6 HESITATING MARIOLOGY ’
By Rev. STEPHEN RIGBY

TN an article in The Downside Review, Jannary. ]θ^,η Λ: .
I B«-»2innings of "Devolion to Our Ladv, Doni ·
' t. ...
·■■ speaks of the Fathers taking up scriptural re «.
.
‘ with a growing penetration that goes deeper uh
,
hesitating Mariology of to-day. I he expec
v‘,
b;, ·_··■>
Blessed Grignon de Montfort should make pop
. itV. *
‘Treatise." and give a tremendous impulse, consequen . .
to Our Lady, as an indication of God's beneficen
world wounded to death.
. ,
,
It is here suggested that, if the following pnncip *.. ■
our Mariologv would be less hesitating and mort P
j..
(1) Keep the distinction between Creator ant
f
expunge the word ‘exaggeration" from the -lanoo.s >1 Tlic.
‘He who deifies thee not, cannot praise thee too mi.< ·
υ,1Γι...
is accredited to a Protestant divine, but he spoke ro * 1 xû<-r." ·
4 The limits ’ (to Mary's endowments as ’ our Luc- *’
and our Hope "), ’ wherever they may be. wii*
■
another creature, exploring, as it were. Man· "> !*l'* *’ ζ ρ;·> IN
So wrote Abbot Voider in a passage that amplihe*
phrase about ‘holiness, than which under G·* u‘“ y ·.·
known, and no one but God can reach even in t
such language be taken to its logical conclusion^
find some word other than "exaggeration for ‘ί11Μ
..
Some, for instance, would say that it. is exagi^··* ’ ,t vthat Our Lady's sanctity at her conception <’.ιιΤ''’^Ί^ (a»:-rr■
all the angels and saints put together. Net. in the ·'·*■ ,
.
Summer School book. Dr. Rhodes says that " great η .
.·
not shrunk from holding it." ami lie st ems to imp'J
tvaeie rs will win :h>· day. If if h .ulmilGd
"·’ * j ·.' .. ■
of reason at her conception, and that her holiness at
greater than the combined holiness of angels ami
y- ,ζ- ·.
loifteal {.ntieipli- may iomt- iw

: ■·, h· r , on.

taise Mariology is not exaggeration, but th»' tube ap;j- ?
a true· principi'-, ίι js u ir··, iJi!».· .pie thaf gr—· " saints must have been given to her. it is a tab* upP·’’*'"1'.·"1^ . .
frm· priuipb- t.. ,ay »hut. Im i.-l·...’ ». l-’rm.·.' ·■:
shgm.it.·*. Hit-n fi.re Mars ι·η(·.
vit »b ·-."· ·
'
the Passion is evinced bv the stigmata, it cannot romparr «ξ.’·
conformity of which the Church save: ” O blessed tacu’.n^ ·;’
th.d. ’Ait’.-. jt th, xujtftjr\ dea·;!.' merited 1« :i-u‘h
‘‘
the Ix>rd. the martyr's palm.'

oQQ

‘ HESITATING MARIOLOGY

Fattier Bellanti in the same Cambridge book calls attwrtwn to

« hv considers false Mariology’. He spea
d suggestion of
.·· *-r. rhe value of her intercession by some ( gu riàîrvaux1 was
. v in Our Saviour.’ But surely St. Bernard of Gain aux
r-itive as anybody to the honour ot Jesus.
doing he is
.-.nd without any disguise, uses this dev ice.
, analysed by
• ’1'ing the argument ‘ on three planes at on
lilies of
in a splendid passage on the para
„Tfl„ture ; Jesus
'•ï. Mary is Mother of God, but she is a mer
, v|ng ; Mary
Lr·. hut He is also God. and God is just as vie
.|on of God;
■·. ?>v.- and no severity, but Mary herselt is a
,
love of
··'·.-(> the love of Mary is nothing compare
intercession is
:· By this line of argument the value ot - a
d?s part, but,
Tu-d bv a suggestion of severity on <tur
. supreme
; father ’overturn. Our Lord’s position is constitute
■ •'.ipproaehablc.
, .
as well as the
- The Holy Ghost lives in the Church behev ing^ shoul(1 not
■’ Ί teaching. To be over-anxious lest
, -. being more
•r^arid. or that Protestants should be scan
, . wrjtes Abbot
■ han it behoveth to be wise. * Our dear
J ’credit for, and
' ·"· "understand much more than we give
, jn their faith.
■ ·<!■·· a’.wavs happv when they are ins
builder, not only in
’ i-X <.n his side’ is ‘ pontifex or_b™J^ying the finding
•νπίΐι :al sense, but in the sense of *■ Manv of the faithfu ,
■'·’·■■ theologians to the expectant laity· ·
Three Persons
’ <anu·. ’naw never realized cxphci \ munion. If
H’Cy Trinity are received m Holy
or jumping to
■ ■
is danger <>f them smelling
γ became man as w
■-’<·η that the Father and the Ηθ1>/bdnging H<»ly i «jnmumon
• v . Y. » ■ Fie-verit F·. rrcr. when brin.^^tnce i(f the Three
‘ - k. insisted on an act of iadh m th* P
Eucharistic < m
K..al Fn-- '

V rmhrr Μ· Vd.-b I

■ P -

- n

; · [n accepting this
: . i i ,c!s...h Trinity < i »

aJ ,.f\h’e

Pi.lon$ in one

:iI-.d bh-’

ρ,^.ρ
tn
the

’/mg that what we adore ■ .· .· I :,..- Ρ..ΤΧ..Π ··!
njlint<d
• '··:.··»’> that 11·
'· ‘»he Fath'·’" .·»>>·■· j \
•
Hext hi wh.. sees
‘ «e^.^now that.
'dare familiar with the i
^.reallv.. ,Tb - .(h ( atechism
:· f„|ni.ss .tf the Godhe-^i 7
Trindy
n

' Hoiv Trinity is the Holy «nd
■■■I'

-a· Him*·!·· ■

·...

■ ‘

pvrsnn

. tn«
»hr wl,,'i*'

■>-i.i;gh ·1’··'
·*..■ -n.,.-

·«· t;
:n .in·· ριν;,...κ 7"”%

.· ■ - if nu? theology of
■- V 7. .ns arc umbr; ■’ £ Kftth..r

could lx· applied to tn^

7> d'--''

t

Holy Gh.·^ when
..........
,_

.hr

300

THE TRISH ECCLESIASTICAL RECORD

we kneel before the Blessed Saeranicnt exposed. Will the Ευ
ever be the centre of some Trinitarian mysticism ? It is pen:. "
to say that the possibility is not excluded.’1
.no^_ ^ΟΓ nofhin£ that the priest prays for the coal nf Li'..· ‘
purity his lips. It is not for nothing that St. Patrick pray*·! ·
Christ should be in himself and in the heart, eyes and e.r- ■
hearers. It the preacher can explain such implication- ·:
Eucharistic doctrine, he can penetrate deeply into Marian ■ ■■■■'
He can. for example, vindicate for Our Lady th»· f;‘
' ’
Redemptress against those1 who seem to wish that. wh>n ·:·
concerned, terms must be used only in their strictest <■■■’!
thus she may not he called Co-Redemptress. because <>niy ·Sl·· >
can be the Redeemer in the accurate sense. Yon might ?■
Liat we may not call our earthly fathers by their title t·· ■
ιΓ
sai<l : 'Call no man on earth your father.’ <>r
call our mothers good because Our Lord said: ’Call in· ■ ’1 but God. What but ‘Co-Redemptress’ tits the ν.ι·ηι:ιι. ··* ■'
Pius X say's: ‘All that Jesus merited for us de condigno. Mary:·
- - congruo 'i Indeed, is not ' by divine courtesy a ii-.ir r· · ■
ot. de congruo, and may we not be courteous to the Que>n w.·
hath delighted to honour ? Mav we not trust tr.<· lb ;·
o be m the heart of the preacher telling him what his lips
and in the hearts of the faithful telling them what the·:· *■"·
hear ?
As to the tear of shocking Protestants. Faber disp*·'·- ■·
an inspired phrase. He condemns the ’untheological n.;sf.is·
some deceive themselves into thinking a f hen logical m· ’ ‘
name y, a sort ot jealous ignorant accuracy in kv« pm~ 4'
- a^y apart, as if to speak .slightingly as thev dare <■! tn*' M'
’°<1) would make truth more attractive in the w - of a
7
ortd. to vhtch the incredible abasement of Jexuf in f/i< >■'<
a Jar greater stundding-block than the incredible eralfa: ■ ■
-> * . Hotter has also been well put bv Fat!.· r I’ ·'
v
?n
U.n,,n-Catholie has not already grasp* 4 1::· ·titi.f/fn i i* lnhr)ite and independent excellence ··· Ε·«:. :·'
“n,™1 ;icP”.fl<h-‘!>t· exeelk-nec of even th* greatest ..f Hi-· '-’ ’
he
*v>nie to him bv anv verbal distinct;··'·· ■ 1
Kxlί ::Why’ 1 had ™th’er trust him to
.

(3> -TH?5’ Vhourflf
-’f God's Mother -han 1 dm
book: hJforAr“A>
DTh>rs nre ..Ur Iwst guides. In tie Can ; ' ·
Our Ladv’s
i m'
^r' ^k-wh-s has an exhilarating · - v
perhaps in theory, isï.ften'b!?1 — k,l'’W’ Th* T‘rin' :l i* ’
to suggest that riftin).. i:·?.
!f?(1 ”* practice. Tn· π·
·'··.’
de Montfort fora»t tfo*
Alpbon>us I.iguori and H’’
\
....

t .3;.^».

,

’
Ar-nS, ÎS4il ' '

"i t'\· f it···-n-.-a.’: o. i: · '

m Th*-Jw·

‘ HESITATING MAR1OLOGY

301

* nv 4 ïnconvcnæn^s.
·'. if.ver. But the suggestion involves mai
theologian
■
<rf
.. ,.!l but unrivalled eminence as a
(lc Monfort,
• . v. In the ease of both St. Alphonsus and
<rf JesuS
■
that oneself is more sensitive abou ’
.· ymissionary
..t sandal to souls than these men of vast praetn
··;·:.« e.
,
-nirit is to show
7·-ration the. Saints and Doctors in such a SI it is &
f\:t <.f harmony with the prc-Detormation P t ir^inis huius
. ; tbv blight of Luther. ‘ λ ae misons m £4 QUod tamen a
<v ’rrawcllentiam vel pilo minuere s ’W
>
manet eos
■ ;!'i- audio factitatum. Propter quoi
differed from, and
’·
nisi maturius resipiscant.
ta. '
. of Lutheranism
iidatvd Luther’s work. Jansenism arcs
still suffer
•
ded its poison into Catholic "ll1™cran contagion where
*. il·» we not also suffer from the L
nonization is surety
' L.dy is concerned? The forthcoming <protestant fog ^hat
• ’ : ■ e+ui.itv for dispersing some oi
; f the old Irish ana
' h her. and for breathing the clear a
:—
- -Χικηΐι litanies, and of Chaucer s
ll- itt- is thvr noon. Thou Q,,ce"
mercy here
Th.it thou n’arl caus·· «·ί uraec a
t'accorde.
God vouched saut thunih I hee
"
t.-r
Cri-tes bhsful
1 r‘ aIlt.rc
U-r-· n.-w th·· b<>we bent in sVll‘-1’
V a wa, iird. of justice and ,“>X’here:
T?.. rightful God n»ld<· oi «’■·’ ’1U -we dcsyrc.
B :*■ ti.urtih Th··*· han we grace.
g R1GBY.
.

1

. , bv Father O’Flynn

·: ‘ i.’F.d .r, quou-d in. the article nier.tior-■