www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life The Christian East & West Latins say Mary was espoused to the Holy Spirit

I was trying to explain the difference in the understanding of the East to some friends. You guys are my anwer grapes Any thoughts on explaining..Mary being esposed to the Holy Spirit is not an expression of the East.

Pani Rose

Yes, for us, Latins, The Most Blessed Virgin Mary is the spouse of the Holy Spirit because through the action of the Holy Spirit Jesus was incarnated in her womb, that is, the Holy Spirit performed in a spiritual way the role of a husband.

Personally, I have always seen Mary as an "icon" of the Holy Spirit. The image of espousal in the West (I believe originating in the Franciscan tradition?) is an attempt to capture the close communion that exists between the Theotokos and the Holy Spirit, a communion begun at her Holy Conception, consumated at the Annunciation and brought to full fruition at Pentecost.

In some ways, it is analogous to Christ's assertion to Philip that "He who sees me sees the Father." While Christ's iconic reflection of the Father is eternal, essential, incarnational and hypostatic, Mary's iconic reflection of the Holy Spirit is created, gratuitous, moral and interpersonal. (I might also add economic to that list, in so far as the Theotokos and the Holy Spirit are inextricably bound to the mission of Christ and the Church for "all generations".)

Reflecting an organic development within a western Augustinian Trinitarian framework, Father Maximilian Kolbe seems to come closest to an iconic view of Mary in his assertion that Holy Spirit is the "Uncreated Immaculate Conception" and Mary is the "Created Immaculate Conception".

Certainly, many of the titles given to Mary in the East and West imply a shared mission and iconic communion, so much so that Pere Yves Congar, OP went so far as to assert some sort of Pneumatic displacement or replacement of the Holy Spirit by Catholics because of our intense devotion to her - a case where I, for the most part, believe Congar to be brilliantly wrong! (emphasis on brilliant)

I have not seen any studies on Mary as the Icon of the Holy Spirit from an Eastern perspective. Has anyone else?

Peace -

Gordo

Dear Friends,

Actually, the Mother of God is indeed called "Spouse of the Holy Spirit" in the East!

The term is "Bohonevista." And St John of Kronstadt invokes her as "Nevista Svyatago Ducha."

This term is repeated in the refrain of the Akathist to the Mother of God.

It is also on the icon of "Our Lady Joy of all Joys" of St Seraphim of Sarov.

The Most Holy Virgin Mary, in the East Slavic Orthodox tradition, is so highly honoured that girls are NOT allowed to take her name in baptism - only those of other St Mary's.

The Christian East has always honoured her as the Temple of the Holy Spirit, beginning with her Conception, at her Annunciation, at Pentecost etc.

Alex

Dear Gordo,

The term "Immaculate Conception" in the East has no real meaning since it does not share the Augustinian view of Original Sin with the West.

But the East has always honoured her "Conception" in the womb of St Anne which means the Most Holy Virgin Mary was conceived as a saint i.e. already sanctified (only services to saints can be had liturgically).

St Maximilian's terminology would indeed seem rather "wild" to the East (and unnecessary).

The icons of the Mother of God, deified, transfigured and praying for us, are the best representations of her as the Most Holy Temple of the Holy Spirit.

Alex

Alex -

Thanks for your response. I never knew that that the title "Spouse of the Holy Spirit" was part of the Eastern tradition as well!

Just to clarify: My only point in bringing up Father Kolbe's theology was to demonstrate that he comes close to what might be considered an iconic view of the relationship of the Theotokos to the Holy Spirit, albeit through an Augustinian framework. I did not mean to say that the saint was offering a perspective that Eastern Christians would appreciate or easily embrace, especially given its roots in the Filioque tradition, not to mention some of the West's nuances around Original Sin which you also mentioned. Sorry for any confusion, but thanks for your points anyway!

Peace -

Gordo

Prayer of Pope John Paul II

December 8, 2003

Queen of peace, pray for us!

Our gaze is directed toward you in great fear, to you do we turn with ever-more insistent faith in these times marked by many uncertainties and fears for the present and future of our planet.
Together we lift our confident and sorrowful petition to you, the first fruit of humanity redeemed by Christ, finally freed from the slavery of evil and sin: hear the cry of the pain of victims of war and so many forms of violence that bloody the earth. Clear away the darkness of sorrow and worry, of hate and vengeance. Open up our minds and hearts to faith and forgiveness!

Mother of mercy and hope:.
Help every human being of every race and culture to find and embrace Jesus, who
came to earth in the mystery of Christmas to give us 'His' peace.

Mary, Queen of peace, give us Christ, true peace in the world!

Whatever we call her...however we name her...let her always be called upon with warmth and love...for she IS truly our Mother in Faith and in Hope...and in abiding Love! She is indeed THE first Christian...our tainted nature's sole boast!

In Her Holy Name,
+Fr. Gregory

I think also because Mary (the Church) is the spouse of Christ in the mystical marriage. The Song of Songs.

-ray

O Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit, make me docile to His divine motions.

Meditations

1. "The Blessed Virgin Mary," says St Augustine, "was the only one who merited to be called the Mother and Spouse" of God. She became the Mother of God because she was the Spouse of the Holy Spirit: "the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee" (Luke 1,35), said the Angel, explaining the mysterious, divine manner in which she would become a mother, the Mother of the Son of God. At that moment the Holy Spirit, who had already possessed Mary's soul from the first moment of her Immaculate Conception, came upon her with such exceptional plenitude that He formed within her the sacred Body of Jesus. Justly, therefore, does Mary deserve the name of Spouse of the Holy Spirit: she is His possession, His sanctuary, His temple.

The divine Paraclete may well say to her in the words of the Canticle: "My sister, my spouse, is a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed up" (4,12). Mary is a garden enclosed, because she was never defiled -- even for an instant -- by the shadow of sin, was never subject to the winds of unruly passions, never taken up with any affection for creatures. "The most glorious Virgin, our Lady," says St John of the Cross, "never had the form of any creature imprinted on her soul, and was never moved by any creature, but her actions were always inspired by the Holy Spirit" (Ascent of Mount Carmel III, 2, 10). Filled with grace from her conception, Mary is always the faithful Spouse of the Holy Spirit, attentive and docile to all His impulses and inspirations.

If Mary's sublime privileges are reserved for her alone, we can, nevertheless, imitate her interior dispositions by keeping our heart, in imitation of hers, always attentive and docile to the action of the Holy Spirit.

2. Complete docility to the motion of the Holy Spirit is precisely the characteristic of the state of union with God. Mary was "raised to this lofty state from the beginning" according to the teaching of St John of the Cross (ibid); and this is evident if we consider that Mary was not only created in grace but that she had, from the very beginning, a degree of grace far superior to that attained by the greatest saints at the end of their lives. Therefore, this state of perfect union with God, which is our ideal and the goal of all our efforts, was Mary's portion from the dawn of life. Furthermore, by her free, faithful correspondence to grace, she advanced to the towering heights in this lofty state.

Considering these truths, therefore, we can easily see that after Jesus the Virgin Mary is the surest model and guide for those who aspire to union with God; her very creaturehood makes her more accessible to us, and more easily imitable. Mary teaches us that the great secret of quickly reaching union with God is entire detachment from creatures, especially from that creature we love so much, ourself. Mary lived only for God. Studying her life in the Gospels, we never see her influenced by selfish motives or by reasons of personal interest; only one thing moves her: the glory of God and the interests of Jesus and of souls. In all the privations and sufferings she had to undergo, there was never a thought of self, never a complaint; rather, she was always ready to advance, totally oblivious of her suffering, wholly given to the fulfilling of the divine will. It was the Holy Spirit who guided her, who urged her, who sustained her, and her secret was to let herself be ruled and moved by Him in everything. Just as the Blessed Virgin conceived the Son of God by the operation of the Holy Spirit, so all her actions were begun by His inspiration. This is exactly how we should imitate Mary: eliminate from our life everything that is the fruit of our egoism, self-love or pride, and do only the things that are inspired by grace, under the impulse of the Holy Spirit.

Colloquy

"O Mary, you are holy in body and mind. You can say in a special way: 'My conversation is in heaven' (cf. Philippians 3,20). You are the garden enclosed, the sealed fountain, the temple of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Holy Spirit; you are the wise Virgin who not only provided herself with oil, but filled her lamp with it. O Mary, how were you able to reach the inaccessible majesty of God, if you did not knock, ask and seek? Yes, you found what you were looking for, and the Angel said to you, 'You have found grace before God.' Yet, how could you, who were already full of grace, find more grace? Oh! you were truly worthy to find grace, because you were not satisfied with the fullness which you had, but asked for a superabundance of grace for the salvation of the world! 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you,' said the Angel, and this precious balm was poured over you in such abundance that it flowed from you over the whole earth�. If heretofore the Holy Spirit was in you in the fullness of grace, now He comes upon you, as if to call attention to the superabundant plenitude of grace which He pours upon you. If in the past grace was present only in your soul, it now invades your breast also � the divine power makes you fruitful and you conceive of the Holy Spirit" (cf. St Bernard).

O Mary, faithful Spouse of the Holy Spirit, look upon my wretchedness and my weakness. God has placed in you the fullness of all His gifts so that I may understand that all hope, all grace, all salvation come from you! You see how hard my heart is, how dully my mind; help me, therefore, O faithful Virgin, to overcome the resistance of my pride, my selfishness and y cowardice, so that my soul may open itself fully to the invasion of grace, abandoning itself with docility to the action of the Holy Spirit, promptly following his impulses, inspirations and invitations.

In His Holy Name,
+Fr. Gregory

All of this poetic imagery is very nice, we know what, when and how Mary saved us through her participation in the Great Saving Act of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. We will never forget it, and we will sing her praises and ask her intercession.

But some people are using this descriptive terminology like a loaded gun to push concepts such as Mary as Mediatrix of all graces, an ongoing automatic function which I believe is a distorted notion. This "spousal relationship" has become in effect a super-sacrament justifying Mary (a creature of God) guarding the door of the Paraclete and rendering Him in the public's consciousness as rather redundant.

In the same way we get ideas like Mary being an icon of the Holy Spirit, which I think is just plain wrong, even dangerous. I think we must be very careful in how we use and understand this imagery.

Michael

Dear Michael,

Well, I can't speak for Latin Catholics, but we Easterners don't have those issues with the Most Holy Virgin Mary.

And our veneration for her is beyond that of the Latin Church, I believe!

The sense of balance is due, perhaps, to the Eastern emphasis on public, liturgical prayer, the rootedness of Marian perspectives in the theology of the Church and the like.

Not only Mary, but all the Saints together are the one great Icon of the Holy Spirit - how can it be otherwise?

All Grace is certainly mediated to us through the Deified Humanity of Christ, and through the Communion of Saints which is the heavenly part of the Body of Christ.

Again, how can it be otherwise?

The Mother of God derives her exalted role from the Divine Incarnation, from her having given birth to the God-Man, Jesus Christ.

The East's devotional focus is firmly planted on her in this way - which means we are firmly focused on Him Who rests on her arms.

Again, how can it be otherwise?

Most Holy Mother of God, SAVE us!

Alex

In addition to what Alex has written would others of you please respond to what Michael wrote above?

Thanks

Jason

Father Gregory and Alex -

Thank you for your beautiful meditations on Mary! They offer just a hint of the beauty of God's creature made perfect through the fulness of grace!

Is it any wonder that our great festal calendar and liturgical year for the most part begins with the birth and ends with the falling alseep of the Theotokos? As the first and perfect disciple of her son, has she not been made worthy by God to reflect our own beginning and end in Christ?

As to your comments, Michael, I'm curious why you would see Mary's iconological relationship to the Holy Spirit as being "dangerous"? Certainly, there is no question of substitution here, anymore than my sons being made in my own "image" as their Father threatens me. Mary is the great work of the Holy Spirit, second only to the Incarnation of God's Son through her. If anything she is a perpetual witness to the power of theosis in the Christian life!

Could you expound a bit on your thoughts?

Peace -

Gordo

SAINT GREGORY PALAMAS AS A HAGIORITE

by Met. Nafpaktos Hierotheos

"...how much more the remembrance of the holy of holies through which all the holiness comes to the saints".

She transmits grace to the saints. "in order that as in charge of the office where holiness is given, she may convey gifts of holiness to all without exception, without leaving anyone without a share, even of the hidden things of the universe, that is to say of those inaccessible things". This is because the Theotokos is not only holy, but she "alone is the boundary between created and uncreated nature". And therefore no one can come to God without her and through the 'mediation' which has come from her; and none of the gifts from God could have been given to angels and men except through her".

Zenovia

Runny this is being discussed again. Yesterday at a Crowning, during the Bethroal, I heard something similar to this prayer and hopefully someone can supply the correct words. But it was like:

Through the Theotokos or maybe Mary, the church was espoused to God...

Maybe Fr. Gregory can give the exact wording.

Wow that hit home. Christ came that we might have life and have it more abundantly, there is no way around that. Without his death and ressurection we would not have life. However, through her espousing the Church, I was able understand in a much deeper way the term "spouse of the Holy Spirit." As Christ is the Bridegroom, it was through Mary's fiat that Christ came into the world to bring the Church to God. The Holy Spirit has always guided the Church, always doing the work of the Father. So through the Holy Spirit and Mary the Chruch is continuously being brought to Christ. The work of the Church never ceased, it only increased through their guidance.

Pani Rose