tag:theconversation.com,2011:/africa/topics/virgin-mary-34906/articlesVirgin Mary – The Conversation2024-03-06T13:34:26Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2236992024-03-06T13:34:26Z2024-03-06T13:34:26ZTattooing has held a long tradition in Christianity − dating back to Jesus’ crucifixion<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579668/original/file-20240304-24-ukodpk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C32%2C5316%2C3579&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Christian Palestinian tattoo artist Walid Ayash draws a tattoo on the arm of a Coptic Egyptian pilgrim on April 28, 2016, at his studio in Bethlehem.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/christian-palestinian-tattoo-artist-walid-ayash-draws-a-news-photo/525904928?adppopup=true">Thomas Coex /AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Holy Week and Easter are perhaps the most important days in the Christian calendar. Many associate those celebrations with church services, processions, candles, incense, fasting and penances. </p>
<p>However, there is another tradition that many Christians follow – that of tattooing. Historically, Easter was an <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.5">important time for tattoos</a> among some Christian groups. Today, Christian tattooing happens in many parts of the world and all year around. Some Christians visiting Jerusalem around Easter will get a tattoo of a cross, or a lamb, usually on their forearms.</p>
<p>As a sociologist of religion and a Jesuit Catholic priest, I have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0037768620962367">long studied tattoos</a> as <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12070517">religious practices</a>. I have interviewed tattoo artists in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Loreto in Italy who have been continuing and recreating the tradition of Christian tattooing. Evidence is clear the practice started shortly after Jesus’ crucifixion and spread across Europe in later centuries. </p>
<h2>The first Christian tattoos</h2>
<p>The Romans, like the Greeks, <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/25011055">tattooed slaves</a> and prisoners, usually with letters or words on their foreheads that indicated their crime. Soon after Jesus’ death, around the year 30 C.E., they started enslaving and tattooing Christians with the marks “AM” – meaning “ad metalla,” or condemned to work in the mines, a punishment that often resulted in death. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/25011055">Almost at the same time, Christians</a> who were not enslaved <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.5">got tattoos</a> of the early Christian signs such as fish or lambs in solidarity and to show that they identified with Jesus.</p>
<p>There were <a href="https://bc.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1410461075">no specific words in Latin or Greek for tattooing</a>, so the words “stizo,” “signum” and “stigma” were used. The word <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.5">stigma</a> also referred to the marks of nails on Jesus’ hands and foot, as a result of his crucifixion. Christians often got their own “stigmas”: a sign – usually a cross – in Jerusalem to honor Christ’s martyrdom. </p>
<h2>The beginning of a tradition</h2>
<p>There are several documented accounts of the tradition.</p>
<p>One from the third century mentions <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/25011055">Christians in present-day Egypt and Syria</a> getting tattoos of fish and crosses.</p>
<p>Another tells about the commentary that Procopius of Gaza, a theologian who lived between 475 and 538 C.E., wrote on the <a href="https://catenabible.com/com/5e88f313b1c7280cb341d0d2">Book of Isaiah</a> after he found that many Christians living in the Holy Land had a cross tattooed on their wrists. “Still others will write on their hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and will take the name Israel,” he noted. </p>
<p>When a plague hit the Scythians, nomadic people living around the Black Sea, in 600 C.E., tattoos were believed to provide protection from the deadly disease. <a href="https://archive.org/details/theophylact-simocatta-whitby-1986/Theophylact_Simocatta_Whitby_1986/page/n9/mode/2up">Theophylact Simocatta</a>, one of the last historians of late antiquity, mentioned that missionaries among them recommended that “the foreheads of the young be tattooed with this very sign” – meaning that of a cross.</p>
<p>Many testimonies mentioned <a href="https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo2/A64495.0001.001/1:11.1.48?rgn=div3;view=fulltext">Crusaders and pilgrims</a> returning from the Holy Land with a tattoo during the Middle Ages – a tradition that continued <a href="https://archive.org/details/fynesmorysons04moryuoft">in early modern times</a>, between the 16th and 18th centuries.</p>
<h2>Christian tattoos in Great Britain</h2>
<p>Other cultures used tattoos in different ways. When Romans came in contact with the Celts tribes that inhabited the British Isles in 400 C.E., they <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.5973126.8">called them Picts</a> because they were covered in <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.7">body art</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black and white illustration showing a man and woman covered in body art, holding spears in their hands." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=943&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=943&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579672/original/file-20240304-30-netvij.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=943&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The word Picts is derived from the name given to them by the Romans because of their painted bodies.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/circa-300-bc-male-and-female-picts-covered-in-body-paint-news-photo/51240502?adppopup=true">Hulton Archive/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Pope Gregory the Great sent envoys to convert the Celts to Christianity, followed by a visit from another Vatican delegation. While missionaries were against “pagan tattooing,” both delegations agreed that tattoos done for the Christian god were fine. The members of the second delegation in the late 700s even said, “If anyone were to undergo this injury of staining for the sake of God, he would receive a <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.7">great reward for it</a>.”</p>
<p>Similar was the conclusion of the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.5">Northumbria Council</a>, a church gathering in Northern England in 787: Tattoos done for the right god were acceptable. At that time, the Anglo-Saxon elite also had tattoos; the bishop of York, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.7">Saint Wilfrid</a>, for example, got a tattoo of a cross. </p>
<h2>Tattoos in Italy</h2>
<p>Around the 1300s, as the Christian kingdoms in the Holy Land were losing control with the coming of the Ottomans, there appeared in Italy shrines called “Sacri Monti.” These shrines were placed on “holy mountains” where devotees could pilgrimage safely, instead of risking their lives going to Jerusalem, which by then was under the control of the Ottomans.</p>
<p>These shrines were established in cities such as Naples, Varallo and Loreto. <a href="https://doi.org/10.5944/etfvii.6.2018.22922">Pilgrims could get tattoos</a> in some of these shrines. One place was Loreto’s sanctuary, established in the early 1300s. A relic from the “Holy House,” which, according to the Christian tradition, is the house where the Virgin Mary is believed to have received the news that she will bear God’s son, was brought to Loreto’s sanctuary. </p>
<p>Tattooing in Loreto’s sanctuary was a communal activity, done by carpenters, shoemakers and artisans, who <a href="https://archive.org/details/ilbelpaeseconver00stopuoft/page/486/mode/2up">brought their stalls and tools to the main square</a>
during the days of celebrations and tattooed whoever wanted to get a mark of their devotion. These tattoos typically used wood planks for transferring the design on the body, like a stamp. However, the city of Loreto banned tattooing for hygienic reasons in 1871, according to <a href="https://archive.org/details/costumiesupersti00pigo">Caterina Pigorini Beri</a>, an anthropologist, who was one of the first to document the practice. </p>
<p>But people kept getting them. A shoemaker, <a href="https://youtu.be/P_fNN880GGw?feature=shared">Leonardo Conditti</a>, was among those who kept doing tattoos in hiding during the 1940s. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/P_fNN880GGw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The history of tattooing.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Present but unseen</h2>
<p>From the 1200s to the 1700s, the custom of <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.4">Christian tattooing</a> was prevalent in Europe among peasants, seafarers, soldiers and artisans as much as among nuns and monks. They were getting crosses, images of the Virgin Mary, the name of Jesus, and some sentences from the Bible.</p>
<p>Following the Renaissance, however, European culture came to associate tattoos <a href="https://theconversation.com/tattoos-have-a-long-history-going-back-to-the-ancient-world-and-also-to-colonialism-165584">with those considered “uncivilized</a>,” such as peoples in the colonies, criminals and poorer Catholics. Many European intellectuals <a href="https://archive.org/details/historyoftattooi0000hamb">viewed Catholicism as a superstition</a> more than a real religion.</p>
<p>The word “tattoo” came to the Western languages after the French admiral and explorer Louis de Bougainville and British explorer James Cook returned from their trips to the South Pacific at the end of the 1700s. There, they saw local people getting marks on their bodies and using the word “tatau” to name those drawings. However, it does not mean that tattoos came back at that time. They had never left.</p>
<h2>The practice today</h2>
<p>These days, some churches in the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1wmz40c.11">Middle East</a>, such as some <a href="https://archive.org/details/twothousandyears0000mein/page/n5/mode/2up">Coptic Christian</a> churches in Egypt, incorporate the practice of getting a tattoo into the baptismal rituals. </p>
<p>Indeed, Holy Land tattooing has never stopped. <a href="https://razzouktattoo.com">Wassim Razzouk</a>, whom I interviewed in 2022, is a 27th-generation tattooist – his family has been <a href="https://archive.org/details/coptictattoodesi0000cars/page/n7/mode/2up">marking pilgrims in Jerusalem since 1300</a>. Razzouk claims to have some of the 500-year-old wood planks his family used for tattooing. </p>
<p>Another tattoo artist whom I interviewed, Walid Ayash, does pilgrimage tattoos for those who visit the Nativity church in Bethlehem – a beloved custom among Arab Christians. He said that tattooing happens all year around, as long as there are pilgrims visiting the Nativity church. Although this year, as a result of the war in Gaza, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/3/27/easter-in-jerusalem-no-access-for-gazas-christians">Israeli authorities have restricted access</a> to Jerusalem and Bethlehem.</p>
<p>In Italy, <a href="https://youtu.be/mtkc-TJSBdA?feature=shared">artist Jonatal Carducci</a> is working on recovering the tradition of religious tattooing in Loreto. In a 2023 interview with me, he explained how he has painstakingly replicated the designs of the wood planks, which are both in the Museum of the Holy House and the Folkloric Museum of Rome. In 2019, he opened a parlor where Leonardo Conditti used to work. Visitors to the parlor can choose among more than 60 designs for their tattoos, including the Virgin Mary of Loreto, crosses and representations of Jesus’ heart.</p>
<p>This Easter, as some Christians get tattoos, this history might serve as a reminder of tattooing as a legitimate Christian practice, one that has been in use since the beginnings of the Common Era.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223699/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gustavo Morello does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Historically, many Christians got tattoos around Holy Week − usually a cross − to honor Christ’s martyrdom.Gustavo Morello, Professor of Sociology, Boston CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2231372024-02-20T16:52:16Z2024-02-20T16:52:16ZThe Virgin Mary features heavily in anti-abortion activism – and many Catholics are worried<p>If you’ve ever come across an anti-abortion protest, particularly outside of a clinic, you may have been struck by the use of the Virgin Mary. Images of Mary and other religious signs and symbols are frequently used in anti-abortion activism in Britain, as in other countries*.</p>
<p>At one level this is understandable because, as <a href="https://books.emeraldinsight.com/page/detail/anti-abortion-activism-in-the-uk/?k=9781839093999">our research has shown</a>, anti-abortion activists in the UK are overwhelmingly highly religious, with most aligned with conservative forms of Catholicism and a smaller number of evangelicals. Yet the use of these images also reveals important information about the activists’ motivations and understandings, such as ideas about the nature of women. And many Catholics are concerned about the way their religion is being portrayed.</p>
<p>The Catholic image of <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-67690996">Our Lady of Guadalupe</a> appears on everything from clothing to jewellery to shopping bags. Our Lady of Guadalupe is a specific, Mexican variation of the Virgin Mary. She depicts Mary as pregnant and has been given the title of “the protectress of the unborn”. </p>
<p>Catholic activists we spoke to said that Mary was important in their campaign as someone who proceeded with an unplanned pregnancy. So Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good representation of their cause. </p>
<p>There was also a particular colonial understanding of Our Lady of Guadalupe’s role in converting Mexico to Christianity, linked to the activists’ ideas about child sacrifice. They mentioned how Our Lady of Guadalupe’s apparition was central to Christianity displacing the “pagan” Aztecs, who they believed <a href="https://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/home/nearly-everything-you-were-taught-about-aztec-sacrifice-is-wrong">sacrificed children</a>. </p>
<p>One participant went as far as to say that Mary enabled Mexicans to convert to the “true religion”. This position is in line with the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/colonialism">colonial mentality</a> at the time, which <a href="https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/98075/3/Pennock%20-%20Insights%20from%20the%20Ancient%20Word.pdf">exaggerated and distorted indigenous practices</a> to justify subjugating whole populations.</p>
<p>Activists we spoke to linked child sacrifice and abortion and believe these to be the same thing. For these activists, Our Lady of Guadalupe visually represents opposition to abortion and is therefore really significant to their campaign.</p>
<p>But despite the beliefs of anti-abortion activists, there is no singular meaning of Our Lady of Guadalupe. All religious interpretations are disputed, and images can be used for many different reasons. </p>
<p>Our Lady of Guadalupe is often used to represent Mexican identity. <a href="https://www.police1.com/gangs/articles/understanding-east-coast-mexican-gangs-part-2-PJzWfEWCxb7QP21r/">Mexican prisoners</a> are known to deploy her image in tattoos. And she has also been an <a href="https://qspirit.net/queer-lady-guadalupe/">icon for the queer community</a>. </p>
<p>In these instances, her connection to abortion is absent, and we think that this is a surprise to many of the anti-abortion activists who promote her image.</p>
<h2>Misuse of religious symbols</h2>
<p>British Catholics are often unhappy with the ways anti-abortion activists use Catholic imagery. The majority of British Catholics <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/most-uk-catholics-support-abortion-and-use-of-contraception-2083291.html">support abortion</a> in at least some circumstances. Only a minority follow the strict Vatican teaching which is against abortion in all circumstances, including rape. </p>
<p><a href="https://link.springer.com/book/9783031546914">Our latest research</a> with Catholic parishioners reveals that they are particularly unhappy about anti-abortion activism at clinic sites. This is because they see this as harassment of service users and staff, as well as a public nuisance to the local people who live around abortion clinics. </p>
<p>Like most people in Britain, they think that “<a href="https://www.rcog.org.uk/media/iouempf3/fsrh-rcog-safe-access-zones-around-abortion-clinics-report.pdf">safe access zones</a>” are needed to prevent any form of abortion protest in the vicinity of clinics.</p>
<p>Some Catholic parishioners told us that anti-abortion activism at clinics involving prayer like the Rosary was a “misuse of prayer” and preyed on women who might be vulnerable. They are concerned about the overall image that this gave to Catholicism, especially when objects connected to Catholicism – such as rosary beads – are used. </p>
<p>Rather than following the teaching of the church – that abortion is always wrong – these Catholics felt individual conscience was key to abortion decisions. They also often emphasised the importance of recognising that reproductive decisions are made within the broader context of people’s lives. </p>
<p>Of those who were against abortion, many still did not think it was the right of anti-abortion activists to display their theological viewpoint outside of clinic sites. Instead, parishioners felt that people needed to determine what their moral stance on abortion was through their relationship with God.</p>
<p>Overall, rather than adopting a secular interpretation of abortion, Catholic parishioners used Catholic theology to interpret their perspective on abortion. This often led to a negative perception of anti-abortion activists.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/there-is-no-one-religious-view-on-abortion-a-scholar-of-religion-gender-and-sexuality-explains-184532">multiple Catholic viewpoints</a> on abortion mean that an image such as the Virgin Mary does not have the same meaning to all those who display and see it. Even the same images of the Virgin Mary can have many different, and contrasting, interpretations. </p>
<p>It is important to recognise that, while religiously motivated anti-abortion activists often dominate the abortion discourse, they represent only a small minority of viewpoints within the broader Christian church.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/something-good-156">Sign up here</a>.</em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223137/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah-Jane Page has received funding from The British Academy for research related to abortion. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Pam Lowe has received funding from The British Academy for research related to abortion. She is a member of Abortion Rights and has previoulsy undertaken a secondment at BPAS. </span></em></p>There is no singular meaning behind the Mary imagery used by anti-abortion activists.Sarah-Jane Page, Associate Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of NottinghamPam Lowe, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Aston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2137202023-10-12T12:30:02Z2023-10-12T12:30:02ZHow Chicana women artists have often used the figure of the Virgin of Guadalupe for political messages<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553308/original/file-20231011-27-wypna1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C515%2C405&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Chicana artist Yolanda Lopez's artwork: 'Portrait of the Artist as the Virgin of Guadalupe.'</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Yolanda Lopez</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1975, Chicano artist Amado M. Peña <a href="https://penagallery.com/">depicted police brutality</a> by showing the bloodied head of 12-year-old Santos Rodriguez, whom Dallas police had shot for allegedly stealing $8
from a vending machine. The painting “<a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/aquellos-que-han-muerto-35251">Aquellos que han muerto</a>,” translated as “Those who have died,” further listed the names of other Chicano youth killed by police. </p>
<p>Across the background, Peña included rows of skulls – a gesture that art historian E. Carmen Ramos explains “conjures death and connects with <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-american-art-museum/2021/05/13/protest-and-remembrance-chicanx-artists-confront-police-brutality/">skull imagery frequently used in Mesoamerican religious practices</a> and modern Mexican art.”</p>
<p>Peña’s work was part of what came to be known as the <a href="https://www.mexicanmuseum.org/chicano-movement">Chicano art movement</a>. Throughout the 1960s and ’70s, Chicano art powerfully decried the discrimination, inequality and cultural oppression faced by Mexican Americans in the United States. At the same time, many Chicano artists threaded symbols of ancient Mexican and contemporary beliefs throughout their political art. </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://icaa.mfah.org/s/en/item/848799#?c=&m=&s=&cv=&xywh=-1673%2C0%2C5895%2C3299">professor of Chicano and Latin American art history</a>, I have focused my research on artists’ use of spiritual and cultural symbols to forge a new sense of community. </p>
<p>In particular, over the past few decades, Chicana artists have used the figure of the Virgin of Guadalupe to convey social, cultural and political, though not necessarily religious, messages.</p>
<h2>Chicana art and the Virgin of Guadalupe</h2>
<p>First, it is essential to understand the centurieslong history of changing practices concerning the virgin’s image. </p>
<p>Today considered the protector of marginalized people, the Virgin of Guadalupe has become an icon in Mexican American social and political movements. As a significant spiritual figure, she is <a href="https://virgendeguadalupe.org.mx/en/bibliografia/">often seen as a symbol</a> of faith, protection and hope.</p>
<p>Known as the dark-skinned patroness of Mexico, legend explains that the Virgin of Guadalupe miraculously <a href="https://todayscatholic.org/lady-guadalupe-feast-celebrate-patroness-americas/">appeared to an Indigenous person</a> in Mexico in 1531. Notably, the Virgin Mary took the form of a mestiza, or mixed-race woman, speaking Nahuatl, the language of the recently colonized peoples. Over the centuries, her image came to be associated with vulnerable populations, especially as an advocate for migrants who embark upon uncertain travels.</p>
<p>In the 19th century, Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla sent the call across New Spain, now Mexico, for independence from Spain. Hidalgo carried Guadalupe’s banner as he gathered fighters. Soldiers <a href="https://www.csus.edu/indiv/o/obriene/art111/readings/virgin%20of%20guadalupe.pdf">wore her image in the battles for Mexican independence</a> of 1810 and again in the Mexican civil war of 1910-20.</p>
<p>In the United States, Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/pilgrimage-and-revolution-how-cesar-chavez-married-faith-and-ideology-in-landmark-farmworkers-march-200043">leaders of the United Farm Workers Union</a>, carried Guadalupe’s image in the <a href="https://ufw.org/1965-1970-delano-grape-strike-boycott/">1960s strikes against the grape-growing companies</a>. National media became riveted by Catholic priests and nuns joining the farm workers who carried crosses and banners of Guadalupe. In this way, organizers within the Chicano Movement affirmed their struggles for <a href="https://reuther.wayne.edu/node/158">economic and racial equity</a> as a spiritual undertaking.</p>
<h2>A symbol of empowerment</h2>
<p>Through the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s, feminist and gender perspectives became more prominent in art as Chicana artists explored complex concepts of identity. Artistic representations of women <a href="https://utpress.utexas.edu/9780292788985/">began to consider</a> intersections of economic class, regional location, gender and sexuality, as well as diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.</p>
<p>Still, many Chicana artists connected interpretations of the virgin with political and cultural change. Guadalupe was <a href="https://read.dukeupress.edu/books/book/2135/Chicana-ArtThe-Politics-of-Spiritual-and-Aesthetic">frequently used to express feminist ideals</a>, such as in the work of artist Yolanda Lopez. In her renowned 1978 “<a href="https://sjmusart.org/exhibition/yolanda-lopez-portrait-artist">Portrait of the Artist as the Virgin of Guadalupe</a>,” Lopez appears within the Virgin’s full-body halo. Creating an affirming image of mixed-race women, Lopez modernized the attire by raising the hemline above the knees and adding running shoes. This modern Virgin appears to be vigorously moving forward while boldly clutching a snake as a sign of power and influence.</p>
<p>Chicana artist Ester Hernández also used the Virgin of Guadalupe to symbolize women’s empowerment. In a 1975 print, the artist presented Guadalupe as a karate champion defending the rights of Chicanos. This modern Guadalupe personified the <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/la-virgen-de-guadalupe-defendiendo-los-derechos-de-los-xicanos-86123">powerful work of women</a> <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/exhibitions/chicano-graphics/online/la-virgen-de-guadalupe">within the civil rights movement</a>.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/p9EPgSSoWAA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Ester Hernández interview.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Protector of the borderlands</h2>
<p>Over the past several decades, many Chicana artists have used Guadalupe to emphasize the need for dialogue, solutions and justice in <a href="https://read.dukeupress.edu/books/book/2135/Chicana-ArtThe-Politics-of-Spiritual-and-Aesthetic">addressing immigration-related issues</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.lilianawilson.com/">Liliana Wilson</a>, a Chilean American artist well known for her artworks addressing immigration and human rights issues, has worked within borderland Chicano communities for decades. Her 1987 painting “<a href="https://sanantonioreport.org/liliana-wilsons-gentle-activism/wilson_el-color_rodrigo-rojas/">El Color de la Esperanza,” or “The Color of Hope</a>,” features Guadalupe safeguarding a sleeping youth. He is alone and is deeply vulnerable within a desert landscape marked by the barbed wire border fence at his back.</p>
<p>In my recent telephone interview with Wilson, she explained that “the Aztec sun and the virgin are all that the sleeping youth has in this world; they represent his close connection with nature, Indigenous culture and human hope … Guadalupe travels with them in their hearts.”</p>
<p>In a 2010 print, artist Ester Hernández satirically pictured the Virgin within a fictitious “Wanted” poster. The artist used the image of Guadalupe to critique exclusionary policies that endanger migrants desperate for safe spaces. </p>
<p>The poster ironically accuses the Virgin of Guadalupe of <a href="https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/wanted-86375">committing the crime</a> of “providing limitless aid and comfort” to those who have died attempting to cross the desert regions separating Mexico from the U.S. </p>
<h2>Guadalupe as embracing identities</h2>
<p>Many Chicana artists and writers use Guadalupe’s image to redefine the borderlands’ people as representatives of a new hybrid space. Guadalupe herself is seen to be a hybrid entity; her apparition occurred at the sacred site previously dedicated to the Aztec goddess Tonantzin, also known as Coatlique, or the “Mother of the Gods.” </p>
<p>For Chicanas, the merging of Tonantzin and the Virgin of Guadalupe <a href="https://core.ac.uk/download/56110546.pdf">is a form of cultural reclamation</a>. It allows them to assert their mixed-race identities while reinterpreting religious symbols to better reflect their diverse experiences and values. Drawing upon this understanding of Guadalupe as a hybrid entity representing the borderlands, in 1995 artist <a href="https://www.santabarraza.com/">Santa Barraza</a> painted the image of the Virgin on the back of a mestiza (mixed race) migrant and titled the art “<a href="https://www.santabarraza.com/portfolio-item/nepantla/">Nepantla</a>.” </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rHJzjsYoWR4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Santa Barraza discusses her art.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Nepantla, well discussed within Chicano intellectual and artistic circles, expresses a psychological space of uncertainty and loss, especially within the borderlands. This Nahuatl word represents a <a href="https://nacla.org/article/chicana-artists-exploring-nepantla-el-lugar-de-la-frontera">state of transition and change</a>, especially as it relates to cultural mixing. For Barraza, this image of Nepantla also represents a <a href="https://www.tamupress.com/book/9780890969069/santa-barraza-artist-of-the-borderlands/">historical, emotional and spiritual land</a> – between Mexico and Texas, between the real and the celestial, and between present reality and the mythic world of the ancient Aztecs and Mayas.</p>
<p>Mexican American theologian Virgilio Elizondo has written extensively on such varied ways that the Virgin of Guadalupe represents religious and cultural mixing. <a href="https://faithandleadership.com/virgilio-p-elizondo-diversity-sign-the-new-creation">Elizondo affirms this blended knowledge</a> that grows out of the borderlands as “existing at the intersection of two ways of knowing.” </p>
<p>In light of constantly conflicting worldviews and systems of power, writers such as Elizondo and Chicana theorist Gloria Anzaldúa present this notion of Guadalupe as a new mestizo sensibility that <a href="https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/hksdigitalbookdisplay/publications/borderlands-la-frontera-new-mestiza">embraces mixed identities</a> as a means of adaptation and survival. </p>
<p>In Elizondo’s and Anzaldúa’s writings, as well as for many within 21st-century Chicano communities, Guadalupe is the “sign of the new creation,” a <a href="https://faithandleadership.com/virgilio-p-elizondo-diversity-sign-the-new-creation">third space that accepts the lived experience of difference</a> and supports the needs of those who suffer from social injustices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213720/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Judith Huacuja does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Over the past decades, many Chicana artists have used Guadalupe to emphasize issues of justice around immigration.Judith Huacuja, Professor of Art History, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2046112023-05-24T12:17:41Z2023-05-24T12:17:41ZVatican centralizes investigations on claims of Virgin Mary apparitions – but local Catholics have always had a say<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527303/original/file-20230519-22530-a54gyh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=18%2C0%2C5988%2C4007&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The shrine at Lourdes, France, where the Virgin Mary is venerated as 'Our Lady of Lourdes,' following several apparitions reported in 1858.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/our-lady-of-lourdes-royalty-free-image/505115655?phrase=virgin+mary+apparition&adppopup=true">LandFoto/iStock / Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Vatican recently announced its plan to <a href="https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/vatican-news/papal-academy-launches-study-center-evaluate-marian-apparitions">set up an “observatory</a>” at one of its several academic institutions, the Pontificia Academia Mariana Internationalis, to investigate claims of apparitions and other mystical phenomena attributed to the Virgin Mary. </p>
<p>As a <a href="https://lsa.umich.edu/history/people/faculty/ddelac.html">scholar of global Christianity</a> whose first book focused on <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo22053864.html">apparitions and miracles of Mary in the modern Philippines</a>, I’ve spent years studying the ins and outs of how the Catholic Church authenticates apparitions and the impact of these decisions on devotion to the Virgin Mary. I believe that the creation of this office signals a major shift in how apparitions of Mary have been evaluated and authenticated in modern times. </p>
<p>Contrary to <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6559390/">depictions in popular media</a> that show the Vatican as the first and only arbiter in these matters, the actual process almost always takes place at the local level and only rarely reaches the Holy See.</p>
<h2>Official and unofficial judgment</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/trent/twenty-fifth-session.htm">Council of Trent</a>, held between 1545 to 1563, first gave bishops the authority to recognize new miracles or relics. In the 1970s, the Vatican’s <a href="https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_pro_14071997_en.html">Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith</a>, the office charged with defending and promulgating Catholic doctrine, established <a href="https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19780225_norme-apparizioni_en.html">a set of norms</a> prescribing how alleged apparitions should be judged at the local level. </p>
<p>However, <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/a/apparitions-statistics-modern.php">most apparition claims</a> don’t rise to the level of being investigated. Of the countless apparitions that have been reported throughout church history, only 25 have been <a href="https://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/bishop.html">approved by the local bishop</a>, and 16 of those have been <a href="https://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/approved_apparitions/vatican.html">recognized by the Vatican</a>. </p>
<p>Yet, throughout the Catholic world, <a href="http://mariandevotions.org/portal/most-popular-marian-shrines-in-the-world/">hundreds of shrines</a> commemorating a miraculous appearance of Mary enjoy devotional followings. What accounts for the difference between tacit and official church approval, and what is at stake when the church investigates an alleged sighting? </p>
<h2>When personal revelations become public</h2>
<p>Catholics the world over engage in deep <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691127767/between-heaven-and-earth">relationships with Mary and the saints</a> and take it for granted that their presence is real. In many places, furthermore, <a href="http://www.caysasay.com/Caysasay%20Home/storyOfCaysasay.html">Catholic beliefs blended with Indigenous cultures</a> and practices to produce apparition legends around which devotion has flourished for centuries. </p>
<p>Local priests and bishops navigate a fine line between popular religiosity and doctrinal orthodoxy. They readily accept <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/the-many-faces-of-mary">diversity in how believers venerate Mary</a>. But they also must remain <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/a/apparitions-approval-process.php">vigilant against phenomena and messages</a> that contradict the church’s teachings and threaten to undermine their authority. For many supernatural claims, the tipping point for investigation comes when a limited experience turns into a mass phenomenon.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A statue of the Virgin Mary draped in a blue robe." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527304/original/file-20230519-21-4p33y6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A statue of the Virgin Mary outside the Sariaya Church in Quezon Province, Philippines.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/the-virgin-mary-with-an-old-church-behind-royalty-free-image/1219146141?phrase=virgin+mary+Philippines+apparition&adppopup=true">Mariano Sayno/Moment</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To take two examples from my research in the Philippines: In Quezon City, northeast of Manila, in the early 2000s, a neighborhood group that met weekly to <a href="https://www.usccb.org/how-to-pray-the-rosary">pray the rosary</a> was led by a woman who, while in trance, claimed to channel the Virgin Mary. Although officials from the Archdiocese of Manila were aware of the group’s activities, <a href="https://anthropology.columbia.edu/content/all-his-instruments-mary-miracles-philippines">they left them alone</a>, since their devotional practice had little impact beyond their immediate circle, and the content of Mary’s messages gave no cause for concern. </p>
<p>By contrast, after tens of thousands of people journeyed to the small Philippine coastal town of Agoo, in the northwestern province of La Union, to witness <a href="https://apnews.com/article/be6062cf0ae3881362f3429dacf2e560">an appearance of Mary</a> foretold by the visionary Judiel Nieva in March 1993, the presiding bishop immediately formed an official commission to investigate. Two years later, the commission <a href="https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/09/06/Church-Philippine-miracle-a-hoax/5408810360000/">declared it a hoax</a>. </p>
<p>The difference between how local church authorities treated the two cases came down to the scale of the phenomenon, whether profit was made from people’s beliefs, and the content of the messages allegedly spoken by Mary. As with most apparitions found “not worthy of belief” – that is, not supernatural in origin – the Agoo phenomenon eventually died down. </p>
<h2>Who determines devotion?</h2>
<p>Occasionally, however, devotees remain steadfast in their belief that Mary appeared despite a negative judgment from the Catholic Church. For example, the devotional figure of Mary as the “<a href="https://theladyofallnations.info/en/">Lady of All Nations</a>,” a title associated with the visions of Dutch woman Ida Peerdeman, who claimed to have sighted the Virgin <a href="https://wrldrels.org/2016/10/08/lady-of-all-nations/">56 times</a> between 1945 and 1959, maintains a robust global following to this day. This is in spite of the fact that Dutch bishops and the Vatican’s doctrinal office have urged Catholics <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/47024/vaticans-doctrinal-office-dont-promote-alleged-apparitions-connected-to-lady-of-all-nations">not to promote the apparitions</a> associated with that particular title.</p>
<p>Likewise, in Lipa, the Philippines, there was in the 1990s a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfT_wfsO_Xk">revival of devotion</a> and belief that <a href="https://ourladymarymediatrixofallgrace.com/">Mary had appeared to a Filipino novice</a> of the religious order of the Carmelites in 1948. The devotion continued even though a commission of Filipino bishops <a href="https://www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/statements/lipa_statement_1951.html">investigated the phenomenon and declared</a> that it “excluded any supernatural intervention” in 1951. </p>
<p>In both cases, popular support for the apparitions influenced <a href="https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/in-response-to-inquiries-concerning-the-lady-of-all-nations-apparitions-3828">sitting bishops to reconsider</a>, and even <a href="https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/721615/archbishop-declares-1948-lipa-mediatrix-apparitions-worthy-of-belief">overturn, a previously negative judgment</a>. </p>
<p>But the bishops’ approval didn’t last long. Asserting the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, the Vatican’s doctrinal office stepped in to uphold the original rulings that the apparitions were not authentic. Even so, many devotees remain undeterred in their belief. </p>
<h2>Balancing act</h2>
<p>According to the proposed Vatican observatory’s president, the Rev. Stefano Cecchin, the new office will serve both <a href="https://www.ewtnvatican.com/articles/vatican-creates-observatory-to-study-possible-apparitions-of-virgin-mary-856">academic and pastoral purposes</a>, acting as a centralized task force for the systematic and multidisciplinary study of apparition claims worldwide. </p>
<p>It remains to be seen how precisely they will coordinate with local bishops who have until now enjoyed the authority to determine whether the “Mother of God,” as Mary is often called, appeared in their jurisdiction.</p>
<p>For those of us observing from the outside, the new observatory is an intriguing development in the long history of balancing the universal claims of the Catholic Church with the myriad expressions of local devotion and belief.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204611/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Deirdre de la Cruz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Vatican plans to set up an ‘observatory’ to investigate apparitions of the Virgin Mary. A scholar of global Christianity explains why this is a major shift in how apparitions are authenticated.Deirdre de la Cruz, Associate Professor of History and Asian Languages and Culture, University of MichiganLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2040912023-04-21T12:41:27Z2023-04-21T12:41:27ZWhat’s going on when the Virgin Mary appears and statues weep? The answers aren’t just about science or the supernatural<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521749/original/file-20230419-24-eipspl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C0%2C2100%2C1412&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mary is often depicted weeping, a reminder of the 'Seven Sorrows' the Bible recounts her suffering.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/god-bless-you-royalty-free-image/1306577159?phrase=statue%20mary&adppopup=true">pratan ounpitipong/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Claims of appearances of the Virgin Mary and weeping statues have been common in Catholicism. And now they’re going to get a closer look – but on a worldwide scale.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.pami.info/copia-di-home-en">The Pontificia Academia Mariana Internationalis</a>, or PAMI, recently announced an <a href="https://www.ewtnvatican.com/articles/vatican-creates-observatory-to-study-possible-apparitions-of-virgin-mary-856">“observatory”</a> to <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1758584/Weeping-Virgin-Mary-statues-Vatican-scientists-PAMI">investigate claims</a> of appearances of the Virgin Mary and reports of statues of her weeping oil and blood.</p>
<p>This announcement extends PAMI’s mission of promoting devotion to Mary and study of phenomena related to her. While still waiting for full Vatican approval, the observatory will train investigators to study mystical phenomena in cooperation with church authorities – for example, trying to determine the substance of reported tears.</p>
<p>Investigating the supernatural has always been a delicate task in the Catholic Church, which has to balance the faith of believers with the possibility of fraud.</p>
<h2>Marian apparitions</h2>
<p>Catholics believe Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ, and the mother of God, who still makes her presence known. And the Catholic Church has officially recognized a number of sites where Mary has reportedly appeared around the globe.</p>
<p>The image of <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2018-12/our-lady-of-guadaloupe-feast-day-mexico-americas.html">Our Lady of Guadalupe</a> on a cloak in Mexico City has long been revered by Catholics as a miracle confirming Mary’s appearance to the peasant Juan Diego in 1531. In <a href="https://apnews.com/article/pope-francis-europe-religion-prayer-communism-9df80314be754c4aa3de4403cd5ecced">Fatima, Portugal</a>, in 1917, <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/f/fatima-message.php">three children claimed</a> that the Virgin Mary had visited them <a href="https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/05/10/story-fatima-apparitions-miracles-and-journey-sainthood">several times</a>. Crowds drawn by the children’s prophecy that Mary would reappear and perform a miracle reported seeing the sun “<a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/36019/miracle-of-the-sun-broke-darkness-of-portugals-atheist-regimes">dance in the sky</a>.”</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black and white photograph shows people standing and kneeling in a field, looking up to the sky." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=588&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=588&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521724/original/file-20230418-20-nho1md.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=588&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Thousands of believers claimed to have seen a ‘Miracle of the Sun’ in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/thousands-of-believers-attending-the-miracle-of-the-sun-news-photo/1159595509?adppopup=true">Grzegorz Galazka/Archivio Grzegorz Galazka/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The most recent Marian apparition that a Catholic bishop has declared “<a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/33982/a-marian-apparition-has-been-approved-in-argentina-and-its-a-big-deal">worthy of belief</a>” was in Buenos Aires province, Argentina, in 2016. A local Catholic woman told her priest that visions had begun with <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-the-rosary-why-a-set-of-beads-and-prayers-are-central-to-catholic-faith-192485">rosary prayer beads</a> glowing in multiple homes and progressed to Mary warning her of humanity’s “<a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/its-official-major-apparitions-of-mary-are-approved">self-destruction</a>.”</p>
<h2>Mary’s tears</h2>
<p>There is also a long history of claims of weeping Mary statues. A well-known example is the <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/45666/weeping-madonna-of-syracuse-commemorated-in-sicily">Madonna of Syracuse, Sicily</a> – a plaster statue that seemed to shed tears. Investigators appointed by the church said the liquid was <a href="https://catholicshrinebasilica.com/santuario-madonna-delle-lacrime-syracuse-sicily-italy/">chemically similar</a> to human tears. The shrine now housing the image is shaped like a <a href="https://blog.learnsicilian.com/miracle-of-tears-history-of-the-weeping-madonna-of-syracuse-madonna-delle-lacrime/">tear drop</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An unusual cathedral, shaped like an upside-down flower, seen from above." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=535&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521686/original/file-20230418-28-78j86w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=672&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The church in Syracuse, Sicily, that holds a small statue of Mary believed to weep.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/sanctuary-of-the-mary-of-the-tears-royalty-free-image/899173404?phrase=madonna%20of%20syracuse&adppopup=true">Michele Ponzio/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Recently, weeping statues have been reported in places as distant from each other as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEe1a0IxROI">Paszto, Hungary</a>, and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/07/18/a-virgin-mary-statue-has-been-weeping-olive-oil-church-leaders-cant-explain-it/?utm_term=.9c0d38087e0b">Hobbs, New Mexico</a>. It is, however, rare for the Catholic Church to say that an apparently weeping statue has a supernatural cause.</p>
<p>Mary’s tears have special significance for Catholics. She is often pictured as crying over the sins of the world and the pain she endured in her earthly life. <a href="http://www.ncregister.com/blog/mfenelon/what-are-the-seven-sorrows-of-mary">Mary’s earthly sorrows</a> are depicted by seven swords piercing her flaming heart.</p>
<p>Given Mary’s religious and symbolic significance, it is not surprising for a supposed apparition site or a weeping statue to become an object of devotion.</p>
<p>And when this happens, the local bishop sometimes <a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-europe/2020/08/is-seeing-believing-how-the-church-faces-claims-of-marian-apparitions">decides to investigate</a>.</p>
<h2>The possibility of fraud</h2>
<p>In examining claims of the supernatural, bishops follow standards set by the Vatican’s <a href="http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19780225_norme-apparizioni_en.html">Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith</a>, which oversees Catholic doctrine. Perhaps because they address controversial issues, the standards were only <a href="https://www.catholicsun.org/2012/05/24/vatican-publishes-rules-for-verifying-marian-apparitions/">made public in 2012</a> – nearly 35 years after they were first implemented. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Four adults stand in a dark room around a statue of a woman in a white dress and blue cloak." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/522205/original/file-20230420-26-3kquvh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Christians pray in 2014 next to a statue of the Virgin Mary in northern Israel that residents said was weeping oil.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/Mideast%20Israel%20Weeping%20Statue/523aed5a7cc742bdbfc4ba56f23a7a2c?Query=statue%20mary%20tear%20weep&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=4&currentItemNo=3">AP Photo/Ariel Schalit</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The bishop, or a committee appointed by him, evaluates the alleged supernatural phenomenon. This involves interviewing witnesses and, sometimes, scientific tests. Impact on the community is also considered. Positive aspects include reports of physical healings and religious conversions, or a general deepening of faith among Catholics. Negative aspects would include selling oil from a purportedly weeping statue or claiming a message from Mary that goes against Catholic doctrine.</p>
<p>A well-known case of an apparition that the Catholic Church rejected concerns the visions of Veronica Lueken, the Brooklyn “Bayside Seer,” who died in 1995. Lueken reported a number of messages from Mary that concerned church authorities. For example, Lueken claimed in 1972 that Mary had told her that the pope was, in fact, <a href="https://www.tldm.org/Directives/d50.htm">an imposter</a> made to look like the true pope, <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en.html">Paul VI</a>, through plastic surgery. Although <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/09/nyregion/visions-of-doom-endure-in-queens-prophecy-and-a-rift-at-a-shrine.html">belief in the messages endures</a> among a small number of Catholics, the local bishop <a href="https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/declaration-concerning-the-bayside-movement-11313">deemed the apparitions not credible</a>. </p>
<p>When it comes to weeping statues, one of the primary questions is whether the event has been staged. For example, in two cases of statues that supposedly had wept blood – one in <a href="https://www.apnews.com/5bc729e1e9f2b843d2557ec63e5db6da">Canada</a> in 1986 and another in <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/church_custodian_on_trial_in_italy_for_weeping_statue_hoax">Italy</a> in 2006 – the blood turned out be that of the statue’s owner. </p>
<p>Liquids can also be injected into the porous material of statues and later seep out as “tears.” Oil that is mixed with fat can be applied to a statue’s eyes, which will “weep” when <a href="https://www.nwitimes.com/uncategorized/the-mystery-of-mary-s-tears/article_38c3d91a-127a-5f7c-b0d2-c2bec26744a5.html">ambient temperatures</a> rise. </p>
<h2>Searching for meaning</h2>
<p>The Pontificia Academia Mariana Internationalis seems to be searching for proof of supernatural signs, which certainly draw intellectual curiosity and media attention.</p>
<p>But as <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=XuFPwjsAAAAJ&hl=en">a scholar of global Catholicism</a> who has written about claims of the supernatural, I think it’s also important to understand what brings people to an apparition site or weeping statue in the first place. </p>
<p>In my hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, statues and pictures have appeared to weep oil and blood at the home of the <a href="http://www.telegram.com/article/20070416/NEWS/704160667/1116&Template=printart">late Audrey Santo</a>, who died in 2007 at the age of 23. As a child, “Little Audrey” was left mute and paralyzed after a swimming pool accident. In spite of her physical condition, pilgrims who came to see her believed that she was praying for them.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A girl with her mouth open lies in a bed as an older woman bends over her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A special outdoor Mass was celebrated in honor of Audrey Santo, who was reputed to be connected to miracles, at the Holy Cross College stadium in Worcester, Mass.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Gail Oskin</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After Santo’s death, a <a href="http://www.littleaudreysantofoundation.com/">foundation was established</a> to promote her cause for sainthood, believing that the statues and pictures in her home were signs that God has specially blessed her.</p>
<p><a href="https://crossworks.holycross.edu/rel_faculty_pub/5/">In my writings</a> about the case of Santo, I was definitely tempted to focus on talk of the supernatural. And the claims surrounding Little Audrey are still <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20070928100126/http://www.worcesterdiocese.org/audrey.html">debated among Catholics</a> as her sainthood cause stalls. But what I found most interesting was listening to people share why weeping statues were so meaningful in their personal lives. </p>
<p>At the Santo home, the people I talked to shared moving personal stories of pain and sadness, hope and healing. In the end, the sense of togetherness in and through suffering was far more important than talk of scientific proofs of the supernatural.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-behind-belief-in-weeping-virgin-mary-statues-100358">an article originally published on July 23, 2018</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204091/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mathew Schmalz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Investigating supernatural claims is a delicate task for the church, and Catholic leaders rarely label them as authentic.Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy CrossLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1955362022-12-20T20:09:40Z2022-12-20T20:09:40ZWho is at the manger? Nativity sets around the world show each culture’s take on the Christmas story<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501977/original/file-20221219-13540-k2osuc.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=52%2C17%2C3824%2C1806&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A handmade Nativity from Kyrgyzstan by an unknown artisan. Instead of a stable, it features a yurt, the traditional home of nomadic Kyrgyz people.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>For many Christians around the world, celebrating the Nativity, or the birth of Jesus Christ, is the most important part of the Christmas season. </p>
<p>Among the most common Christmas traditions are <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-st-francis-created-the-nativity-scene-with-a-miraculous-event-in-1223-124742">small sets of figures</a> depicting Joseph, Mary and Jesus that are displayed in individual homes, and live reenactments of the manger scene in communities and churches. While Nativity sets focus on the holy family, they can also include an angel, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-were-the-3-wise-men-who-visited-jesus-195159">three wise men</a> bringing gifts, shepherds or some barnyard animals. </p>
<p>Around the world, it is common to see particular cultural and religious traditions incorporated through the materials used, the types of gifts presented to Jesus, or the people and animals present at the manger.</p>
<p>The Marian Library at the University of Dayton has over <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/c/creche-collection-of-the-marian-library/index.php">3,600 Nativity sets</a>, also known as “crèches,” the French word for cribs. These Nativities are used to promote the study of culture and religion. Since one of us is a <a href="https://udayton.edu/directory/libraries/harriskayla.php">curator</a> for this collection and the other is a <a href="https://udayton.edu/directory/artssciences/religiousstudies/deanda_neomi.php">religious studies scholar</a>, we often notice how Nativities can be used to both depict the birth of Jesus and convey unique cultural beliefs. </p>
<h2>Troublemakers in Scandinavia</h2>
<p>In Nordic folklore, “<a href="https://www.patheos.com/blogs/matauryn/2018/12/07/the-mischievous-tomte-spirits-of-yule/">the tomte</a>,” or “nisse,” is a small creature that looks rather like a garden gnome figurine. These long-bearded, red-capped little lads are associated with <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Yule-festival">Yule</a>, the celebration of the winter solstice in pre-Christian northern Europe.</p>
<p>While these folklore figures were often believed to be quite helpful around a farm, even doing chores in secret at night, they also have a mischievous or sometimes even scary side. For example, in one <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/scandinavian-folk-belief-and-legend">legend</a> a young farm girl decides to put butter at the bottom of the porridge bowl left out for the nisse, instead of on top. The nisse was so angry he immediately went and killed the farm’s best cow. Once he discovered the butter at the bottom, he felt remorse, and to remedy the situation he stole a cow from the neighboring farm. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A diorama made of felt and wood shows elves with beards gathered around a taller structure with more elves inside." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=468&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501571/original/file-20221216-13-3qulih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Yuletide Lads,’ a Nativity set created by Icelandic artist Kristin Karolina.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Marian Library, University of Dayton.</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In Iceland, the mythical creatures are called <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-the-thirteen-yule-lads-icelands-own-mischievous-santa-clauses-180948162/">Yule Lads</a>, and they visit children’s homes in the lead-up to Christmas. A 2003 Nativity scene by Icelandic crafter and artisan Kristin Karolina <a href="https://ecommons.udayton.edu/imri_creches/94/">blends the two holiday traditions</a>, depicting the birth of Jesus with a band of troublemakers. Made of knitted wool and sheepskin, the mischief-makers are licking the porridge spoon and stealing the Christmas meal through the chimney with a fishing pole. </p>
<h2>The devil is in the details</h2>
<p>Across the Atlantic, a different type of troublemaker can be found in Nativities: Devils are a common feature in Christmas rituals across Latin America.</p>
<p>Devils at the Nativity are a physical representation of evil in the world, even in the presence of the Christ child. They sometimes specifically represent what Catholic teachings consider “<a href="https://artuk.org/discover/stories/a-brief-art-history-of-the-seven-deadly-sins">the seven deadly sins</a>”: lust, greed, pride, envy, gluttony, sloth and wrath.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A Nativity set in bright colors, with three devilish figures standing behind the Holy Family." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501574/original/file-20221216-22499-bicc86.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘The Devil Never Far,’ a Nativity set by Sotero Lemus Gervasio of Mexico.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The devil can be found in other popular religious traditions of the Advent and Christmas seasons. One of these practices is the appearance of the devil as a character in a “pastorela,” a popular Mexican <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5-QxRZGcRA&t=25s">dramatic portrayal</a> of the shepherds making their way to visit Jesus. In these <a href="https://www.proquest.com/openview/0beea9d3fac0789a/1.pdf?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=54559">Nativity plays</a>, a devil character plays tricks and sets obstacles in the shepherds’ path, trying to keep them from Bethlehem. </p>
<p>Some pastorelas are set in modern times, with the devil role highlighting human sinfulness. But these plays end with a hopeful message: the love, peace and joy in the church’s teaching that God became human.</p>
<p>Another practice called “<a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/spanish/2018/12/09/guatemaltecos-quema-diablo-virgen-inmaculada-concepcion-tradiciones-cnnee-mirador-mundial.cnn">la quema del diablo</a>,” or “<a href="https://money.yahoo.com/devil-goes-flames-guatemala-christmas-000645414.html">burning of the devil</a>,” is held in Guatemala. Individuals and groups set fires in front of their homes and around their communities to symbolize cleansing the world of all evil. It is held on Dec. 7, in anticipation of the <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/liturgical-holidays/solemnity-of-the-immaculate-conception-of-the-blessed-virgin-mar.html">Feast of the Immaculate Conception</a> on Dec. 8. This feast celebrates the church’s teaching that the Virgin Mary herself was conceived without sin, preparing her to become the mother of God.</p>
<h2>Alike in the eyes of God</h2>
<p>Contrasted against the vivid colors and expressions in the Latin American depictions, Nativities representing <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/A-History-of-the-Amish/Steven-M-Nolt/9781680990652">the Amish culture</a> in the United States often feature faceless figures in plain clothing. Amish teachings highly value humility and simplicity – many churches, for example, <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/top-ten-faq/">forbid individuals to pose for a face-on photograph</a>, as this can be seen as a form of pride. Even Amish dolls for children are often created without individual faces.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A simple Nativity set shows figures in hats and bonnets, with no facial expressions painted on." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501593/original/file-20221216-11363-ticjjl.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Amish Christmas,’ a Nativity set by U.S.-based artist Esther Glock O'Hara.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While each Nativity set incorporates a different set of values and beliefs surrounding the birth of Christ, they are all examples of taking tenets of faith, which can often be abstract ideas, and representing them physically. And for many Christians, such traditions help represent their beliefs in a particularly powerful way: by picturing Jesus within their own culture.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195536/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Neomi De Anda works for the University of Dayton, consults for the Louisville Institute funded by Lily Endowment Inc. She receives funding from the Association of Marianist Universities, Louisville Institute, Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Religion and Theology, and Forum for Theological Exploration.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kayla Harris does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Christmas story is about Jesus coming to mankind. As holiday decorations show, Christians around the world often picture him in their own cultures.Kayla Harris, Librarian/Archivist at the Marian Library and Associate Professor, University of DaytonNeomi De Anda, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1941332022-12-15T13:06:07Z2022-12-15T13:06:07ZWhy early Christians wouldn’t have found the Christmas story’s virgin birth so surprising<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500114/original/file-20221209-41413-3bblu5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C7%2C997%2C672&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">'The Nativity,' circa 1406-10, by Lorenzo Monaco</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-nativity-circa-1406-10-artist-lorenzo-monaco-news-photo/1206224323?phrase=nativity&adppopup=true">Heritage Images/Hulton Archive via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/por-que-a-los-primeros-cristianos-no-les-habria-sorprendido-tanto-el-nacimiento-virginal-de-la-historia-de-navidad-219875"><em>Leer en español</em></a>. </p>
<p>Every year on Christmas, Christians celebrate the birth of their religion’s founder, Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee. Part of this celebration includes the claim that Jesus was born from <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew+1%3A18&version=NIV">a virgin mother named Mary</a>, which is fundamental to the Christian understanding that Jesus is <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201&version=NIV">the divine son of God</a>.</p>
<p>The virgin birth may seem <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/15/opinion/believe-it-or-not.html">strange</a> to a modern audience – and not just because it runs counter to the science of reproduction. Even in the Bible itself, the idea is rarely mentioned.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=4ufVq8gAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">a scholar of the New Testament</a>, however, I argue that this story’s original audiences would not have been put off by the supposed “strangeness” of the virgin birth story. The story would have felt much more familiar to listeners at that time, when the ancient Mediterranean was full of tales of legendary men born of gods – and when early Christians were paying close attention to the Hebrew Bible’s prophecies.</p>
<h2>What the Bible does – and doesn’t – say</h2>
<p>Strikingly, the New Testament is relatively silent on the virgin birth except in two places. It appears only in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, written a few decades after Jesus’ death.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%201&version=NIV">Book of Matthew</a> explains that when Joseph was engaged to Mary, she was “found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.” The writer links this unexpected pregnancy to an Old Testament prophecy <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah+7%3A14&version=NIV">in Isaiah 7:14</a>, which states “the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will call him Immanuel.” According to the prophet Isaiah, this child would be a sign to the Jewish people that God would protect them from powerful empires.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A faded illustration shows an angel looking down at a woman kneeling on the ground in a cloak, surrounded by rays of light." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500112/original/file-20221209-30168-3510zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A depiction of the Annunciation to Mary at Our Lady of the Assumption Church.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/the-annunciation-our-lady-of-the-assumption-church-royalty-free-image/538214856?phrase=the%20annunciation&adppopup=true">Catherine Leblanc/Stone via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now the majority of early Christians outside of Judea and throughout the Roman empire did not know the Old Testament in the original Hebrew, but rather a Greek translation known as <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Septuagint">the Septuagint</a>. When the Gospel of Matthew quotes Isaiah 7:14, it uses the Septuagint, which includes the term “parthenos,” commonly understood as “virgin.” This term differs from the Hebrew Old Testament, which uses the word “almah,” properly translated as “young woman.” The slight difference in <a href="https://brill.com/view/journals/nt/43/2/article-p144_3.xml">translation</a> between the Hebrew and the Greek may not mean much, but for early Christians who knew Greek, it provided prophetic proof for Jesus’ birth from the Virgin Mary. </p>
<p>Was the belief in the virgin birth based on a mistranslation? Not necessarily. Such terms were sometimes synonymous in Greek and Jewish thought. And the same Greek word, “parthenos,” is also found in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201&version=NIV">Luke’s version of the story</a>. Luke does not cite the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14. Instead, this version of the Nativity story describes the angel Gabriel announcing to Mary that she will give birth even though she is a virgin. Like in Matthew’s version of the story, Mary is told that her baby will be the “son of God.”</p>
<h2>Human and divine?</h2>
<p>For early Christians, the idea of the virgin birth put to rest any rumors about Mary’s honor. It also contributed to their belief that Jesus was the Son of God and Mary the <a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum03.htm">Mother of God</a>. These ideas became even more important during the second century, when some Christians were <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103126.htm">debating Jesus’ origins</a>: Was he <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103321.htm">simply born</a> <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103126.htm">a human being</a> but became the Son of God after <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+1&version=NIV">being baptized</a>? Was he a <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103111.htm">semi-divine being</a>, not really human? Or was he both fully divine and fully human?</p>
<p>The last idea, symbolized by the virgin birth, was most accepted – and is now standard Christian belief. But the relative silence about it in the first few decades of Christianity does not necessarily suggest that early Christians did not believe it. Instead, as biblical scholar <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300140088/the-birth-of-the-messiah-a-new-updated-edition/">Raymond Brown</a> also noted, the virgin birth was likely not a major concern for first-century Christians. <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+1&version=NIV">They affirmed</a> that Jesus was <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=philippians+2&version=NIV">the divine Son of God</a> who <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews+2&version=NIV">became a human being</a>, without trying to explain exactly how this happened.</p>
<h2>Greco-Roman roots</h2>
<p>Claiming that someone was divinely born was not a new concept during the first century, when Jesus was born. Many Greco-Roman heroes had divine birth stories. Take three famous figures: Perseus, Ion and Alexander the Great.</p>
<p>One of the oldest Greek legends affirms that Perseus, an ancient ancestor of the Greek people, was born of <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D4">a virgin mother named Danaë</a>. The story begins with Danaë imprisoned by her father, the king of Argos, who feared her because it was prophesied that his grandson would kill him. According to the legend, the Greek god Zeus transformed himself into golden rain <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0162%3Abook%3DP.%3Apoem%3D12">and impregnated her</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A painting shows a nude woman reclining on a bed with soft rain behind her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500113/original/file-20221209-46034-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=598&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A painting of Danaë, showing the golden rain above her, by Andrea Schiavone (1522-1563). From the collection of Museo di Capodimonte, Naples.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/danae-mid-of-16th-cen-found-in-the-collection-of-museo-di-news-photo/1155650935?phrase=danae&adppopup=true">Fine Art Images/Heritage Images via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When Danaë gave birth to Perseus, they escaped and eventually landed on an island where he grew up. He eventually became a famous hero who killed the snake-haired Medusa, and <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0028:book=4:card=604&highlight=medusa%2C">his great-grandson</a> <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D4%3Asection%3D8">was Hercules</a>, known for his strength and uncontrollable anger.</p>
<p>The playwright Euripides, who lived in the fifth century B.C., describes the story of Ion, whose father was the Greek god Apollo. Apollo raped Creusa, Ion’s mother, who abandoned him at birth. Ion grew up unaware of his divine father, but eventually reconciled with his Athenian mother and became known as <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Eur.+Ion+1-75&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0110">the founder</a> of various Greek cities in modern-day Turkey.</p>
<p>Lastly, legends held that Zeus was the father of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian ruler who conquered his vast empire before age 33. Alexander was supposedly conceived the night before his mother consummated her marriage with the king of Macedon, when Zeus impregnated her with <a href="https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0243%3Achapter%3D2%3Asection%3D2">a lightning bolt from heaven</a>. Philip, the king of Macedon, raised Alexander as his son, but suspected that there was something different about his conception.</p>
<h2>A familiar type of hero</h2>
<p>Overall, divine conception stories were familiar in the ancient Mediterranean world. By the second century A.D., Justin Martyr, a Christian theologian who defended Christianity, recognized this point: that virgin birth <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm">would not have been considered as “extraordinary</a>” in societies familiar with Greco-Roman deities. In fact, in an address to the Roman emperor Antoninus Pius and philosophers, Justin <a href="https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm#:%7E:text=Chapter%2022.%20Analogies,done%20by%20%C3%86sculapius.">argued</a> that they should tolerate Christian belief in the virgin birth just as they did belief in the stories of Perseus. </p>
<p>The idea of the divine participating in the conception of a child destined for greatness wouldn’t have seemed so unusual to an ancient audience. Even more, early Christians’ interpretation of the prophecy in Isaiah 7:14 from the Septuagint supported their belief that Jesus’ origin was not only divine, but foretold in their prophetic scriptures.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194133/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rodolfo Galvan Estrada III does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The idea of virgin birth has been part of Christianity since the start, but its significance has shifted over time.Rodolfo Galvan Estrada III, Assistant Professor of the New Testament, Vanguard UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1924852022-10-27T12:28:06Z2022-10-27T12:28:06ZWhat is the rosary? Why a set of beads and prayers are central to Catholic faith<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491771/original/file-20221025-232-3ead84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=17%2C5%2C1979%2C1485&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rosaries are meant for praying anywhere and anytime.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/rosary-hanging-in-car-during-sunset-royalty-free-image/1140080568?phrase=Anderson%20Mouzinho&adppopup=true">Anderson Mouzinho/EyeEm via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s one of the most famous moments in modern Catholicism: the apparition of Our Lady of Fatima. The Virgin Mary allegedly appeared to three Portuguese children in 1917, when much of the world was engulfed in World War I. Over a series of six appearances, Mary <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/blog/fatima-s-sister-lucia-explains-why-the-daily-rosary-is-a-must">emphasized to these young shepherds</a> that to bring peace, they should pray the rosary every day.</p>
<p>Devotion to the rosary already had a centuries-old history, and the Marian apparition at Fatima only deepened it. So what is a rosary, and why is it so important to many Catholics?</p>
<h2>Centuries of meaning</h2>
<p>As <a href="https://udayton.edu/directory/libraries/harriskayla.php">an archivist and associate professor</a> for the University of Dayton’s <a href="https://udayton.edu/marianlibrary/index.php">Marian Library</a>, I curate a collection of artifacts that illustrate many forms of popular devotion to the Virgin Mary, including nearly 900 unique rosaries. Each one tells a story of the people who owned them and how rosaries have evolved.</p>
<p>The word “rosary” refers to a set of prayers in the Catholic Church as well as a physical object. While <a href="https://www.usccb.org/how-to-pray-the-rosary">praying the rosary</a>, Catholics use a set of beads or knots to count and keep track of the prayers. Prayer beads as physical counting tools are quite common in several religions, including Islam, Hinduism, <a href="https://tricycle.org/magazine/mala-beads-history/">Buddhism</a> and Jainism.</p>
<p>The exact origins of the rosary are debated. Many theologians believe it was at least popularized by <a href="https://aleteia.org/2020/08/08/did-st-dominic-invent-the-rosary/">St. Dominic de Guzman</a>, a Spanish mystic and priest who allegedly received a vision in 1208 of the Virgin Mary in which she presented him with the rosary.</p>
<p>The Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on Oct. 7 each year – previously known as the <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/o/our-lady-of-victory.php">Feast of Our Lady of Victory</a> to commemorate a Christian victory in a <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252503/the-holy-rosary-a-spiritual-weapon-that-lights-hearts-on-fire">naval battle</a> in 1571. Soon after, Pope Gregory XIII <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/o/our-lady-of-victory.php">changed the title</a> of the holy day, and now the entire month of October is dedicated to the rosary.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A photo taken from above a table shows a person's hands holding an open Bible, with a rosary nearby." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491465/original/file-20221024-17411-m3zoq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rosaries have been used for centuries, but their exact origins are unclear.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/bible-and-rosary-royalty-free-image/538137956?phrase=rosaries&adppopup=true">Pascal Deloche/Stone via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>One prayer per bead</h2>
<p>To pray the rosary, a person will begin by holding the crucifix, make <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/sign-of-the-cross">a sign of the cross</a> over their chest and recite the <a href="https://www.usccb.org/prayers/apostles-creed">Apostles’ Creed</a>, which lays out the basics of Christian faith – such as that Jesus is the son of God and rose from the dead.</p>
<p>Generally, a rosary will contain five groups of 10 beads each, known as a decade. When touching each of these beads, the user will recite a <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/prayers/the-hail-mary.html">Hail Mary prayer</a>. At the completion of each decade is a slightly larger bead, which is a cue to recite the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lords-Prayer">Lord’s Prayer</a> – another of the most important prayers in Christianity – and to meditate on one of the <a href="https://www.vatican.va/special/rosary/documents/misteri_en.html">20 mysteries</a>, significant events in the life of Jesus and Mary. </p>
<p>The decade is completed by saying the <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/prayers/glory-be-to-the-father.html">Glory Be to the Father prayer</a>, and after completing all five decades, the user recites the <a href="https://www.usccb.org/prayers/hail-holy-queen-salve-regina">Hail, Holy Queen prayer</a> to Mary. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops outlines <a href="https://www.usccb.org/how-to-pray-the-rosary">detailed instructions</a>, including a diagram showing the different parts of the rosary and the accompanying prayers.</p>
<p>The rosary can be recited alone, or in groups. Some Catholics <a href="https://rosarycenter.org/how-to-pray-the-rosary">pray the rosary daily</a>, and many recite it to thank God or to ask for intercession, such as healing or protection for a loved one. </p>
<h2>Shells and seeds</h2>
<p>The Marian Library’s collection demonstrates how the rosary as an object can be very personal and also engage different senses as people pray. Some are very fragrant, such as those made from peach pits. Some are souvenirs brought back from particular shrines, such as ones from the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, which contain <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.com/en/day-pilgrims/the-water/">drops of holy water from its spring</a>. Other rosaries glow in the dark or are made from birthstones. Many have significance to a particular region, such as <a href="https://www.louisianafolklife.org/LT/Articles_Essays/Job'sTearsRosaries.html">rosaries made from a grain called Job’s tears</a>, which are popular in Cajun regions of Louisiana. </p>
<p>There are rosaries of natural materials such as seeds, olive pits or even seashells – <a href="https://udayton.edu/blogs/marianlibrary/2018-08-31-guadalcanal-rosary.php">including one</a> crafted out of cowrie shells and paper clips. A National Guard chaplain stationed in Guadalcanal, site of a key <a href="https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/solomon-islands-campaign-guadalcanal">series of battles</a> between U.S. and Japanese troops, mailed it to his sister, a nun, in 1943 with the message “pray for me.”</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A string of beads made of cowrie shells, with a cross on one end" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=687&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=687&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491773/original/file-20221025-20664-eyhnws.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=687&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A rosary sent to Ohio from Guadalcanal during World War II.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ryan O'Grady/The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Then there is a <a href="https://scalar.usc.edu/works/mary-and-borders/borderlands-and-the-blessed-virgin-images-from-the-marian-library?path=introduction">photograph of a colorful pile of plastic rosaries</a> – these ones taken from Latin American migrants and others seeking asylum at the southern U.S. border. While working as a janitor at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing facility, <a href="https://www.tomkiefer.com/about">Tom Kiefer</a> used photography to <a href="https://factcheck.afp.com/photo-rosaries-confiscated-us-mexico-border-was-taken-2015">document migrants’ personal items</a> deemed nonessential and confiscated or thrown into the trash.</p>
<h2>Today and tomorrow</h2>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A flat piece of metal that works as a rosary, placed next to a yellowed sheet explaining how to use the Traveler's Rosary." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/491473/original/file-20221024-17346-umq4pt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Traveler’s Rosary from the Father John T. Arsenault Rosary Collection.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Several new rosary inventions in the 21st century attempt to make praying the rosary convenient for even the busiest person. The Traveler’s Rosary, designed by the Archdiocese of New York, is made of a flat piece of metal with raised beads. It also comes with a case that commuters can use to hold a transportation ticket. <a href="https://udayton.warpwire.com/w/jcEEAA/">The Recording Rosary</a> is also meant to make praying more convenient: The beads are placed on a dial, and a small arrow points to the proper place, so the person praying can resume where they left off after an interruption. The rosary also emits a subtle sound at the completion of each decade.</p>
<p>The rosary itself, and the practice of praying it, continues to evolve today. In 2019 a church group launched the “<a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2019-10/click-pray-rosary-smart-digital-device-world-peace.html">Click to Pray eRosary</a>”: a wearable device that connects with a free phone app to help users learn to pray the rosary. The developers explain that the device is “aimed at the peripheral frontiers of the digital world where the young people dwell.” </p>
<p>Whether made out of glass beads with holy water or of fragrant dried rose petals pressed into beads, the rosary reflects the myriad ways Catholics can practice their devotion.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192485/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kayla Harris does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Rosaries are meant to be used wherever, whenever – and each one tells a story.Kayla Harris, Librarian/Archivist at the Marian Library and Associate Professor, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1832002022-07-07T12:18:39Z2022-07-07T12:18:39ZThe patriotic Virgin: How Mary’s been marshaled for religious nationalism and military campaigns<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472863/original/file-20220706-12046-7z7nen.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=36%2C73%2C8178%2C5395&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A mural in Kyiv depicts the Virgin Mary cradling a U.S.-made anti-tank weapon, a Javelin, which is considered a symbol of Ukraine's defense against Russia.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/RussiaUkraineWar/26f26565d15c43dfa1ff107062c49a43/photo?Query=javelin&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=4051&currentItemNo=1">AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ever since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, analysts picking apart Vladimir Putin’s motives and messaging about the war have looked to religion for some of the answers. Putin’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/holy-wars-how-a-cathedral-of-guns-and-glory-symbolizes-putins-russia-176786">nationalist vision</a> paints Russia as a defender of traditional Christian values against a liberal, secular West.</p>
<p>Putin’s Russia, however, is only the latest in a centurieslong lineup of nations using religion to bolster their political ambitions. As <a href="https://dornsifecms.usc.edu/iacs/staff/">a Jesuit priest and scholar of Catholicism</a>, I’ve seen in my research on <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780739140895/Toward-a-Catholic-Theology-of-Nationality">nationalism and religion</a> how patriotic loyalties and religious faith easily <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54484-7_1">borrow one another’s language, symbols and emotions</a>.</p>
<p>Western Christianity, including Catholicism, has often been enlisted to stir up patriotic fervor in support of nationalism. Historically, one <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43443-8">typical aspect of the Catholic approach</a> is linking devotion to the Virgin Mary with the interests of the state and military.</p>
<h2>The birth of a belief</h2>
<p>An Egyptian papyrus fragment from the fourth century is <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/j.ctv8pzdqp.10.pdf">the first clear evidence</a> of Christians’ <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F106385120801700106">praying to the Virgin Mary</a>. The brief prayer, which seeks Mary’s protection in times of trouble, is written in the first person plural – using language like “our” and “we” – which suggests a belief that Mary would respond to groups of people as well as individuals. </p>
<p>That conviction appeared to grow in the following centuries. After the Roman Emperor Constantine <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/article/654203/summary">converted to Christianity</a> in A.D. 312, the new faith developed a close relationship with his empire, including a belief that Mary looked with particular favor on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108990530.001">the capital city of Constantinople</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A gold mosaic shows a man with a halo holding up a model of a city." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472594/original/file-20220705-12-ipwdcf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 10th-century Byzantine mosaic of Constantine the Great offering Constantinople to the Virgin Mary, at the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/constantine-the-great-byzantine-mosaic-with-representation-news-photo/946130124?adppopup=true">Photo by PHAS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Political and religious leaders asked the Virgin for victory in battle and <a href="https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-02551-3.html">shelter from plagues</a>. In A.D. 626, Constantinople was besieged by a Persian navy. Christians believed that their prayers to the Virgin destroyed the invading fleet, saving the city and its inhabitants. The Akathist hymn, which has been prayed in both the Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches ever since, gives Mary the military title “Champion General” <a href="https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203036174">in thanks for that victory</a>. </p>
<p>In the Catholic West, military successes such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1163/22141332-00703003">European victories over the Ottoman Empire</a> were attributed to Mary’s intervention. Her blessing has been sought on <a href="https://doi.org/10.7560/706026">imperialist endeavors</a>, including <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/la-conquistadora-9780199892983?cc=us&lang=en&">Spain’s conquest of the Americas</a>. </p>
<p>Even today, Mary holds the title of general in the armies of <a href="https://www.liceosanmartin.edu.ar/24-de-septiembre-virgen-de-la-merced-patrona-del-ejercito-argentino/">Argentina</a> and <a href="https://www.ejercito.cl/efemerides/events/Njk=">Chile</a>, where she is considered <a href="http://www.iglesia.cl/detalle_noticia.php?id=2102">a national patroness</a>. The same association between Marian devotion and patriotism can be found in <a href="http://coloquioscanariasamerica.casadecolon.com/index.php/CHCA/article/view/10523/9898">many Latin American countries</a>.</p>
<h2>National symbol</h2>
<p>Off the battlefield, many Catholic cultures have historically felt they had a special relationship with Mary. In 1638, King Louis XIII <a href="https://www.persee.fr/doc/rhef_0300-9505_1938_num_24_102_2849">formally dedicated France</a> to the Virgin Mary. Popular belief interpreted the subsequent birth of the future Louis XIV as Mary’s miraculous reward, after 23 years of waiting for a male heir. </p>
<p>About two decades later, Polish King Jan II Kazimierz <a href="https://polishfreedom.pl/en/lwow-vows-of-jan-kazimierz/">consecrated his country</a> to Mary amid a war. Both acts reflected church and political leaders’ beliefs that their countries had a sacred mission and divine approval for their political ambitions.</p>
<p>When these kinds of beliefs become widespread in a society, many scholars would label them religious nationalism – though there is a long-standing debate about when affection for one’s country becomes “<a href="http://journal.unair.ac.id/download-fullpapers-11-DUGIS.pdf">nationalism</a>.” There is widespread consensus, though, that religion is one of the most common <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/03058298000290030301">elements of nationalism</a>, and many nationalist projects have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43443-8">invoked Mary’s blessing</a>. </p>
<p>Polish territory, for example, was divided between Russia, Prussia and Austria for more than a century. But Polish Catholics continued to address Mary as “<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Anna-Niedzwiedz/publication/314485295_Mary_in_Poland_A_Polish_Master_Symbol/links/58c2be7ba6fdcce648de1d36/Mary-in-Poland-A-Polish-Master-Symbol.pdf">Queen of Poland</a>.” Her title asserted the existence of the Polish people as a nation. And it implied that efforts to reestablish Poland as a sovereign country had a heavenly helper.</p>
<p>Similarly, in the 19th century, both Queen Victoria and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137315472_10">the Virgin Mary</a> were referred to in different contexts as “Queen of Ireland,” expressing two rival visions of Ireland: part of the Protestant United Kingdom, or a separate and essentially Catholic country.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="An illustration of the Virgin Mary inside a gold frame hangs on a wall beside a Mexican flag." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=914&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=914&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=914&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1149&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1149&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472600/original/file-20220705-18-8ylgw2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1149&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An illustration of the Virgin de Guadalupe in the Cathedral San Ildefonso in Mexico.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/cathedral-san-ildefonso-in-merida-mexico-royalty-free-image/610839557?adppopup=true">John Elk III/The Image Bank via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many different movements have used the figure of the Virgin to support their agendas. In colonial Mexico, the figure of Our Lady of Guadalupe, one title for Mary, was originally interpreted as <a href="http://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S1405-09272010000200005&script=sci_arttext">being a champion of the “criollos</a>,” native-born inhabitants of Spanish descent. During the 1810-21 War of Mexican Independence, “<a href="https://uapress.arizona.edu/book/our-lady-of-guadalupe">la Guadalupana</a>” <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/537957">figured on the banners</a> of the “independista” forces. The Spanish army, meanwhile, adopted the “Virgin of Los Remedios,” another title for Mary, as their own patroness. She would later be invoked in support of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199366439.013.509">Indigenous people and mestizos, people with both Indigenous and Spanish ancestry</a>.</p>
<p>Mary is invoked not only by nationalist causes. Sometimes she is inspiration for countercultural or protest movements, from <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/homilies/1999/documents/hf_jp-ii_hom_19990124_mexico-autodromo.html">the pro-life cause</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137077714">Latina feminists</a>. Labor leader Cesar Chavez placed the image of Guadalupe <a href="https://libraries.ucsd.edu/farmworkermovement/gallery/displayimage.php?album=60&pid=1412#top_display_media">on banners</a> as his organization marched for farmworkers’ rights.</p>
<h2>Mary’s future</h2>
<p>All these uses draw on the ancient belief in Mary’s power to intervene in times of trouble. However, ideological, political and especially military ambitions and religious sentiment are a volatile mix. As the current war in Ukraine shows, allegiance to one’s nation, especially when it claims Christian inspiration, can inspire both <a href="https://theconversation.com/holy-wars-how-a-cathedral-of-guns-and-glory-symbolizes-putins-russia-176786">imperialist expansionism</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/as-war-rages-some-ukrainians-look-to-mary-for-protection-continuing-a-long-christian-tradition-178394">heroic resistance</a> to it.</p>
<p>This makes a better understanding of religious nationalism urgently important, especially for the church. Twentieth- and 21st-century popes have condemned <a href="https://www.ncronline.org/news/vatican/francis-chronicles/nations-stirring-nationalism-betray-their-mission-pope-says">aggressive nationalism</a> but have not defined it clearly.</p>
<p>In cultures that are largely secularized, appeals for Mary’s protection or claims that she has a special relationship with any one nation are now likely to seem archaic, outlandish or sectarian. But what I know of both <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935420.013.62">Marian devotion</a> and <a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780739140895/Toward-a-Catholic-Theology-of-Nationality">national identity</a> has convinced me that ancient patterns often survive and reassert themselves in new times and places. </p>
<p>Even where the practice of Catholicism is in decline, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/gere.12307">Mary’s cultural significance</a> remains strong. And religion continues to be a regular element of many <a href="https://doi.org/doi:10.1017/nps.2021.17">nationalist agendas</a>. </p>
<p>My guess is that we have not seen the last of the warrior Virgin.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/183200/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dorian Llywelyn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Many religions have been used to prop up nationalism, and Catholicism is no exception, as a Jesuit priest and scholar explains.Dorian Llywelyn, President, Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1804842022-04-13T21:51:22Z2022-04-13T21:51:22ZSacred hares, banished winter witches and pagan worship – the roots of Easter Bunny traditions are ancient<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458017/original/file-20220413-15-x0e57b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=222%2C49%2C7959%2C5425&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Children celebrating Easter, with their Easter Bunnies and Easter eggs.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/two-young-boys-wearing-easter-bunny-ears-royalty-free-image/1388063471?adppopup=true">Sanja Radin/Collection E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Easter Bunny is a much celebrated character in American Easter celebrations. On Easter Sunday, children look for hidden special treats, often chocolate Easter eggs, that the Easter Bunny might have left behind.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=prZyKrMAAAAJ&hl=en">folklorist</a>, I’m aware of the origins of the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess">long and interesting journey</a> this mythical figure has taken from European prehistory to today. </p>
<h2>Religious role of the hare</h2>
<p>Easter is a celebration of spring and new life. Eggs and flowers are rather obvious symbols of female fertility, but in European traditions, the bunny, with its amazing reproduction potential, is not far behind.</p>
<p>In European traditions, the Easter Bunny is known as the Easter Hare. The symbolism of the hare has had many tantalizing ritual and religious roles down through the years.</p>
<p>Hares were <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102672">given ritual burials</a> alongside humans during the Neolithic age in Europe. Archaeologists have interpreted this as a religious ritual, with hares representing <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/news/research/title_787590_en.html">rebirth</a>. </p>
<p>Over a thousand years later, during the Iron Age, ritual burials for hares were common, and in 51 B.C., Julius Caesar mentions that in Britain, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess">hares were not eaten</a>, due to their religious significance.</p>
<p>Caesar would likely have known that in the Classical Greek tradition, <a href="https://www.theoi.com/Text/PhilostratusElder1A.html">hares were sacred to Aphrodite</a>, the goddess of love. Meanwhile, Aphrodite’s son Eros was often depicted carrying a hare, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110308815.311">as a symbol of unquenchable desire</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A painting depicting a young woman handing baby Jesus to Virgin Mary, who puts one hand around him, while holding a hare with the other." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458014/original/file-20220413-26-khhsks.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘The Madonna of the Rabbit,’ a painting from 1530, depicting the Virgin Mary with a hare.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Tizian_018.jpg">A painting by artist Titian (1490-1576), Louvre Museum, Paris.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>From the Greek world through the Renaissance, hares often appear as symbols of sexuality in literature and art. For example, the Virgin Mary is often <a href="http://musee.louvre.fr/oal/viergeaulapinTitien/viergeaulapinTitien_acc_en.html">shown with a white hare or rabbit</a>, symbolizing that she overcame sexual temptation.</p>
<h2>Hare meat and witches’ mischief</h2>
<p>But it is in the folk traditions of England and Germany that the figure of the hare is specifically connected to Easter. Accounts from the 1600s in Germany describe children hunting for Easter eggs hidden by the Easter Hare, much as in the contemporary United States today. </p>
<p>Written accounts from England around the same time also mention the Easter Hare, particularly in terms of traditional Easter hare hunts, and the eating of hare meat at Easter. </p>
<p>One tradition, known as the “Hare Pie Scramble,” was held at Hallaton, a village in Leicestershire, England, which involved eating a pie made with hare meat and people “scrambling” for a slice. In 1790, the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1253567">local parson tried to stop the custom</a> due to its pagan associations, but he was unsuccessful, and the custom continues in that village until this day. </p>
<p>The eating of the hare may have been associated with various longstanding folk traditions of scaring away witches at Easter. Throughout Northern Europe, folk traditions record a strong belief that witches would often <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1260796">take the form of the hare</a>, usually for causing mischief such as stealing milk from neighbors’ cows. Witches in medieval Europe were often believed to be able to suck out the life energy of others, making them ill, and suffer.</p>
<p>The idea that the witches of winter should be <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24862791">banished at Easter</a> is a common European folk motif, appearing in several festivities and rituals. The spring equinox, with its promise of new life, was held symbolically in opposition to the life-draining activities of witches and winter.</p>
<p>This idea provides the underlying rationale behind various festivities and rituals, such as the “Osterfeuer,” or the Easter Fire, a celebration in Germany involving large outdoor bonfires <a href="https://www.twosmallpotatoes.com/osterfeuer-embracing-easter-traditions-in-germany/">meant to scare away witches</a>. In Sweden, the popular folklore states that at Easter, the witches all fly away on their broomsticks <a href="http://realscandinavia.com/in-sweden-easter-is-a-time-for-witches/">to feast and dance with the Devil</a> on the legendary island of Blåkulla, in the Baltic Sea. </p>
<h2>Pagan origins</h2>
<p>In 1835, the folklorist <a href="https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Jacob_Grimm">Jacob Grimm</a>, one of the famous team of the fairy tale “Brothers Grimm,” argued that the Easter Hare <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00438243.2018.1515655">was connected with a goddess</a>, whom he imagined would have been called “Ostara” in ancient German. He derived this name from the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre, that <a href="https://exploringcelticciv.web.unc.edu/bede-the-history-of-the-english-church/">Bede</a>, an Anglo-Saxon monk considered to be the father of English history, mentioned in 731. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="The goddess Ēostre/*Ostara flies through the heavens surrounded by winged angels, beams of light and animals." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/458019/original/file-20220413-26-jdne8p.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Ostara’ by Johannes Gehrts, created in 1884. The goddess Ēostre flies through the heavens surrounded by Roman-inspired putti, beams of light, and animals.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%92ostre#/media/File:Ostara_by_Johannes_Gehrts.jpg">Felix Dahn, Therese Dahn, Therese (von Droste-Hülshoff) Dahn, Frau, Therese von Droste-Hülshoff Dahn (1901) via Wikimedia Commons.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Bede noted that in eighth-century England the month of April was called Eosturmonath, or Eostre Month, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1253567">named after the goddess Eostre</a>. He wrote that a pagan festival of spring in the name of the goddess had become assimilated into the Christian celebration of the resurrection of Christ.</p>
<p>It’s interesting that while most European languages refer to the Christian holiday with names that come from the Jewish holiday of Passover, such as Pâques in French, or Påsk in Swedish, German and English languages retain this older, non-biblical word, Easter.</p>
<p>Recent <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346357286_The_Shifting_Baselines_of_the_British_Hare_Goddess">archaeological research</a> appears to <a href="https://doi.org/10.2752/175169708X329372">confirm the worship of Eostre</a> in parts of England and in Germany, with the hare as her main symbol. The Easter Bunny therefore seems to recall these <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00438243.2018.1515655">pre-Christian celebrations of spring</a>, heralded by the vernal equinox and personified by the Goddess Eostre.</p>
<p>[<em>Over 150,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletters to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-150ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p>
<p>After a long, cold, northern winter, it seems natural enough for people to celebrate themes of resurrection and rebirth. The flowers are blooming, birds are laying eggs, and baby bunnies are hopping about. </p>
<p>As new life emerges in spring, the Easter Bunny hops back once again, providing a longstanding cultural symbol to remind us of the cycles and stages of our own lives.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180484/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tok Thompson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A folklorist explains the prehistoric origins of the mythical Easter Bunny and why this longstanding cultural symbol keeps returning each spring.Tok Thompson, Professor of Anthropology and Communication, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1783942022-03-09T13:16:08Z2022-03-09T13:16:08ZAs war rages, some Ukrainians look to Mary for protection – continuing a long Christian tradition<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450810/original/file-20220308-17163-10823od.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C12%2C1022%2C665&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The flag of Ukraine has been tied around a statue of the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ outside a church in Pennsylvania amid the Russian invasion.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Aimee Dilger/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ukrainian clergy <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/feb/24/ukrainians-protest-at-downing-street-gates-over-russian-invasion-uk-military-sanctions">demonstrating against the war</a> in their country have appeared <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/24/world/europe/ukraine-expats-invasion-protest.html">in media coverage</a> carefully holding an image of the Virgin Mary, her outstretched hands lifting up the edges of a cloak. </p>
<p>These pictures depict a particular religious icon <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/3220003">known as the “Pokrova</a>” in which Mary’s veil – a “pokrova,” or “cover,” in Ukrainian – is a sign of protection.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An icon shows the Virgin Mary holding a cloak, surrounded by two angels." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450807/original/file-20220308-23-csolzp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ukrainian Marian Collection, The Marian Library, University of Dayton</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>I am <a href="https://udayton.edu/directory/libraries/harriskayla.php">an archivist</a> for <a href="https://udayton.edu/marianlibrary/index.php">the Marian Library</a> at the University of Dayton, which includes a <a href="https://udayton.edu/marianlibrary/collections/ukrainian-marian-collection.php">collection of Ukrainian artwork about Mary</a>. For Ukrainian Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic, the “Pokrova” image held by protesters represents a long history of seeking Mary’s protection during difficult times.</p>
<h2>Queen of Ukraine</h2>
<p>According to <a href="https://catholicukes.org.au/protection-blessed-virgin-mary-pokrov/">Orthodox tradition</a>, Mary miraculously appeared at a church in Constantinople, or modern-day Istanbul, when the city was under attack in the early 10th century. As the story goes, Mary prayed at the church’s altar, then spread her veil over the congregation, and the invading armies withdrew.</p>
<p>Around a century later, in 1037, Yaroslav the Wise, the Grand Prince of Kyiv, <a href="https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Yaroslav_I_the_Wise">dedicated Ukraine to Mary</a>. To this day Mary is known as “<a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/250585/pope-francis-sends-cardinals-to-ukraine-where-rivers-of-blood-and-tears-flow">Queen of Ukraine</a>,” among her many other titles, and <a href="https://ukrainianinstitute.org/today-october-14-ukrainians-celebrate-the-feast-of-the-protection-of-our-most-holy-lady-%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0-and-the-defender-of-ukraine-day-%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BD%D1%8C-%D0%B7/">Oct. 14</a> is celebrated as the Pokrova, or Feast of the Protection.</p>
<p>There are other icons of Mary that have special meaning to Ukrainian Christians.</p>
<p>One of these is known as the “Oranta” or the Great Panagia. A mosaic of the Oranta is located in St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, built in the 11th century, which is one of the city’s <a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-vladimir-putin-kyiv-europe-caves-0373c67a7c70f8585859c5c6ae4c6766">most famous spiritual landmarks</a>. With her arms extended upward, this icon of Mary is also known as the “<a href="https://www.maryofegypt.com/post/statement-on-the-human-rights-violations-at-the-u-s-mexico-border">Immovable Wall</a>” or “Indestructible Wall.” </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A religious icon with a gold background shows a woman with a halo, hands raised in prayer." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1041&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1041&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450067/original/file-20220304-15-n58jtl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1041&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Oranta of Kyiv.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oranta-Kyiv.jpg">Saint Sophia Cathedral/Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>St. Sophia Cathedral has survived centuries of destruction from war and is now a <a href="https://st-sophia.org.ua/en/museums-en/st-sophia-museum/st-sophia-museum/">museum</a>. Many Ukrainians in Kyiv <a href="https://diopitt.org/news/memo-from-god-via-kyiv">believe</a> that as long as the icon stands, Kyiv and Ukraine will continue to stand as well.</p>
<p>The cathedral is one of seven <a href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ua">UNESCO world heritage sites</a> in Ukraine, and religious <a href="https://whbl.com/2022/03/08/u-n-cultural-agency-moves-to-protect-ukraines-heritage-sites/">and cultural</a> authorities <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/ukrainian-christians-fear-russia-plans-aerial-attack-on-st-sophia-cathedral">have voiced concern that it could be at risk</a> during the invasion.</p>
<p>Russian President Vladimir Putin has often stressed Ukrainians’ and Russians’ <a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-vladimir-putin-kyiv-europe-nationalism-ff22c6c17784674a5eaad0f0a1ff17ca">common religious roots</a> in the Eastern Orthodox Church. But the cathedral is also <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-russian-invasion-putin-round-yard-gosprom-building-st-sophia-cathedral-church-of-the-savior-at-berestove-kyiv-monastery-of-the-caves-babyn-yar-11646350029">a proud national symbol</a>.</p>
<p>In 1988 Ukrainians across the world celebrated <a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000079702">the millennium anniversary</a> of the Baptism of Kyivan Rus. At the time, Ukraine was still part of the Soviet Union, but declared its <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/12/24/1066861022/how-the-soviet-unions-collapse-explains-the-current-russia-ukraine-tension">independence</a> shortly after in 1991. </p>
<p>Icons created of Mary during this era show the importance of freedom and independence. In one of the icons in the Marian Library, for example, by Slovenian artist Mikuláš Klimčák, Mary stands above the entire world while angels hold a banner reading “Freedom.”</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An icon shows the Virgin Mary standing over the world." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=813&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=813&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=813&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1021&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1021&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/450066/original/file-20220304-17-c2sz8z.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1021&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mary the Woman of Freedom II, by Mikuláš Klimčák, 1993.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ukrainian Marian Collection, Marian Library, University of Dayton.</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Widespread devotion</h2>
<p>It is quite common for Christians, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-virgin-mary-brings-together-different-faiths-in-pakistan-and-india-71030">and even people of other faiths</a>, to ask Mary to intercede on their behalf during hardship. </p>
<p>For the past two years, for example, <a href="https://udayton.edu/marianlibrary/collections/documented-devotion-during-pandemic.php">many across the world</a> have asked Mary <a href="https://www.catholicsun.org/2021/05/12/pray-our-ladys-rosary-for-an-end-to-pandemic/">to end the COVID-19 pandemic</a>. In March 2020, Pope Francis himself <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-03/pope-francis-mary-prayer-crucifix-coronavirus.html">prayed before Salus Populi Romani</a>, a famous Marian icon in Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major <a href="https://www.museumofrussianicons.org/salus-populi/">long associated</a> with requests for healing. In 2020 the Italian Air Force, whose <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/o/our-lady-of-loreto-and-aviation.php#:%7E:text=Q%3A%20Is%20Our%20Lady%20of,XV%20on%20March%2024%2C%201920.">patron saint</a> is Mary, Our Lady of Loreto, took a statue of her <a href="https://wayback.archive-it.org/13066/20200331212845/http://adventmessenger.org/the-italian-air-force-flies-a-statue-of-the-virgin-mary-over-italy-to-combat-the-coronavirus/">by plane across the country</a> to protect citizens from the coronavirus.</p>
<p>Mary is also <a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/features/2017/06/17/Ramadan-profiles-How-the-Virgin-Mary-is-honored-in-the-Quran-">revered in Islam</a>, and mentioned dozens of times in the Quran, as “Maryam.” In Saudia Arabia, a governor asked people <a href="https://wayback.archive-it.org/org-835/20200408232739/http://asianews.it/news-en/Saudi-governor-turns-to-the-Mother-of-Jesus-to-overcome-the-coronavirus-49769.html">to look toward Mary’s perseverance as an example</a> to find courage at the start of the pandemic.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/warrior-servant-mother-unifier-the-virgin-mary-has-played-many-roles-through-the-centuries-165596">mother of Jesus</a> represents strength for many oppressed groups, from <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/o/our-lady-of-guadalupe-mexican-national-symbol.php">Mexican revolutionaries</a> to Polish LGBTQ activists. In 2019, three Polish women were arrested for <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56250453">adding a rainbow to an icon of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, but later acquitted</a>.</p>
<p>And in recent years, as refugee crises mount around the world, many religious leaders <a href="https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/12/27/were-jesus-mary-and-joseph-refugees-yes">have drawn parallels</a> to the holy family’s flight to Egypt. </p>
<p>Devotion to Mary is one bridge between the Catholic and Orthodox traditions, as well as other faiths. As someone who has experienced human struggles of her own, and even lost her only son, Mary is a source of comfort for many.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/178394/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kayla Harris does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>To many Ukrainians, Jesus’ mother has a special relationship with their country.Kayla Harris, Librarian/Archivist at the Marian Library and Associate Professor, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1745742022-02-09T13:18:46Z2022-02-09T13:18:46ZHow Lourdes became a byword for hope<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444477/original/file-20220204-13-1lw84kz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=37%2C0%2C1628%2C1041&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Apparitions of the Virgin Mary have inspired pilgrimages – and souvenirs – in Lourdes, France, for more than a century.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Culture Club/Hulton Archive via Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Thousands of <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/article/421085/pdf">apparitions of the Virgin Mary</a> have been reported by Christians across the world, from <a href="https://doi.org/10.12987/9780300185560-015">fourth-century Asia Minor</a>, which is now Turkey, to <a href="https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9780801448546/our-lady-of-the-rock/#bookTabs=1">contemporary California</a>. Of all of these, the most renowned are the visions of Our Lady of Lourdes, reported in the mid-19th century by a teenage girl in the French Pyrenees mountains.</p>
<p>Ever since, devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/23391/lourdes/9780141038483.html">has gripped the Catholic imagination</a>. Lourdes is one of the <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/a/apparitions-approved.php">very few apparitions</a> the Vatican has officially commended as <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/worthy-of-belief-how-the-catholic-church-approves-apparitions-1494581409">worthy of belief</a>, with its own feast day, Feb. 11, in the church’s annual liturgical calendar.</p>
<p>Some <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pope-lourdes-history/factbox-the-roman-catholic-pilgrimage-site-lourdes-idUKLB15892820080911">6 million pilgrims</a> come to <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/">the shrine in Lourdes, France</a>, each year to pray and seek healing. </p>
<p>This popular pilgrimage is one of the most visible examples of the devotion of many Catholics to Mary. I am a <a href="https://dornsife.usc.edu/iacs/staff/">Jesuit priest and theologian</a> whose research focuses <a href="https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935420.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199935420-e-62">on Mariology</a>, the academic study of ideas about Mary in Christian history. </p>
<h2>The Lady in the Grotto</h2>
<p>In 1858, a 14-year-old girl named <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/bernadette-of-lourdes-9780826420855">Bernadette Soubirous</a> reported having 18 visions of a beautiful “young lady” in a cave near Lourdes, which was then a provincial town. Soubirous said that the figure identified herself as “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24459597">the Immaculate Conception</a>” and instructed the girl to dig into the earth and drink the water she found there. In other messages, the lady asked for a church to be built there so priests could come in procession.</p>
<p>Reports of the events drew large crowds who believed them to be apparitions of the Virgin Mary, and many people began attributing healing properties to the waters of the spring. These extraordinary events soon attracted the notice of the Parisian press and gained the support of the <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/23391/lourdes/9780141038483.html">French imperial court</a>. </p>
<p>Many Catholics interpreted the apparitions as confirming <a href="https://www.papalencyclicals.net/pius09/p9ineff.htm">the doctrine of Immaculate Conception</a>, which Pope Pius IX in 1854 had declared to be an essential element of Catholic faith. <a href="https://www.usccb.org/sites/default/files/flipbooks/catechism/124/">This teaching</a> holds that Mary, as the mother of Jesus, was conceived without <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/beliefs/originalsin_1.shtml">original sin</a> – the incomplete union with God that, according to Catholic belief, all people are born with as a result of Adam and Eve’s disobeying God in the Garden of Eden. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="A black and white vintage photograph shows a young woman in a shawl and head covering." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=765&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=765&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=765&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=961&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=961&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444480/original/file-20220204-25-10omqyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=961&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">St. Bernadette, who claimed as a young woman to have seen the Virgin Mary in Lourdes, was canonized in 1933.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Keystone/Hulton Archive via Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Church officials were quickly alerted to Soubirous’ experiences and were initially concerned about the truth of her account. After investigating, the local bishop became convinced that Mary had indeed appeared to the young woman. Popes later encouraged veneration at Lourdes, and in 1933, Soubirous herself was canonized as <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-bernadette-soubirous-of-lourdes-438">St. Bernadette</a>.</p>
<p>Catholic churches, schools and hospitals soon began to be dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes, and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/villianurshrine">replicas of the cave</a>, or “grotto,” are today found throughout the world. These sites are built for worshippers who cannot make the pilgrimage but who seek to share in the experience of Lourdes.</p>
<h2>Lourdes water</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/nbfr.12268">Researching popular Catholic devotions</a> has taught me that apparitions attract skeptics as easily as they do crowds of enthusiastic believers. They also stir up <a href="https://doi.org/10.1006/reli.2000.0296">religious and political controversy</a>.</p>
<p>From the start, church officials at Lourdes sought to deny claims of direct supernatural intervention for cures that could be scientifically explained instead. Today physicians at <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/medical-bureau-sanctuary">the International Medical Committee of Lourdes</a> run a rigorous process of investigating claims of miraculous healings there. </p>
<p>Most reported healings turn out to have purely natural causes, but if the committee does not find a medical explanation, it refers the case to the local bishop for investigation. Since the 1860s, church officials have formally declared 70 of the Lourdes healings to be miracles. The <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/miraculous-healings/">most recent case</a>, which they confirmed in 2018, involved <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/how-do-we-recognise-a-lourdes-miracle/">the healing of a French nun</a> who had been using a wheelchair and suffering severe pain for almost 30 years, but recovered soon after her pilgrimage to the grotto.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A black and white vintage photograph shows nurses in white assisting people on stretchers." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444481/original/file-20220204-25-10jfcmv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=517&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">People seeking healing visit Lourdes, France, in 1932 with the help of Italian nurses.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Vittoriano Rastelli/Corbis Historical via Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Over the course of the 20th century, the number of new miracles confirmed in Lourdes <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/miraculous-healings/">has gradually slowed</a> because of growth in scientific understanding.</p>
<p>In 2006, church officials declared that, beyond “miracles,” they would recognize <a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/europe/article/2006/03/25/une-reforme-des-miracles-a-lourdes_754608_3214.html">three additional categories of healing</a> at Lourdes, in light of advances in medical knowledge: “unexpected,” “confirmed” or “exceptional” healings. The new categories relax the previous strict division between “natural” and “supernatural” healings, with the implication that God intervenes in many cases in which health is restored, even those that do not strictly qualify as <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-a-miracle-heres-how-the-catholic-church-decides-170183">“miracles” in the sense traditionally used by the Catholic Church</a>.</p>
<h2>Devotion goes digital</h2>
<p>If the number of officially recognized miracles has declined, grassroots faith in Lourdes is as strong as ever. An understanding that sickness and healing involve psychological, emotional and spiritual aspects as well as physical ones <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14755610.2012.756411">helps explain</a> some of Lourdes’ continuing appeal for many contemporary Catholics.</p>
<p>Devotional practices involve the sensory experiences of <a href="https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003094968">seeing, touching, tasting and hearing</a>. Visitors travel from all over the world to light candles in the grotto, touch the rock where Soubirous said the Virgin appeared, join in the chants of the twice-daily processions, attend Mass, take Communion, and bathe in and drink the holy waters of the spring.</p>
<p>Psychologically, being in the company of large crowds of fellow believers strengthens social <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2015.1015969">faith identity</a>, as does seeing sick pilgrims treated with dignity and honor.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman with her back to the camera sits on the bank of a stream, facing a Catholic shrine." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444479/original/file-20220204-27-hiebo8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A pilgrim prays in front of the Roman Catholic shrine at Lourdes on May 16, 2020, after it was closed for the first time in its history amid the pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Bob Edme</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many family, friends, spiritual advisers and volunteers from international Catholic organizations, such as the <a href="https://orderofmaltaamerican.org/spirituality-in-action/lourdes/overview/">Order of Malta</a>, accompany visitors too ill to travel alone. The physical work of caring for the sick affects people spiritually. I have visited Lourdes several times as both helper and chaplain and heard many confessions there. I know that many of those who volunteer their time as helpers – including people who are not practicing Catholics or even Christians – return home with deeper gratitude for their own health and a livelier faith.</p>
<p>For two months in 2020, <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200405-virtual-easter-as-virus-closes-lourdes-shrine">the shrine at Lourdes closed for the first time in its history</a> because of the pandemic. Since then, <a href="https://www.lourdes-france.org/en/tv-lourdes">live-streaming of the grotto</a> has attracted an even wider audience. Its <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7zlbnNCnuAPiC3goKcFgUg">dedicated YouTube channel</a> and other social media are <a href="https://theconversation.com/online-christian-pilgrimage-how-a-virtual-tour-to-lourdes-follows-a-tradition-of-innovation-142965">21st-century virtual equivalents</a> of the replica grottoes built in church grounds, schools, hospitals and <a href="https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/h/home-shrines-to-mary.php">homes around the world</a>.</p>
<p>Skeptics will likely continue to dispute claims of miraculous healings and apparitions of the Virgin Mary. For millions, however, Lourdes will indisputably continue to be an important faith symbol of comfort and care, and a byword for healing and hope. </p>
<p>[<em>More than 140,000 readers get one of The Conversation’s informative newsletters.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-140K">Join the list today</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/174574/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dorian Llywelyn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>St. Bernadette’s visions of the Virgin Mary in the 19th century inspired the pilgrimage site millions of Catholics flock to each year.Dorian Llywelyn, President, Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1724832021-12-22T21:05:33Z2021-12-22T21:05:33Z5 things to know about Mary, the mother of Jesus<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434902/original/file-20211201-13-7ufd0n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C13%2C681%2C995&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Jan van Eyck, The Ghent Altarpiece, 1432. Virgin Mary detail.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mary, the mother of Jesus, is unquestionably the senior saint within the Christian tradition. Yet we know remarkably little about her. In the New Testament, there is nothing about her birth, death, appearance or age.</p>
<p>Outside of the accounts of the birth of Jesus that only occur in the gospels of Matthew and Luke, she is specifically mentioned at only three other events in the life of her son. </p>
<p>She is present at a wedding where Jesus turns water into wine; she makes an attempt to see her son while he is teaching; and she is there at his crucifixion. Indeed, Mary is mentioned more often in the Qur'an than in the New Testament.</p>
<p>Here, then, are five things we do know about her.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/in-spite-of-their-differences-jews-christians-and-muslims-worship-the-same-god-83102">In spite of their differences, Jews, Christians and Muslims worship the same God</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>1. She was an accidental virgin</h2>
<p>The gospel of Matthew is the only one to tell us Mary was pregnant before she and Joseph had sex. She was said to be “with child from the Holy Spirit”. In proof of this, Matthew quoted a prophecy from the Old Testament that a “virgin will conceive and bear a son and he will be called Emmanuel”.</p>
<p>Matthew was using the Greek version of the Old Testament. In the Greek Old Testament, the original Hebrew word “almah” had been translated as “parthenos”, thence into the Latin Bible as “virgo” and into English as “virgin”. </p>
<p>Whereas “almah” means only “young woman”, the Greek word “parthenos” means physically “a virgin intacta”. In short, Mary was said to be a virgin because of an accident of translation when “young woman” became “virgin”. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434897/original/file-20211201-13-1rrdiic.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Guido Reni, Education of the Virgin.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>2. She was a perpetual virgin</h2>
<p>Within early Christian doctrine, Mary remained a virgin during and after the birth of Jesus. This was perhaps only fitting for someone deemed “the mother of God” or “God-bearer”.</p>
<p>Saint Ambrose of Milan (c.339-97 CE) <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/58783/58783-h/58783-h.htm">enthusiastically defended</a> the doctrine of the perpetual virginity of Mary: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Blessed Mary is the gate, whereof it is written that the Lord hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut after birth; for as a virgin she both conceived and brought forth.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The <a href="https://classicalchristianity.com/2012/03/25/canons-of-the-lateran-council-of-649/">Lateran Council of 649 CE</a>, a council held in Rome by the Western Church, later declared it an article of faith that Jesus was conceived “without seed” and that Mary “incorruptibly bore [him], her virginity remaining indestructible even after his birth” . All this in spite of the Gospels’ declaration that Jesus had brothers and sisters (Mark 3.32, Matthew 12.46, Luke 8.19). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=882&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1108&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1108&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434899/original/file-20211201-18-mvsbpn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1108&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Virgin and Child tempera on panel painting by Antonio Veneziano, circa 1380.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Museum of Fine Arts Boston</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. She was immaculately conceived</h2>
<p>Within Western theology, it was generally recognised from the time of Saint Ambrose that Mary never committed a sin. But was her sinlessness in this life because she was born without “original sin”? After all, according to Western theology, every human being was born with original sin, the “genetic” consequence of the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.</p>
<p>The growing cult of devotion to the Virgin Mary in the medieval period led to fine-grained theological divisions on the issue. On the one hand, devotion to Mary led to the argument that God had ensured Mary did not have “original sin”.</p>
<p>But then, if Mary had been conceived without sin, she had already been redeemed before the redemption brought about by the death and resurrection of Jesus her son.</p>
<p>The Catholic Church only resolved the issue in 1854. Pope Pius IX declared </p>
<blockquote>
<p>that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception… was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>4. She ascended into heaven</h2>
<p>The early centuries of the Christian tradition were silent on the death of Mary. But by the seventh and eighth centuries, the belief in the bodily ascension of Mary into heaven, had taken a firm hold in both the Western and Eastern Churches.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-what-might-heaven-be-like-95939">Friday essay: what might heaven be like?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The Eastern Orthodox Greek Church held to the <a href="https://www.christianiconography.info/dormition.html">dormition of Mary</a>. According to this, Mary had a natural death, and her soul was then received by Christ. Her body arose on the third day after her death. She was then taken up bodily into heaven.</p>
<p>For a long time, the Catholic Church was ambiguous on whether Mary rose from the dead after a brief period of repose in death and then ascended into heaven or was “assumed” bodily into heaven before she died.</p>
<p>Belief in the ascension of Mary into heaven became Catholic doctrine in 1950. Pope Pius XII then declared that Mary </p>
<blockquote>
<p>was not subject to the law of remaining in the corruption of the grave, and she did not have to wait until the end of time for the redemption of her body.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434905/original/file-20211201-26-1v794ox.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=553&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Assumption of the Virgin by Luca Giordano, circa 1698.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>5. She is a sky goddess</h2>
<p>The consequence of the bodily ascension of Mary was the absence of any bodily relics. Although there was breast milk, tears, hair and nail clippings, her relics were mostly “second order” – garments, rings, veils and shoes. </p>
<p>In the absence of her skeletal remains, her devotees made do with visions – at Lourdes, Guadalupe, Fatima, Medjugorje, and so on. Like the other saints, her pilgrimage sites were places where she could be invoked to ask God to grant the prayers of her devotees.</p>
<p>But she was more than just a saint. In popular devotion she was a sky goddess always dressed in blue. She was the goddess of the moon and the star of the sea (<em>stella maris</em>). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434895/original/file-20211201-16-jbib0y.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">She was the goddess of the moon and the star of the sea.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>She was related to the star sign Virgo (not surprisingly) – the Queen of Heaven and Queen of the angels.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172483/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Philip C. Almond does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In the New Testament, there is nothing about Mary’s birth, death, appearance, or age. What we do know about the mother of Jesus is, in fact, quite surprising.Philip C. Almond, Emeritus Professor in the History of Religious Thought, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1655962021-08-18T12:13:08Z2021-08-18T12:13:08ZWarrior, servant, mother, unifier – the Virgin Mary has played many roles through the centuries<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/416629/original/file-20210817-27-15azmcx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=12%2C4%2C712%2C357&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Several celebrities have been seen wearing coats designed by Brenda Equihua, with an image of Mary displayed at the back.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KptcBY7HKw">Screen grab from Shelley FKA DRAM - Exposure (Official Music Video)</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In a recent article in the “Religion News Service,” author <a href="https://religionnews.com/2021/07/26/mary-mother-of-jesus-returns-as-an-icon-for-pop-stars-and-social-justice-warriors/%22%22">Whitney Bauck pointed out</a> that the Virgin Mary has become “an icon for pop stars and social justice warriors.”</p>
<p>Visitors to the <a href="https://equihua.us/">website of designer Brenda Equihua</a>, for example, will find <a href="https://equihua.us/collections/new-classics/products/devotion-hoodie-coat">outerwear</a> with a colorful image of Mary displayed on the back. These coats feature prominently in the closets of numerous celebrities. The Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny wears one <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvAUZQxb0ME">in his “Cuidao por Ahí” music video</a>,“ and rappers Lil Nas X and Shelley FKA DRAM, among others, have likewise <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KptcBY7HKw">been spotted</a> wearing theirs in various settings. Equihua keeps <a href="https://equihua.us/pages/press">a full list of such appearances on her website</a>. </p>
<p>While Mary may be enjoying renewed popularity as of late, this is not the first time she has been "in the spotlight.” In fact, because of the enormous and consistent impact that she has had on both Christians and some non-Christians <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300076615/mary-through-centuries">for nearly 2,000 years</a>, it’s difficult to conceive of a time in which Mary wasn’t a prominent figure. </p>
<p><a href="https://hcommons.org/members/evandeneykel/">As a scholar of early Christian literature</a> who has done <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/but-their-faces-were-all-looking-up-9780567682543/">extensive research on traditions about Mary</a>, I argue that the early interest in Mary came from her role as mother of Jesus, and that ancient authors transformed her into a sort of mythological figure by putting special emphasis on her virginity.</p>
<p>But others also came to emphasize Mary as an important character in her own right. For nearly 2,000 years, different Christian groups have understood Mary in various ways: as a servant, a warrior, an advocate, a leader, an exemplar, or as some combination of these.</p>
<h2>Mary the mother</h2>
<p>The four New Testament Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – are the earliest sources that mention Mary. </p>
<p>She is a minor character in Matthew, and never speaks, even <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt+1%3A18-2%3A12&version=NRSV">at the time of Jesus’ birth</a>. She has a slightly more pronounced role in Luke, which is the only other New Testament Gospel that mentions the birth of Jesus. In Luke, she <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A26-38&version=NRSV">talks with an angel</a>, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A39-45&version=NRSV">visits a family member</a> and <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A46-56&version=NRSV">speaks words of prophecy</a>. She also visits Jerusalem on two occasions: once for <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+2%3A22-35&version=NRSV">a purification ritual in the temple</a>, and a second time <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+2%3A41-51&version=NRSV">to celebrate Passover</a>.</p>
<p>In Mark, she <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+3%3A31-35&version=NRSV">seeks out Jesus while he is preaching</a>, and she is also <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+6%3A1-6&version=NRSV">mentioned in passing</a> by people in Jesus’ hometown. The first of these scenes also appears in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+12%3A46-50+&version=NRSV">Matthew</a> and <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+8%3A19-21&version=NRSV">Luke</a>.</p>
<p>Finally, she appears twice in the Gospel of John. The first is at <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+2%3A1-12&version=NRSV">a wedding where the wine has run out</a>, and the second is at Jesus’ crucifixion, where <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+19%3A25-28&version=NRSV">she stands nearby while he dies</a>.</p>
<p>Apart from <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%201%3A14&version=NRSV">one fleeting reference</a> to her in the Book of Acts, Mary appears nowhere else in the New Testament. </p>
<p>Because Jesus is the chief focus of the New Testament Gospels, it is not surprising that they contain so few biographical details about Mary. She is present as a supporting character because she was integral to how these ancient authors thought about her son. The fact that Jesus has a mother, for example, reminds readers that Jesus was, at a basic level, a human being.</p>
<h2>Mary the virgin</h2>
<p>The Gospel authors also use Mary to stress that Jesus was a particularly noteworthy person.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt+1%3A18&version=NRSV">Matthew</a> and <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke+1%3A26-27&version=NRSV">Luke</a> accomplish this by “mythologizing” the story of his birth, by emphasizing that Mary was a virgin when he was conceived, and that her pregnancy was of divine origin rather than the result of human sexual activity.</p>
<p>The theme of the virgin mother impregnated by a god is not uncommon in the ancient world, and early readers of Matthew and Luke would have understood Mary’s pregnancy in the context of other well-known stories of “divine children” born to virgin mothers.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/ovid/">Roman poet Ovid</a>, for example, writes that the <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/Perseus/">mythical hero Perseus</a> was born from a divine-human relationship between the <a href="http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0028%3Abook%3D4%3Acard%3D604">god Zeus and Perseus’ mother Danaë</a>. The <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/plutarch/">Greek historian Plutarch</a> makes a similar claim about <a href="https://www.worldhistory.org/Romulus_and_Remus/">Romulus and Remus</a>, the legendary twins whose virgin mother Rhea Silvia insisted that <a href="http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0007.tlg002.perseus-eng1:3.2">her pregnancy was the result of divine intercourse with Ares</a>, the god of war.</p>
<p>Because Matthew and Luke use Mary’s purported virginity in order to make claims about what they see as the importance of her offspring, this detail is only important for them until Jesus is born. Matthew, for example, alludes to the consummation of Mary and Joseph’s marriage after Jesus’ birth when <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+1%3A25&version=NRSV">he writes that</a> “[Joseph] had no marital relations with [Mary] until she had borne a son.”</p>
<p>By contrast, some later, Christian authors highlight Mary’s virginity as something that defines her even after Jesus’ birth. In the late-second century, for example, an anonymous Christian author wrote an influential collection of stories about Mary’s birth and early life. This text is known to scholars today as the “<a href="https://www.nasscal.com/e-clavis-christian-apocrypha/protevangelium-of-james/">Proto-Gospel of James</a>,” and in it, Mary remains a virgin even after Jesus is born.</p>
<p>The Proto-Gospel is important for how scholars understand Mary for a number of reasons. Not least of those is that it evidences an early fascination with Mary not only as the mother of Jesus, but as an important character in her own right. Jesus is a character in this text, but he is a relatively minor one, appearing only toward the end. The author’s primary focus is the life of the Virgin.</p>
<h2>Mary the mirror</h2>
<p>Like so many biblical characters, the way that a group understands Mary has much to do with how that group understands itself.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Statues of the Virgin Mary on sale near site where the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared in an apparition on August 15, 2020 in Medjugorje, Bosnia and Herzegovina." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=150%2C20%2C6468%2C4396&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/416581/original/file-20210817-17-1rq0jyw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Virgin Mary has held tremendous appeal for both Christians and non-Christians over the centuries.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/statues-of-the-virgin-mary-are-offered-for-sale-to-catholic-news-photo/1228064555?adppopup=true">Damir Sagolj/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>On one level, this plays out clearly in artistic representations of Mary. In the <a href="https://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/sm_maggiore/index_en.html">Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome</a>, for example, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1510002">fifth-century mosaics</a> portray Mary as <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/60661697@N07/16241936529/in/photolist-2kiRctG-N5Frq1-QoCjG2-qpJFeW-p43mR4-x5P673-oBqiXe-EXqngJ-DWLNJf-qy7yzE-mqMWgf-fGapzT-qKfaSr-oi6WxB-oGrPGp-osYeGY-xUDzgh-otTKX2">a noble woman dressed in Roman imperial clothing</a>, which reflects the historical context in which these mosaics were made.</p>
<p>On the other side of the world, in Mexico City, is the famous 16th-century icon of Mary known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Our-Lady-of-Guadalupe-patron-saint-of-Mexico">According to legend</a>, Mary appeared in 1531 to an Aztec man named Juan Diego, and she left this image of her imprinted on his cloak. Visitors to Our Lady of Guadalupe will note Mary’s darker complexion, which is indicative of the icon’s Spanish-Mexican context. Historically, it has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-the-virgin-of-guadalupe-is-more-than-a-religious-icon-to-catholics-in-mexico-151251">a powerful and unifying symbol of Mexican identity</a>.</p>
<p>A more recent example is the artist Ben Wildflower and <a href="https://benwildflower.com/collections/prints-1/products/magnificat-print">his popular woodcut of Mary</a>, in which she clenches her raised fist and stomps on a serpent while surrounded by the words “Fill the hungry. Lift the lowly. Cast down the mighty. Send the rich away.” When asked about Mary’s presence in his art, Wildflower commented: “<a href="https://udayton.edu/blogs/marianlibrary/2020-06-23-miraculous-metal.php">Mary is who I want to be in the world</a>.”</p>
<p>This phenomenon is at work also in the values that are imposed on Mary, and which sometimes seem at odds with one another. Mary has been upheld both as an exemplar for motherhood, for example, but also as a model for a more strictly ascetic, virginal life.</p>
<p>Her temperament is another detail that frequently shifts according to context. Mary is hailed by some Catholics as “Queen of Peace” and is frequently upheld as a paragon of <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2012/12/let-it-be-marys-radical-declaration-of-consent/266616/">free submission to the divine will</a>. Yet, there are also medieval manuscript illustrations that show her in a more active and perhaps even violent role, <a href="http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/illmanus/other/largeimage74639.html">punching</a> and <a href="https://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=29241">wrestling with demons</a>.</p>
<p>Drawing from this image of the seemingly “violent” virgin, some online retailers have begun to sell <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/565274719/hail-mary-punch-the-devil-mug-hail-mary">merchandise featuring the slogan “Hail Mary, full of grace, punch the devil in the face</a>.”</p>
<p>As Christians and non-Christians encounter Mary in various media and settings, they may do well to recall the myriad ways that she has been used to unite and comfort, but also to divide and convict. As I see it, she will no doubt continue to fascinate in both new and familiar ways for years to come.</p>
<p>[<em>Explore the intersection of faith, politics, arts and culture.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/this-week-in-religion-76/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=religion-explore">Sign up for This Week in Religion.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/165596/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eric Vanden Eykel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mary has acquired popularity among celebrities of late. A religion scholar writes about how for nearly 2,000 years, the mother of Jesus has been viewed as an exemplar by different Christian groups.Eric Vanden Eykel, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Ferrum CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1440422020-08-18T12:16:45Z2020-08-18T12:16:45ZHagia Sophia has been converted back into a mosque, but the veiling of its figural icons is not a Muslim tradition<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352815/original/file-20200813-24-tugb2c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=154%2C73%2C4765%2C3172&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People pray inside the Byzantine-era Hagia Sophia, with sail-like drapes covering mosaic figures of the Virgin Mary and Jesus.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Turkey-Hagia-Sophia/2655787d5c544c30ae1e979303b39098/3/0">AP Photo/Yasin Akgul</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ever since the reversion of Hagia Sophia back into a mosque, the Muslim call to prayer has been resounding from its minarets.</p>
<p>Originally built as a Christian Orthodox church and serving that purpose for centuries, Hagia Sophia was transformed into a mosque by the Ottomans upon their conquest of Constantinople in 1453. </p>
<p>In 1934, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/hagia-sophia-a-shifting-symbol-in-turkey-once-again-opens-up-to-islamic-prayers-11595585919">it was declared a museum</a> by the secularist Turkish leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. </p>
<p>As of June 24 of this year, Hagia Sophia’s icons of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ are covered by fabric curtains as the edifice yet again changes functions.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o_e42l4d0Uk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/ibrahim-kalin-acikladi-ayasofyadaki-ikonlar-nasil-kapatilacak-41568112">Turkish officials have stated</a> that the veiling of the images, especially the <a href="https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/medieval-europe-islamic-world/v/hagia-sophia-apse">interior mosaics</a>, is necessary to transform the interior into a Muslim prayer space.</p>
<p>As historians of <a href="https://lsa.umich.edu/histart/people/faculty/paroma.html">Byzantine</a> and <a href="https://lsa.umich.edu/histart/people/faculty/cjgruber.html">Islamic</a> art, we argue that in their rush to reassert the monument’s Islamic past, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his associates have inadvertently – and superficially – emulated certain Orthodox Christian practices. </p>
<p>Images of Mary and Christ were often ritually veiled and unveiled in Byzantium, while later Ottoman Muslim rulers did not engage in such practices. </p>
<h2>Images of Mary and Jesus in Islam</h2>
<p>When Sultan Mehmed II, known as the “Conqueror” or Fatih, took over Constantinople, he headed straight to Hagia Sophia, declared it a mosque and ordered it protected in perpetuity. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=851&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=851&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=851&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352997/original/file-20200814-14-yb4gfo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1070&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mosaic of the Virgin Mary and infant Jesus in Hagia Sophia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apse_mosaic_Hagia_Sophia_Virgin_and_Child.jpg">Myrabella</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>He did not order the ninth-century mosaic of Mary and Christ in the interior removed or covered. Instead, Ottoman historians tell us that <a href="https://henrymatthews.com/hagia-sophia/">he stood in awe</a>, feeling that the eyes of the Christ child followed him as he moved about the structure.</p>
<p>Although images of humans are almost never found in mosque architecture, the depictions of Mary and Jesus <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/hagia-sophia-a-shifting-symbol-in-turkey-once-again-opens-up-to-islamic-prayers-11595585919">remained uncovered</a> in the mosque of Hagia Sophia until 1739. At that time, the mosaic was plastered over. The plaster was later removed during the building’s 1934 conversion into a museum.</p>
<p>The centuries-long display may have been <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/what-would-muslim-want-portrait-christ-758008">a gesture</a> in appreciation of the Prophet Muhammad, who is said to have preserved an icon of the Virgin and Christ when he destroyed the pagan statues at the Kaaba, Islam’s holy sanctuary, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.</p>
<p>In this and other cases, Muslim rulers clearly understood <a href="https://www.academia.edu/42914508/Idols_and_Figural_Images_in_Islam_A_Brief_Dive_into_a_Perennial_Debate">that religious figures can be used for devotional purposes</a> without necessarily being idolatrous. This nuance <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/how-ban-images-muhammad-came-be-300491">has been lost</a> as of late in the more recent debates surrounding representations of the Prophet Muhammad.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=725&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=725&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=725&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352802/original/file-20200813-20-3mwv5p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">European print of the Virgin Mary and Christ Infant included in an Ottoman album around 1600.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/451972">The Metropolitan Museum</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>From the medieval period onward, Mary and Christ are in fact <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/what-would-muslim-want-portrait-christ-758008">a recurring motif in Islamic art</a>. They are depicted in <a href="https://www.academia.edu/33184072/The_Freer_Canteen_Reconsidered_pdf">metalwork</a>, on <a href="https://art.thewalters.org/detail/30576/beaker/">glassware</a> and <a href="https://www.academia.edu/36857348/Mughal_Occidentalism_Artistic_Encounters_Between_Europe_and_Asia_at_the_Courts_of_India_1580_1630">book paintings</a>. </p>
<p>European prints of the mother-and-child pair <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691189154/the-album-of-the-world-emperor">were also collected into albums</a> by the Ottoman elites of Constantinople in the 17th century. Not shunned or destroyed, these images were sought after, safeguarded and even <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/451972?searchField=All&amp;sortBy=Relevance&amp;what=Albums&amp;ft=Bellini+album&amp;offset=0&amp;rpp=20&amp;pos=8">embellished with colorful paints</a>.</p>
<h2>Veiling icons in Christianity</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=465&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=465&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/353212/original/file-20200817-24-7f5t8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=465&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Byzantine-era casket. On the lid is a composition showing Christ enthroned in majesty, flanked by the Virgin Mary, archangels and Apostles.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/464238">The Metropolitan Museum</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the history of Christianity, covering images, and revealing them at significant moments, <a href="https://www.academia.edu/36610230/ArcA_ArcArum_Nested_Boxes_aNd_the_dyNamics_of_sacred_experieNce_ArcA_ArcArum_cajas_aNidadas_y_la_diN%C3%A1mica_de_la_experieNcia_sagrada">often testified to their power</a>. The wrapping, encasing, framing and veiling of the most precious images and objects signaled and guaranteed their divine qualities. </p>
<p>Thus relics were stored in <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/464238">containers</a> and icons strategically <a href="https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_1988-0411-1">enshrouded</a>. Sometimes, paintings of Mary and Christ in medieval Western European manuscripts were screened by <a href="http://ica.themorgan.org/manuscript/page/55/158726">veils sewn onto folio pages</a>.</p>
<p>Lifting these cloth “shields” enabled viewers a full visual and tactile experience of the divine depiction <a href="https://www.academia.edu/6433354/_Raising_the_Curtain_on_the_Use_of_Textiles_in_Manuscripts_">beneath</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=763&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352804/original/file-20200813-14-sdjr1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=959&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A medieval icon depicting a painted image of of the Virgin Mary and Christ Infant flanked by fabric veils.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_1988-0411-1">The British Museum</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Virgin Mary, or Theotokos, as she was known in Byzantium, is closely associated with veils. The “<a href="https://www.academia.edu/2576259/Threads_of_Authority_The_Virgin_Marys_Veil_in_the_Middle_Ages">maphorion</a>,” or the cloth with which she is believed to have covered her head and shoulders, was housed in Constantinople. It was said to be invested with protective powers and believed to ward off enemies. </p>
<h2>A Byzantine miracle</h2>
<p>Turkish officials claim that the curtains covering the mosaics are on an electronic rail system and that they shall be lowered to cover the icons only <a href="https://www.haberler.com/ayasofya-daki-mozaik-ve-freskler-bir-dakikada-13436830-haberi/">during prayer times</a>. </p>
<p>But if the strips of cloth covering the Mary and Christ mosaic are to be raised intermittently and nonmanually between prayers as proposed, then a startling – if purely cursory – coincidence would emerge. </p>
<p>[<em>You’re too busy to read everything. We get it. That’s why we’ve got a weekly newsletter.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybusy">Sign up for good Sunday reading.</a> ]</p>
<p>It would resemble somewhat a well-known 11th-century Christian miracle in Constantinople. The story goes that <a href="https://chs.harvard.edu/CHS/article/display/5584.elizabeth-a-fisher-michael-psellos-on-symeon-the-metaphrast-and-on-the-miracle-at-blachernae">each Friday evening</a>, the veil covering an icon of Mary and Christ would rise by itself after prayers. It would remain lifted until the following day when it fell again – on its own.</p>
<p>The raised veil was interpreted, among other things, <a href="https://chs.harvard.edu/CHS/article/display/5584.elizabeth-a-fisher-michael-psellos-on-symeon-the-metaphrast-and-on-the-miracle-at-blachernae">as a sign of the tangible interface</a> between the divine and mortal worlds and, more specifically, as the Virgin Mary’s embrace of her devotees.</p>
<h2>The paradox of the past</h2>
<p>The rich symbolism of the 11th-century miracle and other instances of Orthodox practice is certainly lost in the current strategy of veiling at Hagia Sophia. Ideological struggles over this world heritage structure since 1934 reveal the extent to which the monument serves as a symbol for the staking of <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-hagia-sophia-remains-a-potent-symbol-of-spiritual-and-political-authority-143084">political power and religious authority</a> among Christians, Muslims and secularists in Turkey and beyond.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=64%2C0%2C6010%2C1994&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=196&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=196&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=196&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352814/original/file-20200813-24-ci8h5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The mosaic, left, depicts The Virgin Mary and Jesus in the Byzantine-era Hagia Sophia. On the photo on the right, the mosaic is covered with sail-like drapes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Turkey-Hagia-Sophia/e0d5c6f6620341549067f1b7e4dccf01/13/0">AP Photo/Emrah Gurel/Yasin Akgul</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This time around, rather than maintain Hagia Sophia as a <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/hagia-sophia-must-stay-monument-coexistence-opinion-1514802">monument of coexistence</a>, the Turkish government’s actions have <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/turkeys-decision-to-turn-hagia-sophia-into-a-mosque-dismays-christians-neighbors-historians-11594419524">sharpened an already tense ideological divide</a> between pious and secular Turks, and between Muslims and Christians worldwide.</p>
<p>But beyond the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/11/from-reformer-to-new-sultan-erdogans-populist-evolution">political and religious posturing</a>, we argue that Erdoğan and his team have also accidentally, and speciously, brought back the fabric veiling of icons, one of the practices of Byzantine Orthodoxy.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/144042/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In reconverting Hagia Sophia to a mosque, Turkish officials have emphasized veiling of Christian icons to create a Muslim prayer space. Experts explain why the veiling is in fact a Byzantine practice.Christiane Gruber, Professor of Islamic Art, University of MichiganParoma Chatterjee, Associate Professor of History of Art, University of MichiganLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1429652020-07-23T12:17:10Z2020-07-23T12:17:10ZOnline Christian pilgrimage: How a virtual tour to Lourdes follows a tradition of innovation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348984/original/file-20200722-20-dazogk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C18%2C3096%2C1881&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People wearing masks and social distancing at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes on May 30, 2020.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/faithfuls-wearing-protective-facemasks-sit-and-stand-as-news-photo/1216287453?adppopup=true">Laurent Dart/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Catholic Church held what is being <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2020-07/lourdes-to-host-first-online-world-pilgrimage.html">termed as the first online pilgrimage</a> to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France. Earlier this spring, for the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chrisobrien/2020/07/16/lourdes-holds-first-online-pilgrimage-as-city-fights-to-save-religious-tourism-business/#2f2d5baa1807">first time in its 162-year existence</a> the shrine was closed as part of measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus.</p>
<p>This online pilgrimage included many elements of the actual journey such as <a href="https://lourdesvolunteers.org/what-is-a-virtual-pilgrimage/">traditional prayers and communion</a>, but recreated for a virtual experience. Prayers and services were offered in both English and Spanish. Participants were shown scenes of the healing waters, taken on a virtual tour of the cave and heard music that is part of the normal, in-person experience. </p>
<p>As a scholar of the <a href="https://colorado.academia.edu/SamBoyd">Bible, Judaism and Christianity</a>, I know the importance of pilgrimages. But rituals have often been adapted in the face of difficult circumstances.</p>
<h2>The pilgrimage of Lourdes</h2>
<p>In 1858, 14-year old <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/bernadette-of-lourdes-9781441175779/">Bernadette Soubirous</a>, the oldest of nine children born to a local miller and laundrywoman in southwestern France, claimed to have had a series of visitations of an apparition of a woman in a cave in Lourdes. </p>
<p>Four years later, in 1862, local Catholic authorities confirmed that the visions were of the Virgin Mary. The confirmation process was based on both interviews with Soubirous as well as <a href="https://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/oso/9780190867355.001.0001/oso-9780190867355">through the investigation of events</a> at the grotto that were deemed miraculous. </p>
<p><a href="https://cornellup.degruyter.com/view/title/551790?language=en">Ever since</a>, the site has been a pivotal place for pilgrimage rites, particularly on July 16, commemorating the last visitation of Mary to Soubirous. </p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>Some of these rites involve immersion in, or drinking from, waters in Lourdes, which are believed to hold healing powers. In 1879, a woman from the United States named <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300074994/material-christianity">Mary Hayes</a>, who suffered from severe headaches, wrote a letter to Father Alexis Granger about the healing powers of the water. </p>
<p>Granger was originally from France but at that time was the pastor of the Church of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame. He had given Hayes some of the water from Lourdes to help with her ailments. Hayes reported that the healing waters of Lourdes had a restorative effect, <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300074994/material-christianity">stating</a> that “I have more faith in” the waters “than in all the doctors of the world.”</p>
<p>As rumors of healing miracles at the pools of the grotto in Lourdes became more numerous in the 19th century, the pilgrimages every July to commemorate the appearance of Mary to Soubirous became <a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/lourdes-9780141889900">much more important</a> in Catholic religious practice.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348932/original/file-20200722-24-n9n551.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pilgrims filling bottles with spring water flowing from taps installed near the grotto of the Sanctuaries of Lourdes in 2008.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/des-p%C3%A9lerins-remplissent-le-28-ao%C3%BBt-2008-des-gourdes-et-des-news-photo/1163197814?adppopup=true">Eric Cabanis/ AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A place for God’s dwelling</h2>
<p>During a pilgrimage, people <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/pilgrimage-a-very-short-introduction-9780198718222?cc=us&lang=en&">visit a place</a>, often where a significant religious event occurred. According to the Bible, locations where God appeared to humans could become special sites where regular pilgrimages could happen. </p>
<p>For example, the book of <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/deuteronomy-and-the-hermeneutics-of-legal-innovation-9780195112801?cc=us&lang=en&">Deuteronomy</a>, part of the Bible called the Torah and traditionally believed to have been written by Moses, commands ancient Israelites to come three times in a year to the place where God “causes his name to dwell,” thought to be Jerusalem. </p>
<p>The significance of <a href="https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-israel/jerusalem-pilgrimage-road-identified/">this pilgrimage</a> clearly played an important role in ancient Israelite religion. Archaeological excavations have revealed ancient routes attesting to journeys of pilgrims to Jerusalem. Parts of the book of the Psalms in the Bible may also have been ancient songs, called “<a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/psalms/E13E5E08245E35A397A5C217F0FABC70">psalms of ascent</a>,” that pilgrims sung on their routes.</p>
<p>While most translations of the book of Deuteronomy indicate that pilgrims “appear before the Lord,” evidence exists that the original text suggests that pilgrims <a href="https://www.mohrsiebeck.com/en/article/the-face-of-god-and-the-etiquette-of-eye-contact-visitation-pilgrimage-and-prophetic-vision-in-ancient-israelite-and-early-jewish-imagination-101628094457012799440186?no_cache=1">would actually see God</a>. </p>
<p>Deuteronomy makes it clear that such visitations to the holy site will bring tangible benefits in agricultural produce.</p>
<h2>Spiritual experience</h2>
<p>Despite the mandate in the Bible for pilgrimage, such journeys had limited value in the earliest centuries of Christianity. For many Christians during this time, physical places like Jerusalem were more valuable as <a href="https://brill.com/view/title/55533">spiritual concepts</a> than actual destinations for pilgrims. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/4886/jerusalem-by-karen-armstrong/">Karen Armstrong</a>, author of many books on religion and history, observes that Origen, a third century A.D. Christian scholar, visited Jerusalem and its environs in order to understand where certain events in the Bible occurred.</p>
<p>Such a visit, however, was not a pilgrimage, and, according to Armstrong, Origen “certainly did not expect to get a spiritual experience by visiting a mere geographical location, however august its associations.” </p>
<p>The importance of pilgrimage changed and occupied a more <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/pilgrimage-in-graeco-roman-and-early-christian-antiquity-9780199237913?cc=us&lang=en&">central place</a> in Christianity beginning in the fourth century A.D. when the Roman emperor <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Emperor-Constantine/Pohlsander-Pohlsander/p/book/9780415319386">Constantine</a> converted to Christianity. </p>
<p>His mother Helena visited <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/4886/jerusalem-by-karen-armstrong/">Jerusalem and Israel</a>, following the footsteps of the life, trial and death of Jesus. </p>
<p>It was a general belief in the ancient world that anywhere God or a divine emissary made themselves visible to humans could become a holy space. <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Relics-Shrines-and-Pilgrimages-Sanctity-in-Europe-from-Late-Antiquity/Pazos/p/book/9780367188672">Materials</a> from such divine visitation could become holy relics around which stories of miracles and shrines, objects of pilgrimage destinations, could be constructed. </p>
<p>Martin of Tours, a prominent figure in Christian monasticism in the sixth century A.D., saw a destitute man and, remembering Jesus’ words in the Gospel of Matthew that caring for the poor is like caring for God, <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/296647/christianity-by-diarmaid-macculloch/">Martin gave the poor man his cloak</a>. </p>
<p>The destitute man revealed himself to be Jesus himself, and portions of that “little cloak,” or capella in Latin, were housed in small churches. The origins of the word “chapel” was derived from capella – spaces that, at least in some cases, would become destinations for pilgrimages. </p>
<h2>Quarantine and disruptions</h2>
<p>While pilgrimage has a long history, such practice can adapt to changing circumstances.</p>
<p>The Bible, in the Old Testament book of Leviticus chapters 13 and 14, requires that individuals showing evidence of exposure to a highly infectious skin disease be separated from the larger community. </p>
<p>This passage provides the platform for <a href="https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/35/9/1071/330421">the belief</a> that quarantine is necessary during the outbreak of an infectious disease. As such, for many priests and pastors these chapters allow a biblical warrant for <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahalothman/coronavirus-churches-easter">innovation</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/348933/original/file-20200722-16-1s3u4hi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shop selling consecrated water in the city of Lourdes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/shop-selling-consacrated-water-in-the-city-of-lourdes-news-photo/481682201?adppopup=true">BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Indeed, <a href="https://lourdesvolunteers.org/request-lourdes-water/">for many years</a>, the healing waters of Lourdes have been packaged and distributed worldwide for those who can’t go on the pilgrimage.</p>
<p>The pilgrimage undoubtedly remains an important journey for many Christians, even when taken online. It attests to transformations of the ritual in the face of difficult circumstances. In fact, social media estimated that participation was <a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-europe/2020/07/july-16-virtual-pilgrimage-to-lourdes-to-affirm-prayer-against-covid-19/">five times</a> greater than normal viewership in a pilgrimage. </p>
<p>The coronavirus pandemic has caused unprecedented disruptions to many religious activities. But the adaptations to the pilgrimage to Lourdes in 2020 show that adaptation and innovation can play a key role in observing rituals.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142965/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Samuel L. Boyd does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Coronavirus is causing religious communities to rethink ways of expressing their faith. In the spirit of finding innovative ways to continue rituals, the pilgrimage to Lourdes was conducted online.Samuel L. Boyd, Assistant Professor, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1183272019-12-22T20:21:44Z2019-12-22T20:21:44ZFrom virgin births to purity movements: Christians and their problem with sex<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307622/original/file-20191218-11946-1u03tzk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=676%2C41%2C2658%2C1820&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wes Mountain/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It took 400 years, but sometime in the early fifth century Christians transformed a tradition about Jesus’s miraculous virgin birth into a doctrine that inextricably connected sex with sin. It has plagued the church ever since, doing untold damage to generations of women in particular.</p>
<p>In its original context, the claim that Jesus was born to a virgin mother places his birth in a long line of miraculous biblical births. The Bible tells of numerous old women, barren women and young unmarried women (“virgins” in ancient terms) who surprisingly bore children. Their offspring were seen as a sign of God’s blessing of new life, often in the midst of suffering or hardship.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/god-made-the-rainbow-why-the-bible-welcomes-a-gender-spectrum-126201">God made the rainbow: why the Bible welcomes a gender spectrum</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The idea of original sin and its connection to sexual intercourse was popularised by African theologian Augustine. Not without controversy at the time, Augustine argued that humans were not born innocent, but rather sinful. His rationale was that sexual intercourse involves lust or sexual desire (a negative for him).</p>
<p>While Augustine tied this “original sin” back to Adam and Eve, the parallel focus on Mary’s perpetual virginity is relevant. If sexual intercourse produces sinful offspring, it was essential Mary be and remain a virgin so Jesus could, uniquely, be born sinless.</p>
<p>Such logic might seem absurd to many modern readers, but Augustine’s influence on Christian tradition cannot be overstated. In her book, <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/126044/adam-eve-and-the-serpent-by-elaine-pagels/">Adam, Eve, and the Serpent</a>, Princeton Professor Elaine Pagels argues Augustine has left a legacy of problematic and complicated attitudes towards sex in the Christian tradition.</p>
<p>Attitudes, it is worth noting, that are not in the Bible. There is no suggestion in the biblical text that consensual sex is anything other than a gift from God. There is even an <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Song+of+Solomon+1-8&version=NRSV">entire biblical book</a> devoted to rather erotic poetry.</p>
<p>The idea that Mary was a perpetual virgin was already in circulation at this time, but the influence of Augustine’s thinking on original sin would lead the 19th-century Roman Catholic Church to adopt the doctrine of Immaculate Conception. This was the idea that Mary herself was immaculately conceived, so she could be a sinless vessel to carry the fetal Jesus. This move consolidated the association of purity and virginity, arguably leading to the Protestant Church’s <a href="https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/faqs-know-purity-culture/">purity culture movement</a> in the 20th century.</p>
<p>The purity movement has its roots in 19th-century social movements that sought to abolish prostitution, raise the age of consent and limit pornography. Often led by women with the intention of protecting women, these movements appealed to men not to misuse their social and sexual power over women. However, the late 20th-century American purity movement looks quite different and has <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/religion/joshua-harris-and-the-cruel-optimism-of-christian-purity-culture/11369762">arguably done damage to women</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/jesus-wasnt-white-he-was-a-brown-skinned-middle-eastern-jew-heres-why-that-matters-91230">Jesus wasn't white: he was a brown-skinned, Middle Eastern Jew. Here's why that matters</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In the 1990s, conservative American churches started focusing on a radical abstinence from sex, the nature of which would likely have appealed to Augustine. Known as “purity culture,” both men and women were expected to remain “pure”. </p>
<p>Women, however, inevitably bore the brunt of this teaching. Girls pledged their virginity and were given promise rings by their fathers, a placeholder for an engagement ring when their virginity would be promised to another man. Young women were taught that the most important thing they could offer their future husband was a body untouched by another male.</p>
<p>Much has been written about the culture of shame and sexual ignorance that has resulted from such an emphasis on sexual purity. There were two notable outcomes: sex outside of marriage became the worst form of sin and women who experienced sexual assault were often additionally traumatised by their church’s teaching about purity and shame.</p>
<p>The harm caused is now so widely acknowledged that a once vocal proponent of the no-dating purity culture, Joshua Harris, has recently <a href="https://joshharris.com/statement/">apologised and retracted</a> his views and his book on the topic.</p>
<p>Shame, purity and sexual ignorance continue to haunt Christian communities around the globe. In Melbourne, I have encountered Christians who abstained from anything except holding hands until marriage, only to find that the leap from total abstinence to sex in one night was painful, awkward and sometimes traumatising. If you have been told something is shameful your whole life, it takes more than a wedding ceremony to shift to a sex-positive mindset.</p>
<p>I’ve met Christian women who will not report a childhood rape because they fear being seen as “tainted goods” or “impure” to Christian men who might not want to marry them. The association of sex and sinfulness is so strong for some that a rapist’s sin can be internalised as their own.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-extreme-abstinence-of-the-purity-movement-created-a-sense-of-shame-in-evangelical-women-127589">How the 'extreme abstinence' of the purity movement created a sense of shame in evangelical women</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In conservative Christian circles, sexual “sins” continue to be considered the worst kinds of sin. This legacy entrenches hierarchical gender roles, can push sexual activity underground as something hidden or secret, and arguably inhibits healthy sexual development in young people. Similarly, it diminishes any robust theology of sin and, alarmingly, it can create dangerous conditions for those vulnerable to sexual predation.</p>
<p>These centuries of thinking about virginity, sex and sinfulness have led us a long way from the woman whose child Christians celebrate at Christmas. Somehow, a virginal young woman became used by men to support claims that sex equals sin.</p>
<p>Yet, in the Christian tradition, Mary is best remembered as mother of God, prophet and faithful follower of Jesus. She has long been upheld as a model of faith for women in particular. And so she should be. Not because she was ever “pure” or remained a virgin, but because she exemplifies courageous faith.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/118327/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robyn J. Whitaker does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The idealisation of Mary as a virgin has created a misguided and deeply damaging relationship between sex and sin within the Christian church.Robyn J. Whitaker, Senior Lecturer in New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of DivinityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1278062019-12-22T20:21:38Z2019-12-22T20:21:38ZHow the cult of Virgin Mary turned a symbol of female authority into a tool of patriarchy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307048/original/file-20191216-124031-y9oc58.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C24%2C2715%2C1804&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Madonna with child and angels by Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato, 1674. The cult of the Virgin is emblematic of the way the church silences women and marginalises their experience</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Belief in the virgin birth comes from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Their birth stories are different, but both present Mary as a virgin when she became pregnant with Jesus. Mary and Joseph begin their sexual relationship following Jesus’ birth, and so Jesus has brothers and sisters.</p>
<p><a href="http://anglicansonline.org/basics/nicene.html">Catholic piety</a> goes beyond this, with Mary depicted as a virgin not only before but also during and after Jesus’ birth, her hymen miraculously restored. The brothers and sisters of Jesus are seen as either cousins or children of Joseph by an earlier marriage. </p>
<p>In Catholicism, Mary remains a virgin throughout her married life. This view arises not from the New Testament but from an apocryphal Gospel in the second century, the “Protoevangelium of James”, which <a href="http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0847.htm">affirms Mary’s perpetual virginity</a>. </p>
<p>From the second century onwards, Christians saw virginity as an ideal, an alternative to marriage and children. Mary was seen to exemplify this choice, along with Jesus and the apostle Paul. It accorded with the surrounding culture where Greek philosophers, male and female, tried to live a simple life without attachment to family or possessions.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307043/original/file-20191216-123983-k07x8j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Painting of Virgin Mary by Johann Burgauner, 1849.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This extolling of virginity, however unlikely when applied to Mary, did have some advantages. The option of becoming a celibate nun in community with other women gave young women in the early church an attractive alternative to marriage, in a culture where marriages were generally arranged and death in childbirth was common.</p>
<p>Yet belief in the eternal virginity of Mary has also inflicted damage over the centuries, particularly on women. It has distorted the character of Mary, turning her into a submissive, dependent creature, without threat to patriarchal structures.</p>
<p>She is divorced from the lives of real women who can never attain her sexless motherhood or her unsullied “purity”.</p>
<h2>A strong minded leader</h2>
<p>Yet in the Gospels, Mary is a vibrant figure: strong-minded and courageous, a leader in the community of faith.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=830&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=830&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=830&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1043&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1043&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307024/original/file-20191216-124036-vqve8b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1043&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Jan van Eyck, The Ghent Altarpiece, Virgin Mary detail, circa 1426.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As the first Christian, Mary proclaims <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A46-55&version=NIV">a radical message of social justice</a>, where the poor are exalted and the powerful overthrown. She initiates Jesus’ ministry at the wedding of Cana and <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+19%3A25-27&version=NIV">follows him to the cross</a>, despite the dangers. She is a vital presence at the birth of the church at Pentecost, sharing the divine vision of a world transformed.</p>
<p>In line with the New Testament, the early church also gave Mary the title of “God-bearer” (<em>Theotokos</em>), which became part of Christian orthodoxy, not tied to her perpetual virginity. </p>
<p>Material art portrayed her in some contexts as a priestly figure (as in <a href="https://stchrysostoms.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/mary-priest-ravenna.jpg">an 11th century mosaic from Ravenna</a>), with her own autonomy and authority, where she embodies the symbolic vocation of all Christians to “give birth” to the transforming presence of Christ.</p>
<h2>Diminishing female sexuality</h2>
<p>In contrast to these powerful images, the alternative picture of Mary, the perpetual-married-virgin, deprives women of a model not only of leadership and courage, but also of sexual desire and passion. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=899&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=899&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=899&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307060/original/file-20191216-124036-1dlvslr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1130&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mary has been put on a pedestal, symbolically and literally.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Simone de Beauvoir, the influential, early French feminist, observed that the cult of the Virgin Mary represented the “supreme victory of masculinity”, implying that it served the interests of men rather than women. </p>
<p>The ever-Virgin diminishes women’s sexuality and makes the female body and female sexuality seem unwholesome, impure. She is a safe and nonthreatening figure for celibate men who place her on a pedestal, both literally and metaphorically. </p>
<h2>The contradiction</h2>
<p>It is true that Catholic women across the world have found great solace in the compassionate figure of Mary, especially against images of a very masculine, judgmental God, and the brutality of political and religious hierarchy. </p>
<p>But for this women have paid a price, in their exclusion from leadership. Mary’s voice has been permitted, in filtered tones, to ring out across the church, but real women’s voices are silent. </p>
<p>In today’s context, the cult of the Virgin becomes emblematic of the way the church silences women and marginalises their experience.</p>
<p>Marian piety in its traditional form has a deep contradiction at its heart. In a <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/pope-the-church-is-a-mother-who-guides-her-children-50621">speech </a> in 2014, Pope Francis said, “The model of maternity for the Church is the Virgin Mary” who “in the fullness of time conceived through the Holy Spirit and gave birth to the Son of God.” </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307054/original/file-20191216-124004-1amlxqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pope Francis attends an audience with the participants in the General Chapter of the Order of Friars of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (Carmelites), Vatican City, in September.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Vatican Media/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If that were true, women could be ordained, since their connection to Mary would allow them, like her, to represent the church. If the world received the body of Christ from this woman, Mary, then women today should not be excluded from giving the body of Christ, as priests, to the faithful at Mass. </p>
<p>The Virgin cult cuts women off from the full, human reality of Mary, and so from full participation in the life of the church.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=788&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=788&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=788&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=990&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=990&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/307062/original/file-20191216-124036-y6m9pw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=990&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Massimo Diodato, Praying Mary, 1893.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is no coincidence that in the early 20th century, the Vatican forbade Mary to be depicted in priestly vestments. She could only ever be presented as the unattainable virgin-mother: never as leader, and never as a fully embodied woman in her own right.</p>
<p>The irony of this should not be lost. A fully human Gospel symbol of female authority, autonomy, and the capacity to envision a transformed world becomes a tool of patriarchy. </p>
<p>By contrast, the Mary of the Gospels, the God-bearer and priestly figure - a normal wife and mother of children - confirms women in their embodied humanity and supports their efforts to challenge unjust structures, both within and outside the church.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/127806/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dorothy Ann Lee does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Belief in the eternal virginity of Mary has inflicted damage to women, who can never attain her sexless motherhood or unsullied ‘purity’. Yet in the Gospels, Mary is strong-minded and courageous.Dorothy Ann Lee, Stewart Research Professor of New Testament, Trinity College, University of DivinityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1181642019-06-28T13:04:36Z2019-06-28T13:04:36ZI went on a Voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281674/original/file-20190627-76701-5z62lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Haiti's black saint known as Grann Sainte Anne Charitable in her European Catholic form and Ti Saint Anne, in Vodoo form.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Guilberly Louissaint</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In July, hundreds of pilgrims will make their way to an isolated town in the northwest of Haiti, called Anse-à-Foleur or Ansafolè. The journey celebrates a black saint known as <a href="https://lenouvelliste.com/article/48856/la-sainte-anne-de-lanse-a-foleur">Gran'n Sainte Anne Charitable</a> in her European Catholic form and Ti Saint Anne in Voodoo form. </p>
<p>Voodoo, known as “Vodou” in Haiti, is a spirit-based religion. Its followers believe saints carry miraculous powers.</p>
<p>People in search of healing, justice, and prosperity – both Haitians and outsiders – take part in the pilgrimage. </p>
<p>As an anthropology doctoral student <a href="http://centerforethnography.org/content/visualizing-haitis-health-regime-vodou-toxic-subject">interested in religious healing</a>, I went on this Voodoo pilgrimage in 2018 during the saint’s feast day.</p>
<p>This pilgrimage, like other Haitian pilgrimages, brings together Catholic and African practices.</p>
<h2>Who is this icon?</h2>
<p>The pilgrimage site was created in the early 20th century. </p>
<p>According to local lore, a group of people on their way to the Dominican Republic came across a dark <a href="https://lenouvelliste.com/article/48856/la-sainte-anne-de-lanse-a-foleur">doll-like</a> idol in a strait of water.</p>
<p>The travelers carried the idol to Ansafolè, but discarded there, finding it of no particular value. However, the story goes, <a href="https://lenouvelliste.com/article/48856/la-sainte-anne-de-lanse-a-foleur">the idol reappeared miraculously in the strait</a> where she was initially found.</p>
<p>Not long after, the idol appeared in the dreams of the locals. One local in particular, a businessman named <a href="https://lenouvelliste.com/article/48856/la-sainte-anne-de-lanse-a-foleur">Dédé Mezina</a>, created a space where people would come visit her for a few Haitian gourde. As the idol’s popularity grew, she came to be worshipped as a saint. </p>
<p>Her fame spread as more miracles were attributed to her. Among those was one where she was credited for freeing a rich shipowner who had visited her from prison. </p>
<p>The shipowner built a <a href="https://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00010534/00001">two-story church</a> in the saint’s honor in the 1930s. Today, this church is the site of the pilgrimage as well as the idol’s resting place. The town itself has <a href="https://lenouvelliste.com/article/48856/la-sainte-anne-de-lanse-a-foleur">come to be associated</a> with the saint. </p>
<p>During my visit, I found that testimonies of the saint’s miracles filled the small prayer houses near the church. Most of all, people believe in her power of healing. Two women in their late fifties told me stories of being healed by the saint. </p>
<h2>A saint with two forms?</h2>
<p>Going on Voodoo pilgrimages is a practice with African origins tied to the strong belief in the healing power of saints, spirits and God. Pilgrimages are also a way to <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/jsa/2889">appeal to higher powers</a> for one’s unfulfilled desires.</p>
<p>This pilgrimage, like many others in Haiti, combines Catholic practices. Catholic prayers are used to bring about transpossession, where Voodoo <a href="https://www.blackstudies.ucsb.edu/sites/secure.lsit.ucsb.edu.blks.d7/files/sitefiles/people/strongman/stongman142.pdf">healers believe they become possessed</a> with African spirits in order to give guidance to the sick.</p>
<p>The population of Haiti is <a href="https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/religious-beliefs-in-haiti.html">80% Catholic and 16% Protestant</a> Christian. But there is a common saying as I learned during my visit that Haitians are 100% Voodoo.</p>
<p>The reason for this goes back to Haiti’s slave past. African slaves had to disguise their African gods as Catholic saints in order to avoid punishment by their masters. Over time the Voodoo idols and Catholic saints became one, causing Haiti’s gods to have <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Faces_of_the_Gods.html?id=lF9ZAAAAMAAJ">multiple forms</a>.</p>
<p>For example, African slaves associate the Voodoo god of iron, <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/jsa/2889">Ogou, with Saint James</a> because the saint was associated with war and Christian conquest. Another example: Ezili Dantor, a Voodoo goddess, came to be associated with Virgin Mary.</p>
<p>Voodoo continues to play an important social and religious role in Haitian life and in healing its post-slavery past. </p>
<p>[ <em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=youresmart">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/118164/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Guilberly Louissaint does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar went on a Voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti and learned how an oppressive slave past has shaped its religious present.Guilberly Louissaint, Anthropology Ph.d Student, University of California, IrvineLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1139022019-04-23T10:43:24Z2019-04-23T10:43:24ZWhat Leonardo’s depiction of Virgin Mary and Jesus tells us about his religious beliefs<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270063/original/file-20190418-28116-1ed39ai.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Leonardo da Vinci's Virgin of the Rocks.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/leonardo-da-vinci-the-virgin-of-the-rocks">National Gallery London</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>On the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death, Italian academic Francesco Caglioti’s <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-little-figures-could-be-leonardo-da-vincis-only-known-sculpture-180971678/">recent claim</a> that a sculpture held at a London museum bears close similarities with the work of the Renaissance genius has opened up a fresh discussion. </p>
<p>The Victoria and Albert Museum in London has been cautious and <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-little-figures-could-be-leonardo-da-vincis-only-known-sculpture-180971678/">said</a>: “A potential attribution to Leonardo da Vinci was first proposed in 1899, so Professor Caglioti’s study opens up the discussion of its authorship afresh.”</p>
<p>It is a <a href="http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O70263/the-virgin-with-the-laughing-statuette-rossellino-antonio/">charming and jovial image</a> of “The Virgin with the Laughing Child,” in which the young Mary appears to be enjoying the magic of motherhood with her son resting comfortably on her lap. Baby Jesus has a joyous expression as he entwines his right hand with his mother’s left. </p>
<p>Whatever the final outcome on this finding, <a href="https://gufaculty360.georgetown.edu/s/contact/00336000014RfKvAAK/diane-apostoloscappadona">as a scholar of religious art</a>, I would suggest that, beyond the immediate charm of his art creations, Leonardo invites viewers into a religious message. </p>
<p>Leonardo’s Virgin and laughing child expresses both church teachings and what it means to be a human.</p>
<h2>Leonardo: Religion and his art</h2>
<p>Leonardo was one of the greatest artists in history. However, very little is known about his early life and even less so about his religious one.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=756&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=950&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=950&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270053/original/file-20190418-28100-1cs7gjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=950&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Portrait of Leonardo da Vinci.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/411913">The Metropolitan Museum. Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1953</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What is known is that he was baptized as an infant in the presence of 10 witnesses and that at the end of his life <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Leonardo-da-Vinci/Walter-Isaacson/9781501139161">he asked for a priest</a> to hear his last confession and administer the Last Rites. He was <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Leonardo-da-Vinci/Walter-Isaacson/9781501139161">given a Catholic funeral</a> and buried in consecrated ground. </p>
<p>Art historian <a href="https://www.museumsassociation.org/museums-journal/news/17102018-luke-syson-appointed-director-fitzwilliam">Luke Syson</a> has argued that Leonardo had solid knowledge of religious symbolism and contemporary Catholic teachings, which he combined with a humanistic approach to his art’s subjects. </p>
<p>An example is how Leonardo transformed the traditional image of “The Last Supper” into a more human-centered drama. </p>
<p>The traditional emphasis of the Last Supper is on the institution of the Eucharist. It forms the scriptural basis for Communion, in which bread is seen to be a symbol for Jesus’ body and wine as a symbol for his blood. </p>
<p>Leonardo, instead, emphasized the announcement of the betrayal by one of the disciples.</p>
<p>He had a <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/La_biblioteca_perduta.html?id=V9InMQAACAAJ">large collection of religious books</a> in his personal library and is known to have made regular references in his notebooks to religious ideas. </p>
<h2>Leonardo’s drawings as evidence</h2>
<p>In fact, much of what is known about Leonardo has been found through <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/metpublications/Leonardo_da_Vinci_Master_Draftsman">the visual evidence</a> of his drawings, paintings and notebooks. And they reveal another side to him.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=710&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=710&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=710&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270052/original/file-20190418-28084-uiu11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Leonardo’s sketches.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.nga.gov/?service=asset&action=show_zoom_window_popup&language=en&asset=61227&location=grid&asset_list=52895,152896,85622,61227&basket_item_id=undefined">National Gallery of Art</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Beyond being an artist, Leonardo’s creativity expanded into the study of science, human anatomy and military armaments. </p>
<p>The pages of his numerous notebooks are filled with anatomical drawings such as his studies of the fetus and the eye. His study of human anatomy was not simply through live models but more significantly through <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Heart_of_Leonardo.html?id=tCSMkQEACAAJ">participation in autopsies</a>. His drawings are used today as illustrations in medical textbooks. </p>
<p>Yet, at the same time, his notebooks are also filled with sketches and drawings of religious figures. His art <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/leon/hd_leon.htm">reflected his meditations</a> on the Bible and his knowledge of Christian symbolism. These were an <a href="https://www.zonebooks.org/books/66-leonardo-s-incessant-last-supper">important basis</a> for “The Last Supper” and <a href="https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/past/leonardo-da-vinci-painter-at-the-court-of-milan">his paintings</a> of the Virgin of the Rocks. </p>
<h2>Picturing the Bible</h2>
<p>Leonardo reinterpreted traditional Christian iconography.</p>
<p>From its earliest days, Christian art employed signs and symbols like flowers, animals and colors to identify individuals and ideas. As the majority of the population at the time was unable to read, Christian art was a <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/dictionary-of-christian-art-9780826410658/">form of visual literacy</a>. It helped teach stories of faith. </p>
<p>In Leonardo’s time, additional books were being written about the Christian faith, especially those given to episodes in the life of Christ and of his mother.</p>
<p>Leonardo’s sculpture expanded the forms that Christian art had taken until then. </p>
<p>One of the most popular themes of Christian art was that of the <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Mary_in_Western_Art.html?id=qd7EZAFouDgC">Madonna and Child</a>. Madonna meant “my lady,” which was the title for the Virgin Mary from the Middle Ages.</p>
<p>Typically, the Madonna was presented as an elegantly dressed and beautiful woman with a halo and surrounded by angels. The artist’s emphasis was on identifying her as the regal mother and queen of heaven. </p>
<p>Over the course of his life, Leonardo drew and painted many images of the Madonna. Leonardo <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Mary_in_Western_Art.html?id=qd7EZAFouDgC">emphasized Madonna’s humility</a> by removing her crown and halo and replacing her extravagant costumes with simpler dress.</p>
<p>In 1483, he painted the Virgin of the Rocks. This image illustrated a new doctrine on the <a href="https://www.beliefnet.com/entertainment/movies/the-da-vinci-code/leonardo-his-faith-his-art.aspx?">Immaculate Conception of Mary</a>. This teaching emphasized that with God’s intervention, Mary was conceived without the stain of “original sin” even though she had two human parents. This differed from the belief regarding Mary’s miraculous virginal conception of Jesus. </p>
<p>Typically in images that promoted this teaching, the artist depicted a prayerful Mary dressed in white being elevated by a group of angels. Leonardo painted her as an earthly mother with her young son and his cousin, the young John the Baptist, in a landscape setting. </p>
<p>His paintings of baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary do not simply show “any mother” or “any child.” He both depicted the naturalness of their relationship and touched upon the religious meaning of their identities. He also <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/337494">emphasized</a> the emotional intimacy between the two.</p>
<p>He communicated ideas and feelings through their hand gestures, facial features and body poses. </p>
<h2>Both divine and human</h2>
<p>As scholars of cultural history like <a href="https://theology.nd.edu/people/lawrence-cunningham/">Lawrence Cunningham</a> and <a href="https://www.cengage.co.uk/author/john-j-reich/">John Reich</a> have <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Culture_and_Values_A_Survey_of_the_Human.html?id=UTMD_LaZRNgC">noted</a>, Leonardo was interested in a Renaissance worldview which centered around the human person. This interest resulted in not only his works that depicted a natural view of the human body but one that explored the personalities of the individuals he drew and painted.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=782&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=782&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=782&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=983&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=983&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/270057/original/file-20190418-28106-gjht8g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=983&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Madonna of the Carnation by Leonardo da Vinci.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Madonna_of_the_Carnation_Leonardo_da_Vinci.jpg">Alte Pinakothek Art Museum</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Even as the final word is awaited from Victoria and Albert Museum – and it might take many years to resolve – I would agree with the <a href="https://www.theartnewspaper.com/comment/another-new-leonardo-is-a-reason-to-be-cheerful">scholars</a> who support the view that The Virgin with Laughing Child bears Leonardo’s hallmarks.</p>
<p>The mother is dressed, but the child is totally naked. While this naturalism of their human figures is typical of the Renaissance, what I propose is that the presentation of a laughing but naked baby Jesus made visible the complex theological idea of the Incarnation – that God became flesh in Jesus.</p>
<p>For Christians, Christ was the unique son of God who was miraculously human and divine at the same time. He was <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+1%3A14&version=KJV">identified</a> in the New Testament as “…the Word was made flesh…” </p>
<p>In all his art, Leonardo made this visible through the joyful demeanor of baby Jesus and the obvious display of his fully human form. Simply put, Leonardo illustrated how Jesus’ humanity came from his mother and his divinity from God.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113902/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Diane Apostolos-Cappadona does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Leonardo da Vinci emphasized the naturalness of the relationship of Jesus and Mary in his art, while also inviting viewers into a religious message.Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, Haub Director of Catholic Studies, Georgetown UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1003582018-07-23T10:22:46Z2018-07-23T10:22:46ZWhat is behind belief in weeping Virgin Mary statues<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228663/original/file-20180720-142432-4scdjy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">In 2014, in, a small town in northern Israel, Christian worshippers gathered next to a statue of the Virgin Mary, that they said 'weeps' oil.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Ariel Schalit</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In a Catholic parish in Hobbs, New Mexico, a statue of the Virgin Mary has been “<a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/nation-world/article215082595.html">weeping</a>.” </p>
<p>Onlookers have gathered out of curiosity, and also for prayer and healing. The liquid on the statue has been found to be <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/07/18/a-virgin-mary-statue-has-been-weeping-olive-oil-church-leaders-cant-explain-it/?utm_term=.9c0d38087e0b">olive oil and balsam</a> – the same mixture that is used for certain Catholic rituals after being blessed by a bishop.</p>
<p>Claims about supernatural phenomena, including weeping statues, have historically been common in Catholicism. A well-known example is the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science-debunks-miracle-of-weeping-madonna-1590530.html">Madonna of Syracuse, Sicily</a>, a plaster statue that has shed tears since 1953. Last year, in fact, weeping statues were reported <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEe1a0IxROI">in Hungary</a>, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4343396/Statue-Mary-weeps-blood-church-Argentina.html">Argentina</a> and <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/2539927/picture-of-mary-cries-again-as-macedonian-church-chiefs-race-to-confirm-miracle-and-check-whether-tears-forewarn-disaster/">Macedonia</a>, just to name a few. </p>
<p>To understand why a weeping statue would be religiously meaningful, it’s first important to appreciate the connection between miracles and the Virgin Mary.</p>
<h2>Miracles and Mary</h2>
<p>Catholics believe Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ and, therefore, the mother of God. </p>
<p>Throughout Catholic history, supernatural events have been attributed to Mary’s power. When France’s Chartres cathedral burned, only Mary’s relic – called “<a href="http://sites.tufts.edu/textilerelics/2011/02/08/marian-relics/">The Veil of the Virgin</a>”– survived after being safeguarded by three priests who were miraculously preserved from the heat and flames.</p>
<p>Mary’s intercession is also believed to have ensured victory at <a href="https://www.wordonfire.org/resources/blog/our-lady-of-the-rosary-and-the-battle-of-lepanto/1220/">the Battle of Lepanto</a> in 1571, when an Ottoman fleet was repulsed by the forces of Genoa, Venice and the papacy. </p>
<p>Mary’s tears have special significance for Catholics: She cries not only over the sins of the world, but also over the pain she endured in her earthly life, referred to as “<a href="http://www.ncregister.com/blog/mfenelon/what-are-the-seven-sorrows-of-mary">the seven sorrows of Mary</a>.” These sorrows, which include the crucifixion and death of Jesus, are depicted by seven swords piercing Mary’s flaming heart.</p>
<p>Even the flowery scent of olive oil and balsam evokes Mary since she is called “<a href="https://aleteia.org/2017/08/15/5-flowers-connected-to-the-virgin-mary/">the rose without thorns</a>.” </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228665/original/file-20180720-142426-p01izi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The icon of Jesus and the Virgin Mary at Kykkos monastery in the Troodos mountains, where pilgrims gathered after reports of perfumed oily tears running from the eyes of both mother and child in 1997.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/George Constantinou</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It’s not surprising for a weeping statue of Mary to become an object of prayer and devotion.</p>
<p>And when this happens, the local bishop sometimes steps in to investigate.</p>
<h2>The possibility of trickery</h2>
<p>In examining claims of the supernatural, bishops are guided by standards set by the Vatican’s <a href="http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19780225_norme-apparizioni_en.html">Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith</a>, which oversees Catholic doctrine. These standards primarily concern reports of “<a href="https://www.catholic.org/mary/appear.php">apparitions</a>” of the Virgin Mary. But the framework also applies <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/vatican-publishes-guidelines-on-apparitions-private-revelations">to other supernatural occurences</a>, including weeping statues. Perhaps because they address controversial issues, the standards were only made public <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2012/vatican-publishes-rules-for-verifying-marian-apparitions.cfm">in 2012</a> – nearly 35 years after they were first implemented.</p>
<p>The bishop, or a committee appointed by him, evaluates the supernatural phenonmenon’s impact on the community. Positive aspects can be healings and conversions, or even a more general deepening of faith among Catholics. Negative aspects would include sinful acts such as selling oil from a weeping statue or making claims contrary to Catholic doctrine.</p>
<p>One of the primary questions is whether the event has been staged. For example, in two cases of statues that wept blood – one in <a href="https://www.apnews.com/5bc729e1e9f2b843d2557ec63e5db6da">Canada</a> in 1986 and another in <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/church_custodian_on_trial_in_italy_for_weeping_statue_hoax">Italy</a> in 2006 – the blood turned out be that of the statue’s owner. </p>
<p>Liquids can be injected into the <a href="http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_stat.htm">porous material of statues</a> and later seep out as “tears.” Oil that is mixed with fat can be applied to a statue’s eyes, which will “weep” when <a href="https://www.nwitimes.com/uncategorized/the-mystery-of-mary-s-tears/article_38c3d91a-127a-5f7c-b0d2-c2bec26744a5.html">ambient temperatures</a> rise in the chapel. </p>
<p>In the case of the bronze statue of Mary in Hobbs, New Mexico, the investigation has uncovered no such trickery. But the fact that no cause has yet been found does not mean that a miracle has taken place.</p>
<p>The Catholic Church rarely endorses weeping statues and similar phenomena. Usually, a bishop or the Vatican will only go as far as saying that faith and devotion are more important than tales of supernatural happenings. </p>
<h2>Searching for meaning</h2>
<p>While understanding the phenomenon, it’s also important to appreciate the stories and individual motivations that people bring when they pray or worship in the presence of a statue that seems to weep. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/228664/original/file-20180720-142432-1phkf6x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A special outdoor Mass was celebrated in honor of Audrey Santo, who was reputed to be connected to miracles, at the Holy Cross College stadium in Worcester, Mass.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Gail Oskin</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In my hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, for example, statues and pictures have wept oil and blood at the home of the <a href="http://www.telegram.com/article/20070416/NEWS/704160667/1116&Template=printart">late Audrey Santo</a>, who died in 2007 at the age of 23. As a child, “Little Audrey,” as she is still called, was left mute and paralyzed after a swimming pool accident. In spite of her physical condition, she was believed to pray for those who made pilgrimages to see her. After her death, a <a href="http://www.littleaudreysantofoundation.com/">foundation was established</a> to promote her cause for sainthood. The statues and pictures weeping in her home were seen as signs that God had specially blessed Little Audrey’s life of suffering.</p>
<p>In my <a href="https://crossworks.holycross.edu/rel_faculty_pub/5/">writings</a> about the case of Audrey Santo, I was tempted to focus on the stories of supernatural wonders. And the claims surrounding Little Audrey are still <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20070928100126/http://www.worcesterdiocese.org/audrey.html">hotly debated</a>. In the end, I thought it would be more interesting to study <a href="https://crossworks.holycross.edu/rel_faculty_pub/2/">how people find meaning</a> in phenomena like weeping statues. </p>
<p>At the Santo home, the people I talked to shared moving personal stories of pain and sadness, hope and healing. The sense of togetherness in and through suffering was far more important than talk of miracles.</p>
<p>In Worcester – as well as in Hobbs, New Mexico – I expect what is going on is much more than superstition.</p>
<p><em>An updated version of this article was published on April 21, 2023. <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-going-on-when-the-virgin-mary-appears-and-statues-weep-the-answers-arent-just-about-science-or-the-supernatural-204091">Read it here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/100358/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mathew Schmalz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Throughout Catholic history, miracles have been attributed to Virgin Mary’s power. She is understood to cry not only over the sins of the world, but over the pain she experienced in her earthly life.Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy CrossLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/828772017-09-13T02:37:59Z2017-09-13T02:37:59ZThis old Catholic ritual is giving Brazil’s economy a small boost, one Virgin Mary statuette at a time<p>Brazilians are <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2016/12/27/brazil-jesus-catholic-datafolha-survey/#15dfdcde1760">moving away from Catholicism</a>. Today, fewer than 50 percent of Brazilians identify as Roman Catholic, down from <a href="http://archive.boston.com/news/world/articles/2005/04/08/catholicism_challenged_in_brazil/">92 percent in 1970</a>. But after 500 years in South America, the Catholic Church remains deeply enmeshed Brazil’s economy and society. </p>
<p>Among its many footholds is a little-known tradition called the <a href="http://www.santuariodelourdes.com.br/pastorais/movimento-das-capelinhas">Movimento das Capelinhas</a>, or “small chapel movement.” This phenomenon, which takes place in hundreds of cities and towns across Brazil, centers on the circulation among Catholic households of small sanctuaries containing a Virgin Mary statuette. </p>
<h2>Alternative economies on the rise</h2>
<p>The Movimento das Capelinhas is an example of a <a href="https://www.epicpeople.org/how-to-create-value-via-object-circulation-in-gift-systems/">circulation-based collaborative network</a>, a kind of hyper-local economy that is popping up across the globe, from <a href="http://blog.experientia.com/an-ethnography-of-the-brixton-pound/">one London district’s alternative currency</a> to the <a href="http://timebanks.nz/resources/research">time banks of New Zealand</a>.</p>
<p>Such systems appeal because they exchange a narrow focus on economic value (only money matters) for a broader definition of what has value to people. By circulating dear objects in a certain pattern, these collaborative networks distribute their benefits to all involved, and the “profit” goes well beyond the small economic bump communities may see.</p>
<p>The small chapel movement forms part of a long history of Roman Catholic rituals involving sacred relics <a href="https://catholicpilgrimagesites.wordpress.com/2016/04/28/international-pilgrim-virgin-statue-us-tour-for-peace/">and statues</a> sent out to <a href="http://www.catholic.org/travel/story.php?id=64659">tour the world’s parishes</a>.</p>
<p>Protected by their wooden homes, Brazil’s moving Marys pay one-day “visits” to various parishioners’ homes in a semi-formal process determined by neighbors, parishes and lay volunteers. Most chapel groups include about 30 families, such that each family receives one visit a month. Local clergy oversee the Marys’ progress around town. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185114/original/file-20170907-9585-1smjg93.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mary pays a visit to a home in Campos Novos.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Daiane Scaraboto</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In doing their rounds, <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0276146717690201">our research found</a>, these peripatetic chapels do more than just physically circulate – their travels actually create profit and value for participants. The end result is a de facto local Catholic “economy,” one based on shared values rather than money.</p>
<h2>Rituals and relics</h2>
<p>To understand the economic impact of the popular small chapel tradition, we spent two years studying the Marys’ circulation in two southern Brazilian cities: Curitiba, which has 1.76 million residents; and Campos Novos, a small town southwest of there.</p>
<p><a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0276146717690201">Our study</a>, which was published in February in the Journal of Macromarketing, found differences in the size and organizational level of each city’s small chapel movements. But in both places, everyone in this ritual receives some kind of benefit, be it economic, spiritual or social – creating what’s called “<a href="http://blogs.worldbank.org/dmblog/creating-hybrid-value-chains-a-method-for-solving-grand-challenges-in-development">hybrid value systems</a>.” </p>
<p>Curitiba’s system is well-coordinated by the church, with approximately 100 volunteer mensageiras (messengers) who steward an estimated 10,000 small chapels from household to household. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185113/original/file-20170907-9570-1m8hylr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Mensageiras,’ or messengers, at Mass in Curitiba.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Daiane Scaraboto</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In Campos Novos, which has 32,800 inhabitants, the market was less robust. Approximately 100 Marys circulate among local Catholics, overseen by about the same number of mensageiras.</p>
<p>For participating communities in both cities, the effect of the moving chapels is to create an <a href="http://artsandlabor.org/alternative-economies/#sthash.aod3lLQM.dpbs">alternative economy</a>, one based not on traditional capitalist values but on participation, community and faith.</p>
<p>Money does, of course, play some role. Households make monetary donations to the Catholic Church for the honor of hosting a chapel. Some small capelinhas even come equipped with their own coin slot. </p>
<p>In Curitiba, we found that these small contributions earn the church about 1.5 million Brazilian reals (approximately US$500,000) per year. In Campos Novos, the church’s profit was significantly less, likely garnering the local archdiocese just several thousand reals.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184988/original/file-20170906-9202-1w3qg9w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Historic downtown Curitiba, where 10,000 Mary statuettes circulate every day among hundreds of thousands of households.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/7GWUqh">Francisco Anzola/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Money can’t buy you faith</h2>
<p>Host families and community members see less tangible but equally valuable benefits from the traveling Marys. </p>
<p>For lay mensageiras, it’s social status: Working as your neighborhood’s representative of the church is a prestigious role. Likewise for the families, parishes and communities interconnected by the regular visitation of these small chapels.</p>
<p>There is a spiritual value, too. For Catholics, Mary, as the mother of Jesus Christ, is one of the most powerful holy figures, and recipients of the small chapels that house her feel blessed by their access to divinity, support and good luck. </p>
<p>The Brazilian Catholic church carefully manages this aspect of the chapel visits, presenting them as a source of comfort. The Marys “move,” <a href="http://www.pcormaria.com/movimentos/movimento-das-capelinhas/">says Church doctrine,</a> and <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books/cambridge?id=asSceCw1EssC&vq=circulation&source=gbs_navlinks_s">in doing so sustain their devotees emotionally</a>. </p>
<p>The capelinhas often become a favored local symbol of their family group, transcending their religious significance to be, quite simply, beloved and familiar objects.</p>
<p>The Curitiba archdioscese’s Movimento das Capelinhas <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MovimentoCapelinhasDaArquidioceseCuritiba/">Facebook page</a> and <a href="http://missoespopulares.blogspot.cl/">blog</a> reveals host families, messengers and priests celebrate the traveling Marys. After one family posts about a chapel’s arrival to their home, other commentators excitedly retell their visitation stories.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/184376/original/file-20170901-27261-lvcsms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A screenshot of the Facebook page dedicated to the circulation of the Virgin Mary chapels in Curitiba.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The church also takes to Facebook and to the pulpit to recognize the volunteers who help to circulate the chapels, even honoring them in special Masses. Lauding participants in the small chapel movement gives them a special social status, or what we call “reputational value” – another benefit created by this alternative economy.</p>
<p>The church actively promotes the social and reputational value of the Marys. When a new church opens in town, for example, the small chapels will be given new circulation routes as a welcome to new parishioners. </p>
<p>Priests in Curitiba train and mentor the small chapel messengers, helping to ensure that the Marys circulate in ways that mutually benefit all participants, either economically, spiritually, socially or on multiple levels. </p>
<p>One type of value often translates into another. Spiritual value becomes economic whenever someone donates to a small chapel, for example. Then, when this money, in turn, is used to educate an apprentice priest or to introduce a new route for a small chapel, the value again changes, becoming social or reputational.</p>
<p>Brazil’s “Marys that move” may not be able to pull Brazil out of <a href="https://theconversation.com/facing-unemployment-austerity-and-scandal-brazil-struggles-to-keep-it-together-71663">its deep recession</a>, but our research reveals that these hybrid systems do hold the potential to combat economic malaise, albeit on the local level, by reminding Catholics that even if money is in short supply right now, friends, family and faith are not.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82877/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For a century, Brazil’s Catholic Church has sent holy statues out to parishioners’ homes. A new study finds that these visits create a local subeconomy, benefitting families and the church.Bernardo Figueiredo, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, RMIT UniversityDaiane Scaraboto, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Universidad Católica de ChileLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/755302017-04-07T12:42:40Z2017-04-07T12:42:40ZThe Case for Christ: What’s the evidence for the resurrection?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164145/original/image-20170405-14591-1xigc52.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Basilica of San Vitale, a church in Ravenna, Italy,</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/art_roman_p/8454477752/in/photolist-dQGYMP-8G1u2m-ej1rLd-djdZxM-djesZ2-9aGTWP-98Kxjr-98KSur-9aK3eL-9aJqc5-9aLGUN-8FXhbk-dSZwDi-dQHboR-e6CH4L-nfd81q-98NzZd-6fNDxD-9aHqB2-dT6t4b-9aKmrW-9aLnYm-98KT3x-dQGHL6-qhGUNL-7D1fL2-9MWRM4-98NuDo-djecHV-7D1d6Z-9MYrbz-7D5guS-98NNyA-dT6pFN-7D4XKQ-8G1BPS-9aLq3d-eiKBvh-9aGrLM-dw7M6T-dw81UX-dwdaqG-a1VHMP-a1Yvsd-a1VLDM-dw7y16-dw7CWa-9aoKZa-djdQ5d-6cnn7L">kristobalite</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1998, Lee Strobel, a reporter for the Chicago Tribune and a graduate of Yale Law School, published <a href="http://www.zondervan.com/more/top-book-series/the-case-for-christ/the-case-for-christ-movie-edition">“The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus.”</a> Strobel had formerly been an atheist and was compelled by his wife’s conversion to evangelical Christianity to refute the key Christian claims about Jesus. </p>
<p>Paramount among these was the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection, but other claims included the belief in Jesus as the literal Son of God and the accuracy of the New Testament writings. Strobel, however, was unable to refute these claims to his satisfaction, and he then converted to Christianity as well. His book became one of the bestselling works of Christian apologetic (that is, a defense of the reasonableness and accuracy of Christianity) of all time. </p>
<p>This Friday, April 7, <a href="http://caseforchristmovie.pureflix.com/">a motion picture adaptation of “The Case for Christ”</a> is being released. The movie attempts to make a compelling case for historicity of Jesus’ resurrection. As one character says to Strobel early in the movie, “If the resurrection of Jesus didn’t happen, it’s [i.e., the Christian faith] a house of cards.”</p>
<p>As a religious studies professor specializing in the New Testament and early Christianity, I hold that Strobel’s book and the movie adaptation have not proven the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection for several reasons. </p>
<h2>Are all of Strobel’s arguments relevant?</h2>
<p>The movie claims that its central focus is on the evidence for the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection. Several of its arguments, however, are not directly relevant to this issue.</p>
<p>For instance, Strobel makes much of the fact that there are over 5,000 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament in existence, far more than any other ancient writings. He does this in order to argue that we can be quite sure that the original forms of the New Testament writings have been transmitted accurately. While this number of manuscripts sounds very impressive, most of these are relatively late, <a href="http://www.eerdmans.com/Products/4098/the-text-of-the-new-testament-an-introduction-to-the-critical-ed.aspx">in many cases from the 10th century or later.</a> <a href="http://www.eerdmans.com/Products/4098/the-text-of-the-new-testament-an-introduction-to-the-critical-ed.aspx">Fewer than 10 papyrus manuscripts</a> from the second century exist, and many of these are very fragmentary.</p>
<p>I would certainly agree that these early manuscripts provide us with a fairly good idea of what the original form of the New Testament writings might have looked like. Yet even if these second-century copies are accurate, all we then have are first-century writings that claim Jesus was raised from the dead. That in no way proves the historicity of the resurrection.</p>
<h2>What do the New Testament writings prove?</h2>
<p>One key argument in the movie comes from the New Testament writing known as First Corinthians, written by the Apostle Paul to a group of Christians in Corinth to address controversies that had arisen in their community. Paul is thought to have <a href="http://yalebooks.com/book/9780300140446/first-corinthians">written this letter</a> around the year 52, about 20 years after Jesus’ death. In <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+cor+15%3A3-8&version=NRSV">1 Corinthians 15:3-8</a>, Paul gives a list of people to whom the risen Jesus appeared. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164149/original/image-20170405-14615-paxzqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">New Testament.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/tywon/12668908175/in/photolist-kivt2i-ndbWEp-9DCTzz-knQZ7g-9AwfZ9-FAJpXv-9DCU8v-EC1ZGM-9DFK7w-FDgdTM-9ZS4vZ-6eivSR-EM6SGG-9DCV6T-iEykne-92ije2-c2w1Z5-cV8NRj-87cZ4g-dK6AaL-9DCTh4-c5X6oA-dK6AAm-e7X6f3-e7ur2T-gKQXMk-9DCUok-avTuN3-9ZS1XP-bGwx8P-9DCTVF-atXxSw-e7nFaw-e7hvGT-e7yrmh-btqadQ-bGjYv6-9H3n99-y6VKX-e7nzRQ-dyiLo3-83uGzp-9DCSSP-bGwxaB-e7CFAh-e7PMKB-e7UCX1-e7NZDx-e7Rqsg-e7NMVx">Ty Muckler</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These witnesses to the resurrected Jesus include the Apostle Peter, James the brother of Jesus, and, most intriguingly, a group of more than 500 people at the same time. <a href="http://yalebooks.com/book/9780300140446/first-corinthians">Many scholars believe</a> that Paul here is quoting from a much earlier Christian creed, which perhaps originated only a few years after Jesus’ death.</p>
<p>This passage helps to demonstrate that the belief that Jesus was raised from the dead originated extremely early in the history of Christianity. Indeed, many New Testament scholars would not dispute that some of Jesus’ followers believed they had seen him alive only weeks or months after his death. For example, <a href="http://religion.unc.edu/_people/full-time-faculty/ehrman/">Bart Ehrman</a>, a prominent New Testament scholar who is outspoken about his agnosticism, <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/9780061778193/how-jesus-became-god">states</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“What is certain is that the earliest followers of Jesus believed that Jesus had come back to life, in the body, and that this was a body that had real bodily characteristics: It could be seen and touched, and it had a voice that could be heard.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This does not, however, in any way prove that Jesus was resurrected. It is not unusual for people to see loved ones who have died: In a study of nearly 20,000 people, <a href="http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00789221">13 percent</a> reported seeing the dead. There are <a href="http://www.apa.org/pubs/books/4316157.aspx?tab=2">a range of explanations</a> for this phenomenon, running the gamut from the physical and emotional exhaustion caused by the death of a loved one all the way to the belief that some aspects of human personality are capable of surviving bodily death.</p>
<p>In other words, the sightings of the risen Jesus are not nearly as unique as Strobel would suggest. </p>
<h2>A miracle or not?</h2>
<p>But what of the 500 people who saw the risen Jesus at the same time? </p>
<p>First of all, biblical scholars have no idea what event Paul is referring to here. <a href="http://yalebooks.com/book/9780300140446/first-corinthians">Some have suggested</a> that it is a reference to the <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts+2&version=NRSV">“day of Pentecost” (Acts 2:1)</a>, when the Holy Spirit gave the Christian community in Jerusalem a supernatural ability to speak in languages that were unknown to them. <a href="http://yalebooks.com/book/9780300140446/first-corinthians">But one leading scholar has suggested</a> that this event was added to the list of resurrection appearances by Paul, and that its origins are uncertain.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164154/original/image-20170405-14626-1xa64hx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Resurrection Chapel mural at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/timevanson/6623027365/in/photolist-b6fKhZ-9D8Ysk-fiW5gj-3XbeD-9oVcVi-9D8RAF-bGk3QM-8tciKc-bnp7DV-9DG69W-9xYfZb-4PQm8B-btBSe7-9DupnJ-kivt2i-9fZ76H-hsThr4-cBn8V9-bKQvQp-9DG7Cm-bwzN5b-6fSXcE-9DrvWM-Ftdhp-qAuiKk-9DDMBZ-e7uq3W-nupEDE-6CjBkh-SCjy4J-aCmgGQ-nupumM-b6fJZR-btux4q-9DDm7M-8PNrda-7Mfp25-f7EfHt-XXKFK-9x3Ywa-9DDrTK-7mQ8Jk-7fq2Kf-6ag71G-b6fKut-9DGNTW-cRhtDS-HAHXPY-9wggCA-9zMxrB">Tim Evanson</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Second, even if Paul is reporting accurately, it is no different from large groups of people claiming to see <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Apparitions_of_the_Blessed_Virgin_Ma.html?id=EVt-AAAACAAJ">an apparition of the Virgin Mary</a> or <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674024014">a UFO</a>. Although the precise mechanisms for such group hallucinations remain uncertain, I very much doubt that Strobel would regard all such instances as factual.</p>
<p>Strobel also argues that the resurrection is the best explanation for the fact that Jesus’ tomb was empty on Easter morning. Some scholars would question how early the empty tomb story is. <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/9780060616298/the-historical-jesus">There is significant evidence</a> that the Romans did not typically remove victims from crosses after death. Therefore, it is possible that a belief in Jesus’ resurrection emerged first, and that the empty tomb story originated only when early critics of Christianity <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/9780061228803/scripting-jesus">doubted the veracity of this claim.</a></p>
<p>But even if we assume that the tomb really was empty that morning, what is there to prove that it was a miracle and not that Christ’s body was moved for uncertain reasons? Miracles are, by definition, extremely improbable events, and I see no reason to assume that one has taken place when other explanations are far more plausible.</p>
<h2>Who are the experts?</h2>
<p>Apart from all of these other weaknesses in Strobel’s presentation, I believe that Strobel has made no real effort to bring in a diversity of scholarly views. </p>
<p>In the movie, Strobel crisscrosses the country, interviewing scholars and other professionals about the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection. The movie does not explain how Strobel chose which experts to interview, but in his book he characterizes them as “leading scholars and authorities who have impeccable academic credentials.” </p>
<p>Yet the two biblical scholars who feature in the movie, <a href="http://www.liberty.edu/divinity/?PID=12818">Gary Habermas</a> and <a href="http://www.reasonablefaith.org/william-lane-craig">William Lane Craig</a>, both teach at institutions (Liberty University and Biola University, respectively) that <a href="https://www.liberty.edu/media/1312/applications/FacultyApp-08042009_Final.pdf">require their faculty to sign statements</a> <a href="http://offices.biola.edu/hr/ehandbook/static/media/pdf/1.2.pdf">affirming that they believe</a> the Bible is inspired by God and is free of any contradictions, historical inaccuracies or moral failings. For example, the Liberty University faculty application requires assent to <a href="https://www.liberty.edu/media/1312/applications/FacultyApp-08042009_Final.pdf">the following statement</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“We affirm that the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, though written by men, was supernaturally inspired by God so that all its words are written true revelation of God; it is therefore inerrant in the originals and authoritative in all matters.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The overwhelming majority of professional biblical scholars teaching in the United States and elsewhere are not required to sign such statements of faith. Many of the other scholars he interviews in his book have <a href="http://www.denverseminary.edu/about/faculty/member/86444/">similar</a> <a href="https://divinity.tiu.edu/academics/faculty/d-a-carson-phd/">affiliations</a>. Strobel has thus drawn from a quite narrow range of scholars that are not representative of the field as a whole. (I estimate there are somewhere around <a href="https://www.sbl-site.org/SBLDashboard.aspx">10,000 professional biblical scholars</a> globally.) </p>
<p>In an email reply to my question about whether most professional biblical scholars would find his arguments for the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection to be persuasive, Strobel said,</p>
<blockquote>
<p>As you know, there are plenty of credentialed scholars who would agree that the evidence for the resurrection is sufficient to establish its historicity. Moreover, Dr. Gary Habermas has built a persuasive “minimal facts” case for the resurrection that only uses evidence that virtually all scholars would concede. In the end, though, each person must reach his or her own verdict in the case for Christ. Many things influence how someone views the evidence – including, for instance, whether he or she has an anti-supernatural bias.“</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>No compelling evidence</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/164156/original/image-20170405-20472-27n979.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Easter Cross.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/4thglryofgod/8609030890/in/photolist-e7KwX5-9AAeMc-6eH3ND-5aUfuU-RDyM26-6fSSyE-5P8nCC-qXsmV8-jKQWDs-7jtVV6-aYGwSZ-p6iBVW-FFRass-7fmcTz-GL3trk-dTavnm-nfv3Si-bNhYg6-kbVUEz-9CAqTo-7S5Vva-9pzfoo-b6gEDK-9Da6Kv-e9opkj-fUtXW-e6ctL8-GeMC5-nKSKWF-7fq4Tq-nmCtLL-9zMxqV-9ygzXu-cmt2R-e8af5B-bWX6sh-9Da6nv-pwH3x5-9xVhDV-onJ9SE-9V9Kwj-a5Vn32-do4nYY-dQPjyA-RgNkjx-b6fKmt-R4zE16-8QYk24-9xVhtX-btq5EU">Art4TheGlryOfGod by Sharon</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In response to Strobel, I would say that if he had asked scholars teaching at public universities, private colleges and universities (many of which have a religious affiliation) or denominational seminaries, he would get a much different verdict on the historicity of the resurrection.</p>
<p>Christian apologists frequently say that the main reason that secular scholars don’t affirm the historicity of the resurrection is because they have an <a href="http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books/miracles/335370">"anti-supernatural bias,”</a> just as Strobel does in the quote above. In his characterization, secular scholars simply refuse to believe that miracles can happen, and that stance means that they will never accept the historicity of the resurrection, no matter how much evidence is provided.</p>
<p>Yet apologists like Gary Habermas, I argue, are <a href="http://www.garyhabermas.com/articles/religious_studies/rel_stud_res_claims_in_non-christian_religions.htm">just as anti-supernaturalist</a> when it comes to miraculous claims outside of the beginnings of Christianity, such as those involving later Catholic saints or miracles from non-Christian religious traditions.</p>
<p>I have very little doubt that some of Jesus’ followers believed that they had seen him alive after his death. Yet the world is full of such extraordinary claims, and “The Case for Christ” has provided, in my evaluation, no truly compelling evidence to prove the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75530/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brent Landau does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The movie ‘The Case for Christ’ is released this weekend. A scholar takes a close look at the claims for the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection.Brent Landau, Lecturer in Religious Studies, The University of Texas at AustinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/724292017-02-05T15:33:17Z2017-02-05T15:33:17ZHow Beyoncé pregnancy pics challenge racist, religious and sexual stereotypes<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155488/original/image-20170203-13978-1f8bv0s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Divine.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">New York Post.</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>On the first day of <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/black-history-month-2017-what-is-it-where-is-it-held-what-is-the-controversy-a7556191.html">US Black History Month</a>, Beyoncé revealed her second pregnancy in a series of striking and beautiful images re-appropriating classical and religious iconography. The central image, posted on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BP-rXUGBPJa/?taken-by=beyonce">her Instagram account</a>, depicted the artist and activist in the style of the Virgin Mary: wearing a veil, surrounded by a halo of flowers. The announcement and accompanying image quickly became the most liked post on Instagram and numerous press articles appeared, attempting to <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38847355">decode the symbolism</a> in Beyoncé’s <a href="http://www.beyonce.com/">visual essay</a>. </p>
<p>While <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/feb/01/decoding-beyonces-pregnancy-pic-a-remix-of-rococo-and-flemish-influences">the Guardian</a> and <a href="http://www.vox.com/culture/2017/2/3/14484610/beyonce-social-media-pregnancy-art-venus-virgin-mary-mami-wata-awol-erizku">Vox</a> picked up on the Virgin Mary imagery and its associations with authority and virtue, The New York Post went the furthest, dedicating its front page to the <a href="http://nypost.com/cover/covers-for-february-2-2017/">“Beymaculate Conception”</a>. </p>
<p>The Virgin Mary is traditionally represented in art as a white woman. Often her complexion takes the palest possible hue, apparently connoting holiness and innocence. Cultural critic <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/White.html?id=ncIbd-Uch28C">Richard Dyer</a> showed that “in Western representation, whites are overwhelmingly and disproportionately predominant, have the central and elaborated roles, and above all are placed as the norm, the ordinary, the standard. Whites are everywhere in representation”. Whiteness, then, <a href="http://dsq-sds.org/article/view/491/668">occupies a position of cultural hegemony</a> as “normal” and neutral, and religious iconography that – quite literally – represents whiteness as divine, is a means of reproducing white power and superiority. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/BP-rXUGBPJa/?taken-by=beyonce","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>Beyoncé’s beautiful re-appropriation of Virgin Mary iconography offers a biting critique of this supreme exemplar of feminine whiteness and the ideology that constructs and perpetuates it. At a moment when <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/27/opinions/trump-america-first-ugly-echoes-dunn/">white supremacy is echoed in the “America First” slogan</a> of the new US President, Donald Trump, Beyoncé simultaneously dislodges “white” from its central place in religious iconography and Trump from his recent monopoly of press headlines. </p>
<h2>Challenging cultural norms</h2>
<p>Beyoncé is no stranger to the appropriation of religious iconography <a>to challenge cultural norms</a>. Cultural critic and theorist bell hooks coined the term “oppositional gaze” in <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Black_Looks.html?id=xgHEBAAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y">1992</a> to “<a>see, name, question and ultimately transform</a>” oppressive racialised images. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IDvu1ehPq0g?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>In 2013, the singer released the video for <a href="http://the-artifice.com/beyonce-visual-album-controversy/">Mine</a>, in which she’s also protrayed as the Virgin Mary, this time to recreate Michelangelo’s La Pietà, literally surrounded by whiteness, to subvert the racist and sexist ideas around ownership and black women. </p>
<p>Christian imagery offers prescriptive images of socially approved women. As <a href="https://feminismandreligion.com/author/kelbd/">Kelly Brown-Douglas</a> argues, “positive images define what female ‘goodness’ looks like and urges women to imitate the qualities of these images”. Images of the Virgin Mary are central to Western culture as a symbol of ideal femininity that equates whiteness with beauty, purity and virtue, and artistic representations of the Mother of Christ have helped to define how women are publicly represented. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/155559/original/image-20170205-18245-121ra4t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Michelangelo’s La Pietà.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/518770513?size=medium_jpg">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But Beyoncé doesn’t simply create a powerful and iconic image of black femininity in her pregnancy announcement images. Images of the Virgin Mary usually depict her fully clothed, including a head covering. The Virgin Mary’s attire must suggest chastity, purity and (sexual and spiritual) virtue. Beyoncé also subverts this ideal by posing in mismatched lingerie, cradling her pregnant belly, and in doing so fuses elements of the “Jezebel”, <a href="http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/jezebel.htm">one of the most prominent stereotypes of black women</a>, with Virgin Mary imagery. This boldly challenges concepts of “acceptable” female sexuality and racialised stereotypes. </p>
<p>Black women came to be associated with Jezebel, <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%209:30-32&version=NRSV">another stereotype based on a biblical character</a>, during slavery when “<a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=nqpGDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA19&lpg=PA19&dq=the+Black+woman+as+Jezebel+was+a+perfect+foil+to+the+White,+middle-class+woman+who+was+pure,+chaste+and+innocent&source=bl&ots=4h1K5cnyn6&sig=M3gBb534PuTqhjZvJ5zHEXwVISc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi5ytiwufbRAhVKDsAKHVwfDnIQ6AEIHDAA#v=onepage&q=the%20Black%20woman%20as%20Jezebel%20was%20a%20perfect%20foil%20to%20the%20White%2C%20middle-class%20woman%20who%20was%20pure%2C%20chaste%20and%20innocent&f=false">the Black woman as Jezebel was a perfect foil</a> to the White, middle-class woman who was pure, chaste and innocent”. The Jezebel stereotype was used to rationalise sexual atrocities against black women and its insidious influence persists in contemporary culture. </p>
<p><a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=RfBHUXRCXfAC&pg=PR9&lpg=PR9&dq=anthony+cortese+provocateur+third+edition&source=bl&ots=OgQjhHdYmn&sig=GcEcaK-Fjl2FEXrNj0UcUDXbHRQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj12PnFr_bRAhUIAcAKHYWODi0Q6AEINzAF#v=onepage&q=anthony%20cortese%20provocateur%20third%20edition&f=false">Sociologist Anthony Cortese found that</a> in popular culture black women are often othered, <a href="http://jezebel.com/5337618/why-photograph-a-black-woman-in-a-cage">animalised</a> and exoticised, associating women of colour with primitivity or wild sexuality.</p>
<h2>Black, not white</h2>
<p>For example, where all women are objectified and hypersexualised in advertising, black women are far more often marked as hypersexual and subhuman, or to take novelist <a href="http://alicewalkersgarden.com/">Alice Walker’s</a> famous words:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Where white women are depicted as human bodies if not beings, black women are depicted as shit.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The cultural residue of the Jezebel stereotype means, therefore, that black women continue to be more vulnerable to sexual assault and, as psychologist <a href="https://works.bepress.com/DrCarolynWest/15/">Carolyn M West</a> explained: “Black women may receive a double-dose of cultural rape myths, those that target all survivors and those that claim black women especially for deserving the assault.”</p>
<p>In the images accompanying her pregnancy announcement, Beyoncé simultaneously confronts and undermines the historical racial and sexist stereotypes of the Virgin Mary and Jezebel, and responds to the <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2979/ete.2010.15.1.1">association between whiteness and purity</a> that remains alive and kicking in Western culture. Bow down.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/72429/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katie Edwards works for the University of Sheffield.</span></em></p>How to challenge centuries of bigotry with a single image – and bump Trump off the front pages.Katie Edwards, Director SIIBS, University of SheffieldLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/713432017-01-16T19:04:10Z2017-01-16T19:04:10ZWho was Mary? And how plausible is Colm Tóibín’s reconstruction of her?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152832/original/image-20170116-16952-onnofj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Alison Whyte in Sydney Theatre Company's The Testament of Mary.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Supplied</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Colm Tóibín’s play and Booker-nominated novella <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/11/books/review/the-testament-of-mary-by-colm-toibin.html">The Testament of Mary</a> aims to “demythologise” the story of Mary (the mother of Jesus). The play has toured globally and is now having its Australian premiere at the <a href="https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2017/the-testament-of-mary">Sydney Theatre Company</a> with Alison Whyte in the role of Mary.</p>
<p>Toibin’s is a moving portrait of a woman grieving her son’s death, with a distinctly modern feel. He undertakes an interesting literary experiment – though underlying this, his novella is littered with historical and theological claims that draw heavily on Christian literature.</p>
<p>Tóibín claims that Mary’s “real” story was repressed by the early disciples of Jesus. Though looked after by these disciples, Tóibín’s Mary distrusts them and resists their efforts to twist her story to suit their agendas. She struggles with the trauma of losing her son to what she sees as religious fanaticism. Ultimately, she rejects her Jewish faith and the idea that Jesus was the Son of God. </p>
<p>The play and the book it is based on have been much acclaimed for bravely challenging traditional beliefs about Mary. As the blurb on the <a href="http://malthousetheatre.com.au/whats-on/the-testament-of-mary">Malthouse Theatre website</a> puts it (the play will run there in November): “This Mary is unrecognisable from the meek, obedient woman of scripture, painting and sculpture”. But how plausible is this portrayal, from a historical, textual and theological perspective?</p>
<h2>The historical context for Mary’s Life</h2>
<p>There are various studies of first-century Palestine that give insight into the kind of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Truly-Our-Sister-Theology-Communion/dp/0826418279">life that Mary likely would have lived</a> in small-town Galilee. Israel was then an agrarian economy with a small amount of commercial activity. Mary likely laboured for her household, was illiterate, and married at a young age, which meant entering into a large extended family.</p>
<p>Hers was a devoutly Jewish environment, permeating all aspects of life, with regular prayer, synagogue attendance, purity laws, temple worship, religious teachers and talk of miracles and signs. It was expected that God would act to restore Israel (through a Messiah) in opposition to foreign occupation.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152774/original/image-20170115-11800-1yb2e9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Madonna of Humility by Fra Angelico, circa 1440.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This contrasts with Tóibín’s Mary, who seems more like an educated modern sceptic. She is suspicious of cult-like behaviour (on the part of Jesus and the disciples), anguished in her drawn-out introspection, and attracted to a glamorised view of “pagan” worship (neglectful of the violent and slavish aspects of it).</p>
<p>Tóibín’s account of Mary’s reaction to her son’s death is also problematic. While it has modern literary merit, it contrasts with the many Jewish mothers before and after Mary’s time whose sons (and daughters) lost their lives in Messianic movements, wars and foreign occupations. These women did not forsake Judaism and label their family as fanatics (as Tóibín’s Mary does). This behaviour would have been unusual at the time. </p>
<p>It is even more unusual in the context of what we know about Jesus, who led a broad based, non-violent movement (far from a fanatical cult) that connected with contemporary Jewish expectations.</p>
<h2>The textual evidence</h2>
<p>There are various textual sources and traditions about Mary, both Christian and Islamic. The oldest are the writings of the Christian New Testament from the first century. These likely emerged from various early Christian communities.</p>
<p>The four Gospels (a major part of the New Testament) are the closest written accounts of Mary’s life. Tóibín draws on these sources for his own telling – re-interpreting key stories according to his narrative agenda.</p>
<p>Tóibín primarily draws on stories about Jesus and Mary that are recounted in the Gospel of John (such as the wedding at Cana and raising of Lazarus). Yet the theology of the Cross to which Tóibín seems closest is drawn from the Gospel of Mark.</p>
<p>Mark’s account of Jesus’ death focuses more on Jesus’ suffering and the loss experienced. John, however, presents Jesus as triumphant and kingly. This mixing of Gospel stories and approaches is typical of historical reconstructions, but it is avoided by scholars because it takes the stories out of their narrative context and betrays a misunderstanding of their genre and theology.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152828/original/image-20170116-16928-ixlp7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A shrine to Mary: is it plausible that she would have forsaken her Jewish roots after Jesus’s death?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Moreover, in contrast to Tóibín’s approach, the New Testament largely presents Mary as a supporter of the Jesus (or Christian) movement. Scholars have little reason or evidence to question such an account. In fact, some scholars suggest there was a prominent role for female leadership in the early church.</p>
<p>The Gospels contain indications that Mary (or those close to her) may have even confided information about her experiences of Jesus to early Christian communities (though this is difficult to fully determine).</p>
<p>There are stories in the Gospel of Luke from Mary’s perspective, such as the Annunciation of Jesus’ birth, Mary’s visit to Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist), the Presentation of Jesus, and an episode when Jesus goes missing at 12 years old. After the latter episode, the Gospel of Luke recounts Mary’s initial confusion:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>But they did not understand what he [Jesus] said to them. He went down with them [Mary and Joseph] and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. (Luke 2:50-1).</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Luke portrays Mary as not always understanding what happens to Jesus, but also shows her as a faithful Jewish woman who believed the Messiah had come in Jesus (even after he had died).</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=892&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1121&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1121&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152777/original/image-20170115-11816-1982xin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1121&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Toibin with his novella in 2013.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Olivia Harris/Reuters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Gospel of Mark also expresses the concerns that Mary and Jesus’ family had about Jesus. There is one story in Mark (3:20-35) that involves them trying to bring Jesus home from his public ministry, prompted by false reports that he was possessed. </p>
<p>If the disciples had, in fact, repressed Mary’s testimony and wanted to present Jesus’ family as wholeheartedly supportive of his religious mission (in the conspiratorial fashion that Tóibín presents), why would Mark or Luke include stories that show the family’s doubts? Surely, the early disciples would have just re-written these stories to suit their agenda, as Tóibín claims John, Peter and the other disciples did.</p>
<h2>Assessing Tóibín’s Mary</h2>
<p>Both Tóibín and the New Testament use narrative to weave a theological story. The Christian sources, though, seem to have more historical and theological plausibility than Tóibín’s account, and may even directly reflect Mary’s own attitudes.</p>
<p>While Tóibín’s story arc of Mary forsaking her Jewish roots and her own son’s teachings after his traumatic death may seem plausible to a modern reader, it is improbable historically, textually and theologically.</p>
<p>The most likely historical scenario based on the evidence – to which most scholars seem to subscribe – is this: Mary accompanied her son during his life (at least at key moments) and was a member of the early Christian movement.</p>
<p>Mary seems to have professed belief that God’s promises to the poor and oppressed were fulfilled in her son (as Luke recounts). She was likely cared for by the Christian movement after Jesus’ death, but not under the cloud of conspiracy and coercion that Tóibín portrays. </p>
<p>Historical recreations can often tell us more about the author than the subject. The Testament of Mary is an interesting literary experiment, exploring the depths of grief and warning about the dangers of modern religiosity. But any parallels to history or religious belief should be greeted with proper scepticism. </p>
<p><em>The Testament of Mary is at the Sydney Theatre Company from 19 January to 25 February.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71343/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joel Hodge does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Testament of Mary is an interesting thought experiment but its narrative is improbable – historically, textually and theologically.Joel Hodge, Senior Lecturer in Theology, Australian Catholic UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.