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Chapter 19 of my book,\u00a0\u201cThe Catholic Mary\u201d: Quite Contrary to the Bible?<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>(Sep. 2010). I have abridged the many Scripture verses (i.e., merely listed some references rather than present the whole passage) for the sake of brevity.<\/p>\n *****<\/p>\n Some Protestants argue that Catholic terminology and notions regarding petitions or pleas directed towards Mary are unbiblical (and indeed idolatrous), since we invoke her aid and comfort and strength and claim to receive peace by the same means, and (so they claim) such things are only properly referred to as coming from God alone.<\/p>\n Thus, a Catholic who said that Mary gave him strength <\/em>might have a verse such as the following given to him as a rebuttal (as if it is being violated by so believing):<\/p>\n Psalm 46:1 <\/strong>(RSV, as throughout)\u00a0God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Or if he said Mary provided spiritual comfort<\/em>, he might very well be directed to the following verse, as a corrective:<\/p>\n Isaiah 49:13 <\/strong>. . . For the LORD has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his afflicted.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n If Mary is said to have granted peace <\/em>to a troubled soul, the Catholic (or anyone who believes such about Mary and the saints) would be rebuked and \u201cinstructed\u201d (with all the very best intentions, I freely grant) with a biblical verse such as:<\/p>\n John 14:27 <\/strong>Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It is implied (with a fallacious, unbiblical \u201ceither\/or\u201d reasoning) that only <\/em>God can be a strength (etc.), and that this somehow precludes human beings participating in the strengthening of other human beings in time of need. The Bible doesn\u2019t teach that. For example, we see the following:<\/p>\n Deuteronomy 3:28 <\/strong>But charge Joshua, and encourage and strengthen <\/em>him; for he shall go over at the head of this people, and he shall put them in possession of the land which you shall see. [God speaking to Moses]<\/p>\n 1 Samuel 23:16 <\/strong>And Jonathan, Saul\u2019s son, rose, and went to David at Horesh, and strengthened <\/em>his hand in God. (cf. 2 Chron 11:16-17; Ecc 7:19)<\/p>\n Daniel 11:1 <\/strong>And as for me [Daniel], in the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen <\/em>him.<\/p>\n Luke 22:32 <\/strong>but I have prayed for you [Peter] that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen <\/em>your brethren.<\/p>\n Acts 14:22 <\/strong>[Paul and Barnabas] strengthening the souls of the disciples<\/em>, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.<\/p>\n Acts 15:32 <\/strong>And Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, exhorted the brethren with many words and strengthened <\/em>them.<\/p>\n Acts 15:41 <\/strong>And he [Paul] went through Syria and Cili\u2019cia, strengthening <\/em>the churches. (cf. Acts 16:5)<\/p>\n Acts 18:23 <\/strong>After spending some time there he [Paul] departed and went from place to place through the region of Galatia and Phryg\u2019ia, strengthening <\/em>all the disciples.<\/p>\n Romans 1:11 <\/strong>For I [Paul] long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen <\/em>you,<\/p><\/blockquote>\n St. Paul in turn gives God the ultimate credit as the original source <\/em>of all such strength, channeled through himself and other spiritual leaders (\u201cboth \/ and\u201d reasoning again: Rom 16:15; Eph 3:16; 6:10; Phil 4:13; Col 1:11; 2 Thess 3:3; 1 Tim 1:12; 2 Tim 2:1; 4:17). St. Peter does the same (1 Pet 4:11; 5:10).<\/p>\n At least one passage even illustrates how God uses things in His creation to strengthen man:<\/p>\n Psalm 104:13-15 <\/strong>From thy lofty abode thou waterest the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy work. [14] Thou dost cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth, [15] and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread to strengthen man<\/em>\u2019<\/em>s heart<\/em>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Note how \u201cheart\u201d is used here instead of body. This refers to the spirit, not merely physical energy from nutrition. Other similar biblical concepts concerning aid from others (not solely God to the exclusion of men) abound:<\/p>\n Encouragement <\/em>(Deut 1:38; 2 Chron 35:2; Acts 18:27; 20:2; 27:36; Rom 1:12; 1 Cor 14:3, 31; Eph 6:22; Col 2:2; 4:8; 1 Thess 2:11;5:11, 14).<\/p>\n Exhortation <\/em>(Lk 3:18; Acts 2:40; 11:23; 14:22; 15:31-32; 16:40; 20:1; Rom 12:8; 1 Thess 2:11; 3:2; 4:1, 10; 5:14; 2 Thess 3:12; 1 Tim 5:1; 2 Tim 4:2; Titus 2:15; Heb 3:13; 13:22; 1 Pet 5:1, 12)<\/p>\n Help <\/em>(Gen 2:18, 20; Is 41:6 [cf. 10, 13-14]; Acts 16:9; 18:27; 20:35; Rom 16:2; 1 Cor 12:28; 2 Cor 1:11; 1 Thess 5:14).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Comfort (of the spiritual sort) is also referred to as coming from fellow human beings: not just from God:<\/p>\n Job 42:11 <\/strong>Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house; and they showed him sympathy and comforted <\/em>him for all the evil that the LORD had brought upon him; and each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold. (cf. 1 Chr 7:22)<\/p>\n 2 Corinthians 1:4, 6-7 <\/strong>who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort <\/em>those who are in any affliction, with the comfort <\/em>with which we ourselves are comforted by God. . . . [6] If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort <\/em>and salvation; and if we are comforted<\/em>, it is for your comfort<\/em>, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. [7] Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort<\/em>.<\/p>\n 2 Corinthians 2:7 <\/strong>so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort <\/em>him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.<\/p>\n 2 Corinthians 7:7 <\/strong>and not only by his coming but also by the comfort <\/em>with which he was comforted <\/em>in you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more. (cf. 7:4, 6, 13)<\/p>\n 1 Thessalonians 3:7 <\/strong>for this reason, brethren, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted <\/em>about you through your faith;<\/p>\n 1 Thessalonians 4:18 <\/strong>Therefore comfort <\/em>one another with these words. (cf. Col 4:11; Philemon 1:7)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n God even compares His comfort with human (and animal) maternal comfort and care:<\/p>\n Isaiah 66:13 <\/strong>As one whom his mother comforts<\/em>, so I will comfort <\/em>you; you shall be comforted <\/em>in Jerusalem.<\/p>\n Matthew 23:37 <\/strong>O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings<\/em>, and you would not!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Lastly, human beings extend to each other God\u2019s peace <\/em>\u2014 as well as grace and mercy (God is not the only One who does this, though He is the ultimate origin and cause of it):<\/p>\n 1 Samuel 25:6 <\/strong>And thus you shall salute him: \u201cPeace <\/em>be to you, and peace <\/em>be to your house, and peace <\/em>be to all that you have.\u201d (cf. 1:17; 25:35; Jud 18:6)<\/p>\n Matthew 10:13 <\/strong>And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it<\/em>; but if it is not worthy, let your peace <\/em>return to you. (cf. 5:9; Lk 10:5-6)<\/p>\n Romans 1:7 <\/strong>To all God\u2019s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace <\/em>to you and peace <\/em>from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n 1 Corinthians 1:3 <\/strong>Grace <\/em>to you and peace <\/em>from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (cf. 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; 6:16; Eph 1:2; 6:23; Phil 1:2; Col 1:2; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4; Philem 1:3)<\/p>\n 1 Peter 5:14 <\/strong>. . . Peace <\/em>to all of you that are in Christ.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 1:2 <\/strong>May grace <\/em>and peace <\/em>be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. (cf. 1 Pet 1:2)<\/p>\n 3 John 1:15 <\/strong>Peace <\/em>be to you. . . .<\/p>\n Jude 1:2 <\/strong>May mercy<\/em>, peace<\/em>, and love <\/em>be multiplied to you.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n St. Paul, for example, also asks God to give others peace (an example of God using men as instruments to spread His blessings):<\/p>\n 2 Thessalonians 3:16 <\/strong>Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace <\/em>at all times in all ways. The Lord be with you all.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Now, Mary and other saints are still very much alive<\/em>; they are not unconscious or nonexistent. Jesus rebuked the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection and afterlife:<\/p>\n Mark 12:26-27 <\/strong>\u201cAnd as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, \u2018I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob\u2019? [27] He is not God of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n Luke 20:34-38 <\/strong>And Jesus said to them, \u201cThe sons of this age marry and are given in marriage; [35] but those who are accounted worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, [36] for they cannot die any more, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. [37] But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. [38] Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living; for all live to him.\u201d (cf. Mt 22:29-32)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n If one denies this, serious problems with biblical revelation arise (not at all tied only to distinctively Catholic theology, but to all <\/em>trinitarian Christian theology). Therefore, Mary and other departed saints can extend to us these blessings and graces, such as peace, comfort, encouragement, help, exhortation, and strength, just as believers extend these things to each other on earth.<\/p>\n Death does not end participation in the Body of Christ. To the contrary, it magnifies it and makes it more powerful. And Mary, as the Mother of God the Son, has more power than any other creature to pray and comfort those of us on earth who ask for her aid. This is according to explicit biblical principles as well:<\/p>\n James 5:13-18 <\/strong>Is any one among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praise. [14] Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; [15] and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. [16] Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects. [17] Eli\u2019jah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. [18] Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It is precisely <\/em>because Mary is Jesus\u2019 mother (and given extraordinary graces for that purpose) that her intercession is so powerful: more so than any other creature\u2019s.<\/p>\n Catholics do not believe (as we are often falsely accused) that Mary is the source <\/em>of salvation; only that she is a vessel of God\u2019s grace and salvation, which is nothing more than what Paul says about himself and indeed about all believers (see, e.g., 2 Cor 4:8-15; Eph 3:2; 4:29; Phil 1:7, 19; cf. 1 Pet 4:10; longer list in chapter 18).<\/p>\n Every time we pray for someone else we are a vessel of grace. Protestants too often confuse intercession and Mary\u2019s maternal role as mother of believers (hence Jesus called Mary John\u2019s mother from the cross), with some supposed identification of Mary in Catholicism as the source and origin of salvation. Only God is that: and this is what we teach.<\/p>\n No one (i.e., who correctly understands orthodox Catholicism) is worshiping Mary. Seeking comfort from her is completely different from worship. All of Mary\u2019s power to help us is directly derived from God: solely by His grace. Properly understood, such aid from Mary is never intended in Catholic theology to usurp or compete with God\u2019s grace and power: she is merely His vessel or channel.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Related Reading:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Does Invoking Mary at Death Ignore Jesus?<\/a>\u00a0[2013]<\/p>\n Dialogue with an Anglican on \u201cPraying to Mary,\u201d Patron Saints, Etc.<\/a>\u00a0[11-10-14]<\/p>\n Reply to Lutheran on Invocation of Saints<\/a>\u00a0[12-1-15]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix: A Biblical Explanation\u00a0<\/a>[1999]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix: Dialogue w Evangelical Protestant<\/a>\u00a0[1-21-02]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix vs. Jesus Christ the Sole Mediator?<\/a>\u00a0[1-30-03]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix & the Bible<\/a>\u00a0(vs. Dr. Robert Bowman) [8-1-03]<\/p>\n Biblical Evidence for Mary Mediatrix<\/a>\u00a0[11-25-08]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix: A Biblical & Theological Primer<\/a>\u00a0[9-15-15]<\/p>\n Mary Mediatrix & Jesus (Mere Vessels vs. Sources)\u00a0<\/a>[8-15-17]<\/p>\n Praying to Angels & Angelic Intercession<\/a>\u00a0[2015]<\/p>\n Asking Saints to Intercede: Teaching of Jesus\u00a0<\/a>[2015]<\/p>\n Why Pray to Saints Rather than God?<\/a>\u00a0[9-4-15]<\/p>\n Reply to a Lutheran Pastor on Invocation of Saints<\/a>\u00a0[12-1-15]<\/p>\n Dialogue on Praying to Abraham (Luke 16)<\/a>\u00a0[5-22-16]<\/p>\n Prayer to Saints: \u201cNew\u201d [?] Biblical Argument<\/a>\u00a0[5-23-16]<\/p>\n Invocation & Intercession of Saints & Angels: Bible Proof<\/a>\u00a0[10-22-16 and 1-9-17]<\/p>\n \u201cArmstrong vs. Geisler\u201d #5: Prayer to Creatures<\/a>\u00a0[2-20-17]<\/p>\n Dialogue: Rich Man\u2019s Prayer to Abraham (Luke 16) and the Invocation of Saints<\/a>\u00a0(vs. Lutheran Pastor Ken Howes) [5-3-17]<\/p>\n Dialogue on Samuel Appearing to Saul (Witch of Endor)<\/a>\u00a0[5-6-17]<\/p>\n Dialogue on Prayer to the Saints and Hades \/ Sheol<\/a>\u00a0[12-19-17]<\/p>\n Prayers to Saints & for the Dead: Six Biblical Proofs<\/a>\u00a0[6-8-18]<\/p>\n Vs. James White #13: Jesus Taught Invocation of Saints (And by James White\u2019s \u201cReasoning,\u201d Jesus Couldn\u2019t be God and was a Blaspheming False Teacher)<\/a>\u00a0[11-16-19]<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n\u201cWitnesses\u201d of Hebrews 12:1 (Communion of Saints)<\/a>\u00a0[1998]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nIntercession of the Saints in Heaven on Our Behalf<\/a>\u00a0[2004]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n<\/div>\nDialogue: Are Dead Saints Playing Harps or Interceding?<\/a>\u00a0[2-15-06]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nDead Saints: Playing Harps on Clouds or Interceding?<\/a>\u00a0[12-29-06]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nDialogue w \u201cBible Christian\u201d on \u201cPraying to Dead Saints\u201d<\/a>\u00a0[3-1-07]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nDoes God Forbid\u00a0All<\/em>\u00a0Contact with the Dead?<\/a>\u00a0[6-23-07]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nPraying to Saints: Brief Exchange with Sincere Inquirer<\/a>\u00a0[5-27-08]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nBible on Invocation of Angels & Saved Human Beings<\/a>\u00a0[6-10-08]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n\u201cOne Mediator\u201d (1 Tim 2:5) vs. All Human Mediation?<\/a>\u00a0[10-14-08]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nInvocation of the Saints = Necromancy?<\/a>\u00a0[10-18-08]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nInvocation of Saints & the Bible: Dialogue<\/a>\u00a0[2-14-10]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n\u201cWhy pray to a saint rather than to God?\u201d<\/a>\u00a0[4-1-10]<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n\nBible on Asking Dead Men to Intercede\u00a0(Luke 16)\u00a0<\/a>[7-8-14]\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n*<\/div>\nDialogue with an Anglican on \u201cPraying to Mary,\u201d Patron Saints, Etc.<\/a>\u00a0(vs. Dr. Lydia McGrew) [11-10-14]
\n*<\/div>\nUnfortunately, Money Trees Do Not Exist<\/strong>:\u00a0<\/span>If you have been aided in any way by my work, or think it is valuable and worthwhile, please strongly consider financially supporting it (even $10 \/ month \u2014 a mere 33 cents a day \u2014 would be very helpful). I have been a full-time Catholic apologist since Dec. 2001, and have been writing Christian apologetics since 1981 (see\u00a0my Resume<\/a>).\u00a0My work has been proven (by God\u2019s grace alone) to be fruitful, in terms of changing lives (see the tangible evidences\u00a0from unsolicited \u201ctestimonies\u201d<\/a>).\u00a0I have to pay my bills like all of you: and have a (homeschooling) wife and three children still at home to provide for, and a mortgage to pay.<\/div>\n*<\/div>\nMy book royalties from\u00a0three bestsellers in the field<\/a>\u00a0(published in 2003-2007) have been decreasing, as has my overall income, making it increasingly difficult to make ends meet.\u00a0 I provide over 2600 free articles here, for the purpose of your edification and education, and have\u00a0written 50 books<\/a>.\u00a0It\u2019ll literally be a struggle to survive financially until Dec. 2020, when both my wife and I will be receiving Social Security. If you cannot contribute, I ask for your prayers (and \u201clikes\u201d and links and shares). Thanks!<\/div>\n*<\/div>\n