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Chapter 12. Mary: The Church’s First and Most Perfect Member • 145
finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted
by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be more fully
conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of death” (CCC,
no. 966, citing LG, no. 59).
1. What is the role of Mary’s faith in the plan of salvation?
The Virgin Mary “freely cooperat[ed] in the work of man’s
salvation through faith and obedience” (LG, no. 56). She
uttered her yes “in the name of all human nature” (St.
Thomas Aquinas,
Summa Theologiae
, III, 30, 1). By her
obedience she became the new Eve, the mother of all the
living. (CCC, no. 511)
2. Does Mary intercede on our behalf?
This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues
uninterruptedly. . . . Taken up into heaven she did not lay
aside this saving office, but by her manifold intercession
continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation. (CCC,
no. 969, citing LG, no. 62)
3. How does the Church honor Mary?
The Church rightly honors the Blessed Virgin with special
devotion. “From the earliest times the Blessed Virgin is
honored under the title Mother of God, whose protec-
tion the faithful take refuge together in all their perils and
needs. . . . This cult . . . differs essentially from the cult of
adoration, which is offered equally to the Incarnate Word
and to the Father and the Holy Spirit, and it is most favor-
able to it” (LG, no. 66). The liturgical feasts dedicated to
the Mother of God and Marian prayer, such as the rosary,
an “epitome of the whole Gospel,” express this devotion
to the Virgin Mary. (CCC, no. 971)
FROM THE CATECHISM