Mother of the Church is a title, officially given to Mary during the
Second Vatican CouncilThe Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October, 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI on 8 December, 1965...
by
Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
. The title was first used by Saint Ambrose of Milan and rediscovered by
Hugo RahnerHugo Rahner, was a German Jesuit, Theologian, * 3. 5. 1900 in Pfullendorf , † 21.12. 1968 in Munich. He was Dean and President of Innsbruck University and the elder brother of Karl Rahner.-Early life :...
, the brother of
Karl RahnerKarl Rahner, SJ was a German theologian who, alongside Bernard Lonergan and Hans Urs von Balthasar, is considered one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of the 20th century....
.
- Pope Benedict XVI: Hugo Rahner's great achievement was his rediscovery within the Fathers the indivisibility of Mary and the Church.
Rahner's mariology following Ambrose of Milan , sees Mary in her role within the Church.
Mother of the Church is a title, officially given to Mary during the
Second Vatican CouncilThe Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October, 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI on 8 December, 1965...
by
Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
. The title was first used by Saint Ambrose of Milan and rediscovered by
Hugo RahnerHugo Rahner, was a German Jesuit, Theologian, * 3. 5. 1900 in Pfullendorf , † 21.12. 1968 in Munich. He was Dean and President of Innsbruck University and the elder brother of Karl Rahner.-Early life :...
, the brother of
Karl RahnerKarl Rahner, SJ was a German theologian who, alongside Bernard Lonergan and Hans Urs von Balthasar, is considered one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of the 20th century....
.
AmbroseSaint Ambrose was a bishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the fourth century. He is counted as one of the four original doctors of the Church.-Political career:...
and Hugo RahnerHugo Rahner, was a German Jesuit, Theologian, * 3. 5. 1900 in Pfullendorf , † 21.12. 1968 in Munich. He was Dean and President of Innsbruck University and the elder brother of Karl Rahner.-Early life :...
- Pope Benedict XVI: Hugo Rahner's great achievement was his rediscovery within the Fathers the indivisibility of Mary and the Church.
Rahner's mariology following Ambrose of Milan , sees Mary in her role within the Church. His interpretation, based solely on Ambrose, whose view he rediscovered, and the early writers, greatly influenced Vatican II and , who, quoting Ambrose, declared Mary the "mother of the Church", a view continued by Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, who specifically gives credit to Rahner on this point.
Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
pronounced the title at the closing of the third phase of the council completely on his own. As former archbishop of
MilanMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
, he knew, that his famous predecessor, Saint Ambrose of Milan (338 – 397) had used identical language, calling Mary
Model of the Church in light of her faith, love and complete unity with Christ and
Mother of the Church because she gave birth to Christ.
Pope John Paul IIPope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła served as Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death almost 27 years later. His was the second-longest pontificate; only Pope Pius IX served longer...
This ancient title was again proclaimed then by
Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
at the
Second Vatican CouncilThe Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October, 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI on 8 December, 1965...
. In 1987,
Pope John Paul IIPope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła served as Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death almost 27 years later. His was the second-longest pontificate; only Pope Pius IX served longer...
repeated this title
Mother of the Church in his encyclical
Redemptoris MaterRedemptoris Mater is the name for specific missionary seminaries, that were inspired by the Roman Catholic way of life of the Neocatechumenal Way. These seminaries are distributed worldwide, with more than 1,500 seminarians...
and at a general audience on September 17, 1997. The encyclical is a long and eloquent summary of modern Mariology, making some novel points: According to John Paul, the Mother of the Redeemer has a precise place in the plan of salvation. The Church teaches that Mary appeared on the horizon of salvation history before Christ.
- It is precisely in this ecclesial journey or pilgrimage through space and time, and even more through the history of souls, that Mary is present, as the one who is "blessed because she believed," as the one who advanced on the pilgrimage of faith, sharing unlike any other creature in the mystery of Christ.
Pope Benedict XVIPope Benedict XVI is the 265th and reigning Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the head of the Catholic Church and, as such, Sovereign of the Vatican City State...
Pope Benedict XVIPope Benedict XVI is the 265th and reigning Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the head of the Catholic Church and, as such, Sovereign of the Vatican City State...
addresses the issue, why Roman Catholic Mariology is related to ecclesiology, the teaching about the Church. On first sight, he argues, it may seem accidental, that the Council moved Mariology into ecclesiology. This relation helps to understand what "Church" really is. The theologian
Hugo RahnerHugo Rahner, was a German Jesuit, Theologian, * 3. 5. 1900 in Pfullendorf , † 21.12. 1968 in Munich. He was Dean and President of Innsbruck University and the elder brother of Karl Rahner.-Early life :...
showed that Mariology was originally ecclesiology. The Church is like Mary.
The Church is virgin and mother, she is immaculate and carries the burdens of history. She suffers and she is assumed into heaven. Slowly she learnes, that Mary is her mirror, that she is a person in Mary. Mary on the other hand is not an isolated individual, who rests in herself. She is carrying the mystery of the Church.