Luke expands the role of Mary positively, setting the stage for later Mariological development.

Luke presents an enormous expansion of the role of Mary. Unlike the negative portrayal of Mary found in “Mark” (3:20-35), “Luke” depicts Mary proclaiming good news in her Magnificat (1:46-55). Indeed, the Lukan Mary is a chosen Israelite woman, favored and blessed by God. In contrast to the Markan Mary who attempts to obstruct Jesus’ mission, Mary is depicted throughout Luke as a disciple. Watch the video, please…

As we’ve stated before, the New Testament is relatively silent about Mary. Ultimately, Mediterranean culture was the foundation and explanation to Christian (and Muslim!) Marian devotion and understanding. Little is said about Mary by the New Testament, and what is said differs widely among the Gospels.

Recapping Depictions of Mary Before Luke

We explored how “Mark,” the earliest canonical Gospel, is pretty negative concerning Mary (Mark 3:20–35). Right after he selects his new family (Mark 3:13–19), his own biological family declares him out of his mind (Mark 3:21) and attempts to, by force, prevent his ministry (Mark 8:31-33). Once arriving to take him away, the Markan Jesus bluntly explains who his real family is (Mark 3:33–35). And Mark 6:4 seals the deal on this Gospel’s negative understanding of Mary and Jesus’ biological kin—

Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.”

Before Luke, Matthew’s Mary

We saw last time that the image of Mary improves just a tad once we reach the next Gospel to be composed, called “Matthew.”  This is due to the virginal conception recounted in the Infancy Narrative of “Matthew” (1—2). But as far as Mary goes throughout the rest of the Matthean narrative, things are pretty much the same as in “Mark.”

Well, almost the same. “Matthew” softens the harsh introduction of Jesus’ kin in Mark 3:20–21 (compare with the parallel in Matthew 12:46-50). Nowhere does “Matthew” have the biological kin trying to drag Jesus away for being crazy.

But that is where the softening ends. “Matthew” still has his Jesus asking, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” The Matthean Jesus, like the Markan Jesus, chooses his new fictive kin in the Jesus Movement over his biological relatives from Nazareth—which includes Mary too, folks (Matthew 12:49-50). Note also that “Matthew” slightly modifies Mark 6:4, softening things slightly, yet retaining the harsh phrase “in his own house” in Matthew 13:57—

Jesus said to them,
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.”

Mary in Luke is a Big Change!

But as we enter the next wave of the earliest Jesus groups, and read the Gospel called “Luke,” my how things change. Luke esteems Mary! In his Infancy Narrative (1—2), Mary, experiencing an altered state of consciousness, is hailed by one of God’s greatest sky servants as being highly favored by God (1:28, 30). She responds to this as would an obedient slavegirl of the God of Israel (1:38).

In Luke, Mary’s kinswoman Elizabeth refers to her as “the mother of my Lord” (1:43). In a rather extraordinary account, the pregnant Middle Eastern Mary has (alone??!!) traveled to her kin in the demon-infested Judaean hill country, apparently recognizing her fetus as being apotropaic (cf. 1:41). Receiving her, Elizabeth praises Mary as blessed by God (1:42). Elizabeth says that, because of Mary’s faith, “there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord” (1:45).

In Luke, Mary is made to represent the anawim, the poor and voiceless of Israel that Yahweh rushes to defend. In her own canticle (1:46-55), the Lukan Mary proclaims that “the Mighty One has done great things for me” (1:49). Mary in Luke hears the Word of God and keeps it obediently.

The Harshness is Gone!

Just like “Matthew” (12:46-50), so too Luke drops any mention of Mary and Jesus’ relatives coming to drag him away (as in Mark 3:20-21). But unlike “Matthew,” Luke also eliminates Jesus asking, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” In Luke the biological kin of Jesus are not coming to prevent his ministry, but rather to join with Jesus (8:19-21)! That’s quite a difference!

Mary in Luke is obedient to God’s Word from the start and never tries to obstruct her Son’s journey to Jerusalem. When a woman declares Mary blessed just for being his biological mother, Jesus responds by saying the truly blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it. Well, that describes the Lukan Mary splendidly. From the first chapter of the Gospel she did that.

So in this Synoptic Gospel called “Luke,” when Jesus gets rejected by his hometown of Nazareth, the Markan material is softened even more than in the Matthean version. For in 4:24 we read—

And [Jesus] said,
“Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.”

Let’s Not Get Carried Away by Luke…

However, despite the positive Lukan picture of Mary, we are still far away from Rosaries, Marian Feasts, calling her “Star of the Sea,” etc. In his “Acts of the Apostles,” the author called Luke only mentions Mary one time (Acts 1:14). This happens after Jesus is taken up into the sky vault, and before the Pentecost event.

Also it is easy to demonstrate that “Luke” is a spinmeister, a first century James Carville or David Axelrod . He makes those early communities look very good and spins well-written, ingenious theological fictions. So treating his Gospel or Acts, or especially his Infancy Narrative, as if it is biographically fact-precise is unwise. Even Emeritus Benedict XVI admits that portrayals in “Luke-Acts” of various historical figures sometimes comes by way of literary fiction. The Bible is all true and some of it actually happened.

How much can we say about the historical Mary literally being her son’s disciple? About as much or as little as we can say with certainty about the less-than-flattering depiction of Mary in “Mark” corresponding with history.

Marian Development Begins with Luke

However, if we do start with the Lukan Mary, who is clearly obedient to God and a faithful disciple to her Messiah-son, we can say that she shared the Easter-faith of the post-resurrectional Jesus group. With that, we might have the beginnings of a trajectory of development for later Marian devotion and dogma.

But before leaving the New Testament first we should look at how the author known as “John” treats the mother of Jesus. And we should also understand who exactly is the pregnant sky woman in Revelation is. We’ll do that soon…