Re: Shattering of Mary a blessing, letter by Scott Leonard, March 14.
Lest anyone be misled by the letter writer's complaint about alleged "worship of Mary," I offer the following:
All Christians believe in the first commandment, to worship God alone. None of the devout who have gathered at the site of the now-shattered windows did so to "worship" Mary. Rather, they prayed to God through the intercession of Mary.
Christians try to follow the example of Jesus, sometimes called the imitation of Christ. The New Testament, especially the Gospel of St. Luke, decribes the young Jesus as being "subject to them" (Mary and Joseph). It also tells of an older Jesus unable to refuse his mother anything, to the point of working his first miracle at the wedding at Cana. And finally, it tells of a dying Jesus on Calvary telling St. John to treat Mary as his own mother. If we are to imitate Christ, it follows that we should revere his mother as he did.
While the Diocese of St. Petersburg never said the windows were in any way a sign from God, it did say that anything - natural or supernatural - that caused people to pray and offer homage to Jesus and Mary was a good thing.
As for the coloration of the windows not "looking anything like Mary," I don't know, because we only have the filial imaginings of many painters of the Madonna to go by as they try to capture the "indescribable beauty" of Mary reported by Bernadette and others to whom Mary appeared. Of course, that is not in the Bible either.
-- Art Deegan, Clearwater
Of all mothers, Mary ranks the most important
Re: Shattering of Mary a blessing, letter, March 14.
I can't believe anyone would be glad the window was broken and the so-called image of Mary destroyed. No matter how the image got there, it was beautiful, and like any other icon, it represented something religious and served some purpose, even if we as humans don't understand.
Of course, we should pray to God and his son, Christ Jesus, but we must also remember God chose Mary to bear his son, who is the savior of the world. So in essence, she is the most important mother of all mothers. Why shouldn't we pay her homage, even if we don't pray to her as we do to God?
And genuine worship can take place at any place, when it's done in the right manner and with the right intentions. God gave his son to save one and all, not just those who have a big, beautiful church to worship in. He sees into our hearts and minds and knows who his followers are.
-- Fran Glaros, Clearwater
Devotion to Mary fosters adoration of Christ
Re: Shattering of Mary a blessing, letter by Scott Leonard, March 14.
There is a difference between prayer and worship. Catholics pray to Mary and worship Christ, her son, who is also God. The letter writer was simply wrong to say that praying to Mary is a perversion of Christian doctrine. It is, in fact, intrinsic to Christian worship.
The Catholic Church honors the Blessed Virgin with special devotion. She is the mother of God, whose protection the faithful seek. This special devotion differs essentially from the adoration which is given to Jesus as the son and equally to the Father and Holy Spirit. Devotion to Mary does not, as the writer said, "distract from Jesus' unique position," but rather fosters our adoration of Jesus.
Perhaps the letter writer is upset that people were praying to a likeness of Mary. Well, in that sense, I can agree. Granted, the image has probably brought some people back to prayer, (but) I have always wondered why some of us need this kind of spectacular to get on our knees. It does seem bizarre to gather in front of a building and pray to an image that looks like Mary (which was never authenticated as a miraculous apparition) when statues, sacramentals and better likenesses of Mary are in every Catholic church in America.
And every day in these churches, during the sacrifice of the Mass when the water and wine become the body and blood of Christ, not Mary, but her son is miraculously present. Not a likeness, not an image, but as Christ promised, a real presence.
-- Jack Bray, Dunedin
Catholics ask Mary to intercede for them
This letter addresses the letter from Scott Leonard, who thinks Catholics worship Mary. Catholics honor Mary and we ask for her intercession with her son, our divine savior. That "old painting" you referred to is an apparition approved by the Catholic faith, which you obviously know nothing about.
Do you ask your friends to pray for you? We ask Mary to intercede for us. The faithful who gather there do not go there for some superstitious reason. We are not worshiping the image of Mary on glass. The diocese has never spoken out against Our Lady of Clearwater, but unless an apparition is approved by the pope, they take a neutral stance.
Before you start criticizing others' faith, you should really learn more about it. I go to the image and pray the rosary. I have gone there and asked Mary to pray for those who were hateful and would destroy something that did not belong to them.
No crime, whether or not you feel the end result was a blessing, is right. I will pray for you and also ask the Blessed Virgin to intercede for you as well.
-- Karen L. Underwood, Palm Harbor
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