As soon as the Blessed Virgin Mary was conceived in her mother's womb, she was protected from the stain of original sin. God gave this unique favour and grace in recognition of Jesus Christ's merits. Her conception does not refer to any act or part of her parents, her body's creation, or the later conception of Christ within her own womb; rather, it refers to the fact that her soul was free from original sin and full of sanctifying grace from the moment it was created and infused into her body. Her soul was originally created in a state of sanctity, innocence, and justice; it was never tarnished by original sin or the corrupted emotions, passions, and weaknesses that followed it. She possessed more graces than the first Eve before the Fall, at the very least. This honour was appropriate for the person who would become the mother of the Redeemer.
Pope Pius IX's solemn proclamation, "Ineffabilis Deus," issued in 1854, definitively affirmed the Church's long-standing view that Mary was conceived without original sin. Mary's special position in history as the Mother of God allowed Her to be bestowed with this exceptional privilege. In other words, she was born with the gift of salvation by faith in Christ.
The development of this doctrine was a lengthy process. Mary was regarded as the greatest and holiest of the saints by many Fathers and Doctors of the Church, although they frequently found it difficult to believe that she was sinless at the time of her conception or throughout her life. One of the Church's doctrines that emerged more from the piety of the faithful than from the wisdom of learned theologians is this one. Even Mary's strong believers, such as Bernard of Clairvaux and Thomas Aquinas, could not discover the theological foundation for this teaching.
William of Ware and Blessed John Duns Scotus, both Franciscans, contributed to the development of the doctrine. They emphasized how Jesus' redeeming work is strengthened by Mary's Immaculate Conception. After birth, other members of the human race become free of original sin. Jesus' work in Mary was so great that it prevented original sin from happening in the first place.
The Church holds Mary up as an example for all people because of her sanctity and purity as well as her willingness to accept God's plan for her, despite the fact that she is unique among all humans in that she was born without sin.
Everyone is called to recognize and act to God's call to their own vocation in order to carry out God's plan for their life and perform the mission that has been planned for them since the beginning of time. All Christians must respond to God's plan as Mary did, saying, "Let it be done to me according to Thy Word," in answer to Gabriel's greeting.
The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception is a moment to rejoice in the wonderful gift that God gave humanity in Mary and to more clearly understand the reality that each and every one of us has been created by God to carry out a specific mission that only we can complete.
In the seventh century, the Eastern Church instituted the feast known as the Conception of Mary. In the seventh century, it arrived in the West. It was given its current name, the Immaculate Conception, in the eleventh century. It was declared a universal church feast in the eighteenth century. Today, the Church acknowledges it as a solemnity.
Other Saints of the Day
Saint Romaric
Pope Saint Eutychian
Saint Eucharius
Saint Macarius
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