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<< Fifth through the Eighth Centuries >>
The Early Church Fathers on the title of Mary, Mother of God.
- Early Church Fathers
- From the Scriptures
- — St. Augustine of Hippo, (A.D. 354-428)
— St. John Cassian, (A.D. c.360 - 433)
— St. Cyril of Alexandria, (A.D. 376-444)
— Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus, (A.D. 393-458)
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St. Augustine of Hippo, (A.D. 354-428), North African; born in Tagaste in A.D. 354, baptized in Milan in A.D. 387, ordained a priest in A.D. 391 and appointed bishop of Hippo in A.D. 395, Augustine is one of our greatest theologians. His numerous works display genius of the highest order, and have ever had great weight in the Christian churches. He is also a Doctor of the Church.
Though still a virgin she carried a child in her womb, and the handmaid and work of his wisdom became the Mother of God.
Songs of Praise 1:20 [A.D. 351]
St. John Cassian, (A.D. c.360 - 433), ordained a deacon by St. John Chrysostom and a priest in Marseilles, a Christian theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern Churches for his mystical writings. He is known both as one of the "Scythian monks" and as one of the "Desert Fathers". His opinions on grace being in opposition somewhat to those of St. Augustine and the Church, caused him to be opposed by St. Prosper.
The Father bears witness from Heaven to his Son. The Holy Spirit bears witness, coming down bodily in the form of a dove. The archangel Gabriel bears witness, bringing the good tidings to Mary. The Virgin Mother of God bears witness
Catechetical Lectures 10:19 [A.D. 350]
"I am filled with wonder that certain persons doubt whether the blessed Virgin ought to be called mother of God, or not. . . . This faith the divine disciples have handed down to us, although they may not indeed make mention of the word, so to think have we been taught by the holy fathers."
T. v. P. 2, Epist. i. ad Monachos, p. 3.
The Faith of Catholics, Volume 1, page 437
You cannot then help admitting that the grace comes from God. It is God, then, who has given it. But it has been given by our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ is God. But if he is God, as he certainly is, then she who bore God is the Mother of God
On the Incarnation of Christ Against Nestorius 2:2 [A.D. 429]
St. Cyril of Alexandria, (A.D. 376-444), Egyptian; bishop, theologian and Doctor of the Church. He succeeded Theophilus in the patriarchal see of Alexandria, in A.D. 412, and was the great champion of orthodoxy against Nestorius, against whom the general council of Ephesus was called, in A.D. 431 and in which St. Cyril presided.
I have been amazed that some are utterly in doubt as to whether or not the holy Virgin is able to be called the Mother of God. For if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, how should the holy Virgin who bore him not be the Mother of God?
Letter to the Monks of Egypt 1 [A.D. 427]
Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus, (A.D. 393-458), Greek; an influential author, theologian, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus, Syria (A.D. 423-457). He played a pivotal role in many early Byzantine church controversies that led to various ecumenical acts and schisms. His friendship for Nestorius embroiled him, for a time, with his great contemporary, St. Cyril of Alexandria.
"His (Nestorius) first attempt at innovation was, that the holy Virgin, who bore the Word of God, who took flesh of her, ought not to be confessed to be the mother of God, but only the mother of Christ; though of old, yea from the first, the preachers of the orthodox faith taught, agreeably to the apostolic tradition, that the mother of the Lord is to be denominated, and believed to be, the mother of God. And now let me produce his blasphemous artifice and observation unknown to any one before him."
[He repeats the same thing and speaks of Nestorius as "repudiating the words of the holy fathers who, from the time that the Gospel was preached, presided over (or led) the faith of the orthodox."]
T. iv. Lib. Haeret. Fabul. c. xii. p. 371.
The Faith of Catholics, Volume 1, page 441
Mary's title being, the Mother of God, is a teaching and reflection on "Who Jesus Christ is", then on who Mary is.
The Early Church Fathers had no problem referring to Mary as the Mother of God. They saw it as a natural consequence of the Incarnation. It was not an affirmation that Mary was the originator of God the Father, but that she bore the God-Man, her Divine Son, Jesus, in her womb and as Revelation would show, would become incarnate for the sake of our salvation. As a consequence, Jesus is a Divine person, not a human person like many heretics were saying.
The Church's Scriptures that support Mary being the Mother of God [the God-bearer of Jesus]:
Even those in the community where Jesus lived recognized Mary as His mother
55 Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary?
Matthew 13:55
Mary's cousin Elizabeth also testifies that Mary is the Mother of [my Lord] God.
41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
Luke 1:41-43
John acknowledges that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was at the marriage at Cana
1 On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.
John 2:1
John acknowledges, for a second time, that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was at the foot of the Cross
25 So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
John 19:25
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