Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) is the greatest and most famous painter of the Dutch Golden Age. While he’s perhaps most famous for paintings like The Return of the Prodigal Son, he also is believed to have painted between 40-100 self-portraits (there’s a huge range in the number, because several of these might have been painted by his students). Many of these… Continue reading Rembrandt and the Queen of Heaven
Tag: Mary
Why was Jesus Born of a Virgin? (Four Wrong Answers, and the Right One)
As Christmas day approaches, we’re also confronted with a part of the faith that has caused great difficulty for Catholic and Protestant believers alike: the Virgin Birth. About a quarter of Americans deny the Virgin Birth (along with about a quarter of Anglican clergy in England). What should we say to these doubters? Why should we believe in the Virgin Birth, and why does it matter? Why was Jesus born of a Virgin? And why did the early Christians think this doctrine so important that they included it in both the Apostle’s Creed and Nicene Creed as a core part of what it is to hold the Christian faith?
What the Earliest Recorded Marian Prayer Reveals About the Early Church
The earliest recorded prayer to Mary, dating to about 250 A.D. says: “Beneath your compassion, We take refuge, O Mother of God; do not despise our petitions in time of trouble, but rescue us from dangers, only pure, only blessed one.” Here’s what that tells us about the early Church.
6 Ways to Reclaim Advent
In its rush to enter “the Christmas season,” the world has forgotten about the holy season of Advent. That’s a pity, because if we’re going to welcome Christ into our hearts this Christmas, we need to take the time to make room for Him. Here are 6 ways that you can reclaim Advent.
The Untamed Virgin Queen
The world has just learned that three more Assyrian Christians have been executed in a particularly barbaric way by ISIS… who’ve promised to continue this murderous campaign if the Christians of the Middle East don’t submit. Pope Francis has repeatedly tried to call our attention to the ongoing genocide of these Christians, and that’s exactly what it is: a systematic attempt to wipe Christians off of the map, permanently.
All of this bloodshed is being perpetrated in the name of a radical and expansionist form of Islam. To be sure, this isn’t the only form of Islam practiced, but it is nothing new, either. From the very beginning, there have been groups, beginning with Muhammad himself, who sought to spread Islam by the sword.
The Virgin Mary, Suffering, and the School of the Cross
We, the Church, we are the Body of Christ. We say that all the time, but do we really believe that? If we do, then we need to know two things: (1) that Mary is our Mother, and (2) that our sorrows have meaning, they have a purpose.
Jesus didn’t say, “take up your Cross and throw it away,” but “take up your cross and follow me.” He doesn’t suffer and die so that we don’t have to suffer. He suffered and died so our sufferings have meaning.
Aim at Mary, Hit Jesus
Many of the most popular attacks on Mary (both by Protestants today, and by figures like Nestorius throughout the history of the Church) end up being attacks on Jesus. This post looks at three specific examples: (1) “all have sinned” as a denial of the Immaculate Conception; (2) “no one greater than John the Baptist”; and (3) refusing to acknowledge Mary as Mother of God.
Does Jesus Rebuke His Mother at the Wedding of Cana?
In John’s Gospel, Mary sparks Jesus’ public ministry by requesting the changing of water into wine at the Wedding of Cana. Does Jesus rebuke her for this? Or is He warning her?
Is Praying to the Saints Idolatrous?
Praying to the Saints isn’t just not idolatry. It’s the opposite of idolatry.
Idolatry relies upon the idea that God is impotent, or at least not powerful or loving enough. Prayer to the Saints relies upon the idea that God is sovereign, and powerful or loving enough to answer the prayers we’re asking the Saints to make for us. So the logic of prayer to the Saints and the logic of idolatry are diametrically opposed.
Mary’s Foretaste of the Resurrection
Did the Virgin Mary know about the Resurrection before it happened? There’s a gap of thirty years, called the “silent years” of Jesus, in which Scripture simply doesn’t tell us what happened between Jesus’ infancy and the beginning of His public ministry. But there’s one interruption to this silence, a single event that Scripture records from… Continue reading Mary’s Foretaste of the Resurrection