The Virgin’s Children

Seeing the value of the perpetual virginity of Mary

12/20/2018

Luke 1:26-38 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?"

I believe that nothing highlights the sharp contrast between Catholics and Protestants more than the Blessed Virgin Mary. In particular, Mary’s perpetual virginity stands at the crux of the controversy and conflict. That is, no Christian really argues that Mary was a virgin prior to conceiving Jesus, and today’s scripture from Isaiah 7 and Luke 1 provide ample evidence for that. Rather it’s Mary’s virginity after the birth of Jesus that raises the hairs on the back of Protestant necks and brings out their Bibles. Protestants point to passages like Luke 2:7 stating Jesus is Mary’s “firstborn son” so she must have had a “second born” and a “third born.”  Or, the famous passage in Mark 6:3 that name four “brothers of Jesus” – James, Joses, Jude and Simon.

But Catholics are quick to counter that “firstborn son” does not denote birth order or suggest subsequent siblings as much as designate a privilege of being first born which conveyed legal standing in Jewish society, regardless of siblings. Jesus would still be “firstborn” even if he had no brothers or sisters. Furthermore, Catholics consider Jesus’ brothers and sisters to be “cousins” rather than literally Jesus’ younger siblings. Hebrew uses the same word “brother” to signify cousins, a little like how I might call Fr. Stephen my “brother priest” even though we do not have the same mother (he’s a brother from another mother). All this controversy and consternation is caused over the perpetual virginity of Mother Mary, and I spilled some ink on it myself this morning.

But I would suggest to you we will only discover the telling point of the problem when we ask “why” do Catholics and Protestants disagree so vehemently over Mary’s virginity? Some might ask, “So what if Mary remained a virgin or not?” Or, “What difference does her virginity make in Sacred Scripture or in salvation history?” Here both Catholics and Protestants would agree whole-heartedly on the answer: it makes all the difference in the world! Why? At the bottom of the perpetual virginity of Mary lies the question about the sufficiency of Jesus’ sacrifice. Was Jesus’ sacrifice alone enough to save us? In other words, for Protestants once Mary gave birth to Jesus, her role in salvation history is finished and she needs to get out of the limelight and put the whole spotlight on Jesus. Protestants fear that insisting on Mary’s perpetual virginity distracts our attention away from Jesus, and diminishes his singular work of salvation. Mary sort of “competes” with Jesus for our attention and affection, kind of like how Fr. Stephen competes with me for your attention (I’ve been counting how many cards he gets for Christmas).

But Catholics would counter that Mary’s virginity does not compete with Christ’s saving work; indeed, Mary’s virginity is the very proof of his saving work, and her perpetual virginity is Jesus crowning achievement, his masterpiece, his piece de resistance. Emphasizing Mary’s place in salvation history only highlights how great and sufficient Jesus’ saving work really was and is. Mary is like a full moon, completely reflecting the light from the sun, her Son and Savior, whereas all other Christians are like a half moon or a sliver or a new moon that’s completely dark. The sufficiency of Christ’s salvation, therefore, can be seen most clearly and most completely in the Blessed Virgin Mary, and her perpetual virginity is not competition but only confirmation.

May I share why Mary’s perpetual virginity means so much to me personally? Because, oddly enough, the fact that Mary had no other children besides Jesus makes me feel like I don’t have to compete for her attention. She obviously does not have to worry about Jesus, her firstborn and only Child (he’s a good kid), so she has time to worry about me (a very troubled kid). I am convinced that’s why on the Cross, Jesus pointed Mary to his beloved disciple (who remained unnamed) and said, “Woman, behold your son.” Jesus was commanding his mother to take notice of little old me, and little old you (Jesus’ beloved disciples), and to take care of us as a mother because she did not have other natural children to fret or fear for.

It’s funny how when I pray the rosary daily things pop into my mind that I had forgotten to do, and I believe that’s Mary helping me remember. When I pray the rosary in traffic I stay calm and don’t yell at drivers because Mary holds my hand and tells me to be more like Jesus. Mary can be that close to me because I do not have any competitors for her affection from any other natural children. As a result, she has all the time in the world for her supernatural children. And that’s why the perpetual virginity of Mary matters to me, and maybe why it should matter to you.

Praised be Jesus Christ!