Catechetical Lectures, XII, 31-32; Gambero, 140)

St. Gregory Nazianzen

He was conceived by the Virgin, who had first been purified by the Spirit in soul and body; for, as it was fitting that childbearing should receive its share of honor, so it was necessary that virginity should receive even greater honor. (Sermon 38, 13; Gambero, 162-163)

St. Gregory of Nyssa

It was, to divulge by the manner of His Incarnation this great secret; that purity is the only complete indication of the presence of God and of His coming, and that no one can in reality secure this for himself, unless he has altogether estranged himself from the passions of the flesh. What happened in the stainless Mary when the fulness of the Godhead which was in Christ shone out through her, that happens in every soul that leads by rule the virgin life. (On Virginity, 2; NPNF 2, Vol. V, 344)

T]he power of the Most High, through the Holy Spirit, overshadowed the human nature and was formed therein; that is to say, the portion of flesh was formed in the immaculate Virgin. (Against Apollinaris, 6; Gambero, 153)

St. Ambrose

. . . Mary, a Virgin not only undefiled but a Virgin whom grace has made inviolate, free of every stain of sin. (Commentary on Psalm 118, 22, 30; Jurgens, II, 166)

What is greater than the Mother of God? What more glorious than she whom Glory Itself chose? What more chaste than she who bore a body without contact with another body? (Virginity, II, 6; NPNF 2, Vol. X, 374)

St. Epiphanius

Mary, the holy Virgin, is truly great before God and men. For how shall we not proclaim her great, who held within her the uncontainable One, whom neither heaven nor earth can contain? (Panarion, 30, 31; Gambero, 127)

St. Jerome

‘There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a flower shall grow out of his roots.’ The rod is the mother of the Lord–simple, pure, unsullied; drawing no germ of life from without but fruitful in singleness like God Himself… Set before you the blessed Mary, whose surpassing purity made her meet to be the mother of the Lord. (Letter XXII. To Eustochium, 19, 38; NPNF 2, Vol. VI, 29, 39; cf. Gambero, p. 213: “whose purity was so great that she merited to be the Mother of the Lord”)

Indeed how inferior they are, in terms of holiness, to blessed Mary, Mother of the Lord! (Contra Pelagianos, 1, 16; Gambero, 212)


St. Augustine

We must except the holy Virgin Mary, concerning whom I wish to raise no question when it touches the subject of sins, out of honour to the Lord; for from Him we know what abundance of grace for overcoming sin in every particular was conferred upon her who had the merit to conceive and bear Him who undoubtedly had no sin. Well, then, if, with this exception of the Virgin, we could only assemble together all the forementioned holy men and women, and ask them whether they lived without sin whilst they were in this life, what can we suppose would be their answer? (A Treatise on Nature and Grace, chapter 42 [XXXVI]; NPNF 1, Vol. V)

Augustine went a step farther. In an incidental remark against Pelagius, he agreed with him in excepting Mary, “propter honorem Domini,” from actual (but not from original) sin. This exception he is willing to make from the sinfulness of the race, but no other. He taught the sinless birth and life of Mary, but not her immaculate conception. . . . The reasoning of Augustine backward from the holiness of Christ to the holiness of His mother was an important turn, which was afterward pursued to further results. The same reasoning leads as easily to the doctrine of the immaculate conception of Mary, though also, just as well, to a sinless mother of Mary herself, and thus upward to the beginning, of the race, to another Eve who never fell.

(Schaff, HCC 3, 418-419)

We do not deliver Mary to the devil by the condition of her birth; but for this reason, because this very condition is resolved by the grace of rebirth. (Opus Imperf. Contra Julianum, 4, 122; Graef, 99)

And so he created a Virgin, whom he had chosen to be his Mother . . . she, with pious faith, merited to receive the holy seed within her. He chose her, to be created from her. (De peccatorum meritis et remissione, 2, 24, 38; Gambero, 219)

St. Cyril of Alexandria

Hail, Mary Theotokos, Virgin-Mother, lightbearer, uncorrupt vessel . . . Hail Mary, you are the most precious creature in the whole world; hail, Mary, uncorrupt dove; hail, Mary, inextinguishable lamp; for from you was born the Sun of justice . . . Through you, every faithful soul achieves salvation. (Homily 11 at the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus; Gambero, 243, 245)

A virgin, innocent, spotless, free of all defect, untouched, unsullied, holy in soul and body, like a lily sprouting among thorns. (Homily VI, 11; O’Carroll, 339)

If iron, once joined to fire, immediately expels the impurities extraneous to its nature and swiftly acquires a likeness to the powerful flame that heats it, . . . how much more, in a superior way, did the Virgin burn when the divine fire (the Holy Spirit) rushed in? She was purified from earthly impurities, and from whatever might be against her nature, and was restored to her original beauty, so as to become inaccessible, untouchable, and irreconcilable to carnal things. (Homily 4, 6; Gambero, 264)

Innocent virgin, spotless, without defect, untouched, unstained, holy in body and in soul, like a lily-flower sprung among thorns, unschooled in the wickedness of Eve . . . clothed with divine grace as with a cloak . . . (Homily 6, 11; Gambero, 268)

St. John Damascene

O most blessed loins of Joachim from which came forth a spotless seed! O glorious womb of Anne in which a most holy offspring grew. (Homily I on the Nativity of Mary; O’Carroll, 200; cf. Graef, 154; Gambero, 402)

She is all beautiful, all near to God. For she, surpassing the cherubim, exalted beyond the seraphim, is placed near to God. (Homily on the Nativity, 9; Gambero, 403)

From this, we learn that Mary is great because we all say so. And nobody gets to be a saint unless they confess Mary as great and immaculate. And that because they are saints they have authority over truth, so that if they call Mary great and immaculate, it is so, beyond question.