Dear Father Angelo,
I am writing to ask you a question about Our Lady: I would like to know if Mary knew before the resurrection that Jesus would rise again. Even if she did know, it does not take away from the terrible suffering she endured on the way to Calvary and at the foot of the Cross. However, I was wondering to what extent she was aware of God’s plan.
And also: did Our Lady know that she had been conceived without sin?
Thank you very much,
Father Angelo.
Rosaria
The priest’s reply
Dear Rosaria,
1. Certainly Our Lady knew that Christ would rise again. If she did not learn this directly from him, she must have learned it from the disciples who had repeatedly heard the Lord’s clear words.
Indeed, as some argue, Our Lady was the only one who remained steadfast in this faith during those days. She was sure that Christ would rise again. And she was anxious for this moment to come.
2. This does not mean that her pain was not immense, indeed unimaginable. The liturgy also applies to the Blessed Virgin the expression from the Lamentations of Jeremiah (1:12) referring to the sufferings of the Messiah: “All you who pass by, consider and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow.”
The prediction and even the certainty that the pain will pass can be consoling, but it does not take away the suffering.
Is it not the same for us when we anticipate certain surgical procedures?
The hope, or rather the certainty, of getting better does not eliminate either fear or suffering.
3. You ask me if Our Lady knew she had been conceived without sin.
Such a question seems anachronistic to me. No one asked themselves that question.
The sacred texts, while affirming that Mary is “full of grace” and in total enmity with the infernal serpent, nevertheless do not attest to her awareness of being wholly holy.
I therefore think that we too cannot go any further.
Thank you for your questions. I promise to pray for you and bless you.
Father Angelo
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