Hi brother Wil -
but James is appears widely reported and accepted to have been Jeus's brother. Hence the bruhaha about the fake box a year or two ago.
Again - by some, but the evidence is far from conclusive ... but yes, the question will rumble on ...
As to your second point ... The way I see the church and the statuary, reverence of Mother Mary...at some times it almost seems in equal or higher esteem than Jesus. Again this is my perception, but I doubt that I am alone...
Indeed you are not. In the words of Pope John Paul II: "In union with Christ and in submission to him, she collaborated in obtaining the grace of salvation for all humanity..." which has caused something of a furore at the suggestion of Mary as 'co-mediatrix' which for many, including some Catholics, is simply making too much of her position.
But the teaching certainly does not imply her equality with her Son, but rather that God's plan for man's salvation could not be realised without her assent, in the same way that God's plan for each and every individual's salvation cannot be realised without their assent.
By this Catholicism holds that man assents to his salvation – hence we hold to faith and works, rather than to faith alone – the act of assent is part of the work, and by assenting it's not good enough to say 'yes please', one has to live it – one has to do the work, or one's faith means nothing.
This is why, for us, salvation is offered, but not guaranteed. It is not an insurance policy.
Pope John II said "In God's plan, Mary is the 'woman' (cf. John 2:4; John 19:26), the New Eve, united to the New Adam in restoring humanity to its original dignity. Her cooperation with her Son continues for all time in the universal motherhood, which she enjoys in the order of grace. Trusting in this maternal cooperation, let us turn to Mary, imploring her help in all our needs."
This is a statement, but not ex-cathedra, so it is neither infallible, nor is it doctrine. Personally, I'm all for it.
and with all this I am surprised this notion is only a century and a half old.
It might surprise many to find out just what has been declared doctrine, and when. The Canonical books of the Bible, for example, were not 'ratified' by a Constitutional statement until the 16th century.
So if I am reading you right, up until 1854 the concept of Mary having other children was openly debated, discussed and/or accepted until this doctrine was established as the be all and end all?
No, I don't think so. I think that the debate arose in the wake of the Historical Critical method of Biblical research in the 18th/19th centuries. Prior to this it was generally accepted that Mary was Virgin and Mother.
As an example, the Church has never made a doctrinal statement with regard to reincarnation, becaause it has never been an issue requiring clarification. I doubt it will, either, because it is so contrary to the Catholic idea of the divinely-authored integrity of the person that it rules itself out.
In fact there is some evidence that the Church has, historically, been 'quiet' on the aspect of Marian devotion, but in the faith of the Catholic community it will not go away ... Certainly some of our greatest mystics have displayed a particular devotion to the Blessed Virgin.
Again we must assume the Disciple John was close, as Christ entrusted His mother to him, and him to her (although there is a profoundly symbolic dimension to this) – then again St Luke, who was a disciple and companion of St Paul, shows a particular regard for the Theotokos.
Thomas
(ps - thanks for the compliments, bro!)
