Definition of Virgin Mary

As the Bible relates, something extraordinary happened 2000 years ago: a humble woman of Jewish origin named Mary received an announcement from the angel Gabriel, who had been sent by God. The angel informed her that she would have a son and that she would be called Jesus, who in turn was the son of God.

Since then, this woman has gone down in history as the mother of God and to refer to her they speak of the Virgin Mary.

The virginity of Mary

Regarding her virginity, it must be remembered that the early Christian church understood that sexuality had a component sinful, so the only worthy way for Mary to be the mother of God was through a non-sinful conception and immaculate. For this reason, in the New Testament which was written during the first centuries of movement Christian indicates that Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit. This idea is known among Catholics as the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.

In the New Testament and in the apocryphal Gospels there is little information about the figure of Mary

Little information about the life of Mary appears in the New Testament. It is said that she was from Nazareth and that her parents were named Joaquín and Ana. In the apocryphal gospels some complementary data are provided, especially on the education that she had in her childhood and the attentions she received from the priests of the Temple. Despite the limited information, the figure of the Virgin Mary is one of the pillars of Christianity. With regard to her husband, Joseph, there are not too many data in the Gospels, since only She knows that he worked as a carpenter and that he probably died when his son was 12 years.

The Virgin Mary for Catholics

The Virgin Mary is, first of all, the mother of God and not only the mother of Jesus Christ. In this sense, it must be remembered that according to Catholic doctrine God has three different persons, since he is Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Catholics worship Mary because her own son, Jesus, did. In the tradition of the Holy Rosary the main virtues attributed to the Virgin Mary are remembered: the love to God, the modesty, faith, chastity and obedience.

In Catholic theology there is a branch that is dedicated to the study of the Virgin Mary, Mariology.

According to perspective For Catholics, devotion to the Virgin Mary is based on the direct relationship she had with Jesus Christ, the second person of the Holy Trinity.

The prayer of Catholics addressed to the Virgin Mary expresses a deep desire: that the mother of Jesus Christ can intercede for men before God.

Photos: Fotolia - thauwald / Renáta Sedmáková