All of us come into world with original sin. From the moment we are conceived, we have it and this is why baptism is necessary. Baptism washes away original sin. But there was one person who was conceived without original sin. Mary. And this is the solemnity we celebrate today-The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
On Dec. 8th, 1854, Pope Pius IX, stated, “The Most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of Her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.”
Although the Pope proclaimed Mary’s Immaculate Conception as a dogma, it was believed in the early Church, that Mary was the sinless new Eve, who was promised in Gen. 3:15.
After the fall, when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, God did not abandon man. On the contrary, God proclaimed the first announcement of the Messiah and Redeemer, when He said, “I will put enmity, between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring, she shall crush your head, and you shall lie in wait for His heel.” The book of Genesis speaks of the battle between the serpent and the Woman and the final victory through Her descendant. Where Eve committed sin and lost her spotlessness, Our Mother Mary kept Her Immaculate soul spotless-- to the end of Her life. She never-- not even once-- sinned in Her life. The promised woman will be an enmity with the serpent, the devil. To be at enmity, means that woman and the serpent have nothing to do with each other. Since Mary did not suffer from original sin and since She never committed sin Her whole life, She was at total enmity with the devil because of Her Immaculate Conception and Her sinless life.
This is why we see statues of Mary, with Her hands extended outward, and She is standing on the earth. Her foot is crushing the head of the serpent. Mary is the woman promised in the book of Genesis, who will crush the head of the serpent. She gives birth to the Messiah, who conquers the devil.
Jesus preserved His Mother from sin when She was conceived and throughout Her whole life. He did this because She is His Mother. If you were God, wouldn’t you create your mother perfect without sin and also grant Her the grace to never sin in Her whole life?
When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary at the Annunciation, he said something that helps us to understand that Mary was free of original sin. He said, “Hail Full of Grace!” The Greek word used in the bible for “Full of Grace” is a verb indicating that Mary had been filled with grace and is filled with grace. In another words, because She was full of grace, She was free of sin. The angel declared Mary’s soul, full of grace, because Her soul was like no other, filled and overflowing with grace, because it was Immaculate.
Today, all of us are familiar with the miraculous medal, which Our Lady gave to St. Catherine Laboure. This apparition occurred before the dogma was proclaimed. The words, “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us, who have recourse to thee!” are prayed by millions of Catholics everyday. The medal when first given to St. Catherine was originally called the Immaculate Conception medal. But due to the enormous number of miracles associated with the medal, it became known as the miraculous medal.
We are alsofamiliar with the story of St. Bernadette Subouris from Lourdes, France. During the apparition at the grotto, when St. Bernadette asked Our Lady, what is Her name, The Virgin replied, “I am the Immaculate Conception”. The apparition to St. Bernadette occurred four years after the pope officially proclaimed Mary’s Immaculate Conception a dogma. It was as though God wanted earth to know that what the pope proclaimed--- was confirmed by heaven.
Since Mary was never touched by any sin whatsoever, how powerful She must be to be able to aid us, who are sinners. We should call upon Mary often in time of temptation and we should ask Her for graces to help us overcome our sins. As a loving Mother, She will prepare our soul for our day of judgment, so that it may be pure, like Her soul, and will need little or no purification before we enter the joys of heaven.
O Mary, you who are our Mother, and you who were conceived without sin, pray for us, who have recourse to thee. Keep us within your Most Pure and Immaculate Heart. Amen.