Fra Joseph continues his series of apologetics with No Apologies as he describes Mary as the New Eve who crushes the head of the serpent and thus contributes to the salvation of man just as the first Eve contributes to his down fall. Listen to this video as Fra Joseph explains how Jael and Judith play this role of serpent crushers and thus prefigure Mary who does the same with Her seed whom she bore through obedience.
Ave Maria!
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But how do we presume to connect these “preconfiguants” to Our Lady?
Thank You
Our Holy Mother is our co-redemptrix! Pray for us oh Holy Mother of God! Amen
These examples are very enlightening Father, thank you!
Doesn’t Jesus himself tell us that Mary is the new Eve when he calls her “woman”? Adam gives Eve the name “woman” in Genesis and then twice in the NT (once at the wedding feast and then while on the cross) Jesus calls Mary “woman”. This certainly leaves no doubt in my mind that Our Beloved Lady is the new Eve when Jesus makes a point of referring to it on the cross,no less!
I don’t get ANY of this. The bible doesn’t convey to me that Mary is anything more then just a vessel for Jesus to be born through.
I didn’t see the connection until I learned more about the successive covenants God established through man (Adam, Abraham, Moses, David) in the overall story of salvation history in the Bible. Each new covenant had to be reestablished by God because the previous one was broken by man through sin. Understanding this progression revealed references through the different books of the bible that tie to each other, both forwards and backwards in time, culminating with Jesus finally establishing God’s eternal covenant with the universe. I wonder if they have a teaching on this.
Cathie, I was raised Catholic and didn’t “get it” until maybe in my thirties. My wife was raised Pentacostal and she used the word vessel a few times early on in our relationship. It takes ears willing to hear and a mind looking to understand. Would you call your mom a vessel? Was any person present in the NT from the Annunciation to Pentacost? How did our Saviour’s public ministry start? Does a vessel tell Christ what to do? Does Almighty God ask a vessel if he can use it? Does a vessel have free will? There are some great resources out there to help us understand Mary’s role in our Salvation history and IT IS WORTH KNOWING, I PROMISE!!! Edward Sri’s “Knowing Mary Through the Bible” blew me away. My wife knew Mary before knowing who she was – a long story but one that makes perfect sense once you learn WHO Mary is.
Although I agree that the Blessed Virgin Mary is the new Eve, I need to say that Gen 3:15 is often used in this way to identify Mary as the one crushing the head of Satan when this is not so. The Douay Rheims is a misinterpretation of this verse which says – Genesis 3:15. “I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel.
However that text has been corrected to reflect the correct translation in this NRSV Catholic Edition and other translations, Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Jesus is the one to strike Satans head in this verse labeled the “Protoevangelium,” the first announcement of the gospel.
The KJV is even more puzzling to me as it says, Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (It assumably identifying emnity as what strikes Satan’s head.)
Any corrections or comments in my understanding of this verse welcome. I am a convert gratefully entering the Church in December of last year. Praise be Jesus!
THE DOUAY-RHEIMS IS A TRANSLATION OF ST. JEROME’S LATIN VULGATE. TO SAY THE TRANSLATION IS ‘ERRONEOUS’ AND HAS BEEN ‘CORRECTED’ IN MORE MODERN TRANSLATIONS IS TO DO A SURFACE READING ONLY. IT HAS BEEN DELEGATED TO MARY BY HER DIVINE SON TO CRUSH THE HEAD OF SATAN, WHERE HIS PRIDE RESIDES, BY HER HUMILITY. THIS HAS BEEN ECHOED AND RE-ECHOED BY SAINTS DOWN THROUGH THE AGES. INDEED, IN THE DEPICTION OF OUR LADY AS THE ‘IMMACULATE CONCEPTION’, YOU ALWAYS SEE HER CRUSHING THE HEAD OF THE SERPENT. THERE ARE SERIOUS SCRIPTURAL ‘TYPES’ (ESTHER, IA-EL, JUDITH AND OTHER PROTOTYPES) WHICH MADE IT CLEAR TO ST. JEROME THAT THIS NEUTRAL WORD WAS TO REFER TO THE NEW EVE, AND HENCE MUST BE TRANSLATED IN THE FEMININE. TYHE MODERN TRANSLATIONS ARE IN ERROR IN MANY PLACES.
Although I agree that the Blessed Virgin Mary is the new Eve, I need to say that Gen 3:15 is often used in this way to identify Mary as the one crushing the head of Satan when this is not so. The Douay Rheims is a misinterpretation of this verse which says – Genesis 3:15. “I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel.
However that text has been corrected to reflect the correct translation in this NRSV Catholic Edition and other translations, Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Jesus is the one to strike Satans head in this verse labeled the “Protoevangelium,” the first announcement of the gospel.
The KJV is even more puzzling to me as it says, Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (It assumably identifying emnity as what strikes Satan’s head.)
Any corrections or comments in my understanding of this verse welcome. I am a convert gratefully entering the Church in December of last year. Praise be Jesus!
Thank you Fr. Joseph. @ Cathie, In my studies of Spripture, ( which I am a novice) I have found it so it so fascinating to see how the OT and the NT have parallels. You have to read the OT to understand the NT. I never really understood that before. I’ve taken a few of Jeff Cavin
‘s Journey through the Bible courses. They can be intense but without them I wouldn’t have been able to make the connection. God Bless you.
Spiritual vessel, pray for us!
Although I agree that the Blessed Virgin Mary is the new Eve, I need to say that Gen 3:15 is often used in this way to identify Mary as the one crushing the head of Satan when this is not so. The Douay Rheims is a misinterpretation of this verse which says – Genesis 3:15. “I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel.
However that text has been corrected to reflect the correct translation in this NRSV Catholic Edition and other translations, Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Jesus is the one to strike Satans head in this verse labeled the “Protoevangelium,” the first announcement of the gospel.
The KJV is even more puzzling to me as it says, Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (It assumably identifying emnity as what strikes Satan’s head.)
Any corrections or comments in my understanding of this verse welcome. I am a convert gratefully entering the Church in December of last year. Praise be Jesus!
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