Divine Mercy: The Heart of the Gospel

170 Divine Mercy: The Heart Of The Gospel sion reaches its culmination in Jerusalem, at the time of the Redeemer’s Passion and Death.... The Council stresses the pro­ found dimension o f the Blessed Virgin’s presence on Calvary, recalling that she ‘faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the Cross’ (Lumen Gentium, no. 58), and points out that this union ‘in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ’s virginal conception up to his death’ {Ibid., no. 57). With our gaze illumined by the radiance of the Resurrection, we pause to reflect on the Mother’s involvement in her Son’s redeeming Passion, which was completed by her sharing in His suffering.5 Therefore, it must be underscored that the maternal Mediation of Mary is not a “new doctrine,” but a firmly established revealed truth consistently taught by the papal magisterium.6 It should also be noted that the title “Mediatrix of Mercy” is a species aspect of her genus role as “Mediatrix o f all graces,” as God’s greatest gift in the order o f grace is none other than His Mercy. Let us now turn to an objection to Marian Mediation that resurfaces particularly in various ecumenical arenas concerning the classic Pauline text o f 1 Tim 2:5: “For there is one God, and there is one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” Although the overall con­ text of the passage in which the verse occurs highlights the value of human “supplications, prayers, intercessions” from the faithful (cf. v. 1- 4), nonetheless the “one Mediator” reference is inteipreted by some in the sense o f ‘exclusivity,’ as a mandate prohibiting any other subordi­ nate mediation with, and in service to, the one mediation of Jesus Christ. Of true value is the observation of Anglican theologian John Macquarrie, in reference to the 1 Tim 2 objection raised by many Protestant ecclesial bodies in opposition to the subordinate Marian Mediation: The matter cannot be settled by pointing to the dangers of exaggeration or abuse, or by appealing to isolated texts of Scripture such as 1 Timothy 2:5, or by the changing fashions in theology and spirituality, or by the desire not to say anything that might offend one’s partners in ecumenical dialogue. Unthinking enthusiasts may have elevated Mary to a position o f virtual equal­