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Show WORSHIP OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. VIR-GIN. It is a favorite charge of Protestants that Catholics do and have from time immemorial worshiped the Blessed Virgin. Vir-gin. Such charges are, cf coune, unfounded. un-founded. That the early Christians did rot wcrsmp xne iiessea virgin us . -"-jt with supreme adoration, is -as tru-.1 as it ii that Catholics never 'n any age v-or-shiped her in that way. That the early Christians worshiped her with an inferior in-ferior or relative honor, as a creature wondrously favored bv God, is as true a., that Catholics have always done so. The infatuation of prejudice which leads Protestants to endeavor to ob-sr ob-sr ure the glories of this holy and highly high-ly favored creature of Cod, cannot be explained on anv other principle than rl.at they have a. misconception of the true nature of the mystery of the Incarnation, In-carnation, in which Maty is the link that unites the Divinity with humun-Hv humun-Hv The worship, veneration, reverence, call it what you will, which the Catholic Catho-lic Church'pavs to the Virgin Mary is founded on the same reasons and motives mo-tives as that whloh is n.iid t. the ether Saints, with this, ciffercnc-2, however, that the worship vhiclt is oiteredy to Mary is superior to that giver, to lher Saints, although essentially different from that which is offered to God--as j wide apart as the finite is from the Infinite. In-finite. Saint Ireanaeous, who was Bisiiop of Lyons in the year 177, speaking of Mary, said: "As Eve was seduced to fly frcm God, so was the Virgin Mary induced to obey Him, that she might beccme the advocate of her that had fallen." -t is evident from the testimony testi-mony cf this Saint of the second century cen-tury that Mary was looked upon as an advocate with hex Divine Son for His followers. Origen, who lived in the third century, teaches the advantage of praying to the Saints: "I will fall down upon my knees and not presuming presum-ing on account of my crimes to present my prayer to God, I will invoke all the Saints to my assistance. Ch, ye Saint3 of Heaven, I beseech you with, a sorrow sor-row full of sighs and tears; fall at the feet of the Lord of Mercies for me, a miscra.ble sinnner." In these words Origen expresses the common faith and practice of his time. This being the belief be-lief of tihe early Christians, they, who adored the Son, would not fail to venerate ven-erate His Holy Mother, and addressed themselves to her as to a powerful advocate. ad-vocate. When we come to the fourth century, we find the Greek and Latin leathers of the Church uniting in bearing test!-, nuony to the doctrine and practice cr praying to the Saints, and particularly j to the Blessed Virgin. This' unity of ; teaching is -the strongest possible evi- j- dence of the faith, cf Christians in that - and the preceding cea-tarios; for it is . absurd to suppose that all these i-"aMi- " ers of the East and the West could have united in foisting an unknown doctrine on the pea.ole of their times, or that the people wouid have received frr-.m them a doctrine hitherto unknown an 1 unheard of. If all other proof were wanting, the striking fact that this doctrine was universally taught and believed in the fourth century is sufficient suf-ficient to prove that it was always believed. be-lieved. But the strongest positive evidence evi-dence ret remains. It consists in ex; pres-sions found in the ancient liturgies. litur-gies. All the Holy Fathers, during the first ; agea cf the Churra, who make in. n- '( tion of the liturgies befor? they were committed to writing, agree that the substance cf them was derived from the Apostles, and communicated by -them to the churches wher? they preached and established the r-Iigion of Christ. It is proved by th" testimony testi-mony cf the Greek and Latin Fathers, and admitted by several modern critics, crit-ics, that these liturgies,' as to their substance, sub-stance, originated with the Apostles. The first of these liturgies or mode3 of worship and prayer i3 that of Jerusa-lem. Jerusa-lem. In this there is found a prayer to the Virgin Mary and to the Saints. The same is found in the liturjies of Alexandria, Constantinople, Rome, the Coptic liturgy and that of the Nestor-ians. Nestor-ians. In fact, all the anewnt liturgies contain invocations to the Eleeeed Virgin Vir-gin and to the ether Saint3. The fact that all thers liturgies scattered over the then known world, contained de- ; yotiens to the Mother of God, proves '-that '-that the doctrine and practice had a common origin with the Apostlee. There is no other way to account for this unanimity among peoples far removed re-moved frcm each other and differing ', . in language, institutions 'and interests. From all thera considerations it is evi- . ' dent tli at devotion to the Blessed Vir-gin Vir-gin is a'3 ancient as Christianity it- . gel?. May sjhe who opened to us the gates of a tetter paradise than .that which our first mother Eve was the occasion i cf closing againist us, pray for us and for all tho?.e who sit in darknce3 and ; the shadow of death. |