Topic:  Does Mary protect us?

Source of this posting: Moderator response

Date originally posted: June 7, 2003

Moderator who originally posted this source: Father Phillip

Question:  What did our Blessed Mother mean when she said In the end my Immaculate Heart will triumph? Also, when we pray we say St. Christopher protect us or Immacualte Heart of Mary protect us. I thought only God protected us?? Does it mean that they protect us with their prayers?? I'm confused. Thanks!! :0)

Answer: 

Dear Bethanie,

Thanks for writing to CatholicQandA.org; we're always glad to hear from undergrads at the University of Houston! (I'm from Texas originally and my dear grandparents lived for many years in Houston where Grandpaw worked at UofH.) So, now, on to your question...

Our Blessed Mother's meaning about the 'final' triumph of her Immaculate Heart is, basically, just another way of saying that, in the end, God's love will be all-in-all.

When Jesus, our Savior, returns in glory, He will establish a kingdom of love and justice. When we pray the Creed every weekend at Liturgy, we say that we believe that Jesus will come again; the technical term for that is "Parousia." When the Parousia occurs, Jesus will establish -- again a technical term -- the eschatological kingdom. That 'eschatological kingdom' is where/when God's love will be triumphant and justice will be the norm for the whole earth.

Since Mary, His mother, is always encouraging us -- as she says in John 2 -- "to do whatever He tells" us to do, her comment about the eventual tirumph of her Immaculate Heart is in line with her over-all advice.

The Immaculate Heart of Mary is very closely related, in Catholic devotion and theology, to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. One of the great images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is that from His Sacred Heart, streams of living water flow bringing the divine love of God. So, in a similar way, from Mary's Immaculate Heart flow the streams of God's love, and when God's love is finally triumphant -- at the Second Coming of Jesus -- Mary's Immaculate Heart will also triumph.

You also ask about our prayerful request that, for example, Saint Christopher or the Immaculate Heart of Mary protect us.

Of course, you're right: Only God protects us!

But God is so amazingly generous that God is willing to share the privilege with us. That is to say, God allows us to offer prayers on behalf of other people -- especially those whom we love, for instance. And God is so wonderful that God hears and answers our prayers. In this way, then, God "shares" with us the privilege of doing what is best for those people for whom we pray. We are said to be co-operating with God; God alone "operates" but God lets us "co-operate" in the granting of divine favor and goodness through our prayerful intercession.

Well, Mary is not "dead" nor are the saints "dead." Catholic Christians believe that death is simply a part of living -- a 'door,' if you will, through which we pass into more abundant life. When we die, we are allowed by the mercy and grace of God to live forever in the divine Presence of God.

Surely, our Blessed Mother and the Saints are very much alive in that divine Presence. So, we believe that we can turn to them in prayer and that they will pray with and for us. Just like I could (and do!) ask that you pray for me. And I am sure that because of your goodness, you will offer prayers for me, and because of God's supreme Goodness, God will respond to your prayers on my behalf.

So, when I ask the Immaculate Heart of Mary or Saint Christopher or any of the Saints to pray that God will grant me divine protection, I am just using a kind of "short hand" when I say, "Immaculate Heart of Mary, protect me" or "Saint Christopher, protect me."

And since Mary and Saint Christopher are very much alive in the very Presence of God, I can be sure that their prayers are heard and that their prayers do me a world of good!

The technical name for this confidence that death does not end life and that we who are alive on the earth continue to enjoy fellowship with those who are alive in the divine Presence of God is "communion of saints."

Thanks, again, for your question; hope this helps!

Blessings,
Father Phillip