The Church teaches that since Mary gave birth of the Son of God, she was truly the Mother of God. This fact was defined as an article of faith by the Third Ecumenical Council, which met in Ephesus in 431 under the presidency of St. Cyril of Alexandria (Pohle 4).

Miriam, as she would have been known, lived in the town of Nazareth, a small village just south of the Galilean hills. She is seldom mentioned in the Gospel stories. Many scenes and characters one would assume appear in the Gospel do not. Instead, they have been added by legend, art, and devotion in later centuries. For example, St. Anne is never revealed – the New Testament tells us nothing of Mary’s parentage. It also does not have Jesus appear to his mother after his Resurrection. Most of the scenes that Mary is included in relate to either the birth or the childhood of Jesus.

Another image of Mary that is being criticized more often than not, is that of her as a passive sufferer. Mary was anything but passive; she rose up and accepted a challenge that not many women would be willing to take on. She is a fierce Mary, who can empower ordinary people. It is this image that is widespread especially throughout churches of Latin and Central Americans who have migrated to the United States. She has become the feminine face of God. She is preeminently human, pointing to a compassionate divinity, teaching us how to make room for God everywhere in our lives. Her suffering reminds us of an aspect of divinity we have suppressed, God’s vulnerability. Her own vulnerability makes her a credible image of a compassionate God’s involvement with everyday life.

Mary’s negative prerogatives involve the absence, or removal of all defects incompatible with divine motherhood. There are four: Immaculate Conception, Sinlessness, Perpetual Virginity, and Bodily Assumption into Heaven.

Immaculate Conception describes Mary’s exemption from Original Sin. “Mary’s soul was free from sin from the first instant of her conception in her mother’s womb” (Quinlan 156). This was a gift from God. Mary, as a human being, would have needed redemption from Original Sin if acquired. Her redemption was a result of her preservation altogether from Original Sin. God gave her this gift because He wanted to prepare her as a worthy dwelling for His son.

Although she was married to Joseph, Mary preserved her virginity until she died. Joseph also led a celibate life. Mary’s virginity after the birth of Jesus can be deduced since she had resolved to remain a virgin for her entire life. She consented to become the Mother of God at the Annunciation only after the Angel assured her that her virginity would remain intact.

If Mary were preserved from Original Sin, it would follow that she did not incur its penalties, and therefore was free of corruption after her death. This privilege is referred to as her Bodily Assumption into Heaven. Although her death is not mentioned in Scripture, it is not widely believ

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