A Critical Examination of the Marian Dogmas

There are four Marian dogmas in Catholic theology. I will examine them, and you will be able to see that most of them are not biblical at all.

One thing that I noticed: three of the four Marian dogmas are a mirror image of attributes and actions found solely in Christ.

Here are the four Marian dogmas:

Mother of God – Mary is the Theotokos (Birthgiver of God). Some Protestants object to this title. They would argue Mary only gave Christ His humanity and she is not mother of His divinity. Scripture states that Christ is the God-Man (100% man and 100% divine). As such, one cannot bifurcate or divorce Christ from His humanity or His divinity. Thus, this Marian dogma is biblical.

Perpetual Virginity – Mary is Ever Virgin. She at no point in her life loses her virginity, including the birth of Christ. This dogma is unbiblical. Scripture teaches that Joseph didn’t know marry (in a conjugal sense) until after Jesus was born. Further, Scripture several times mentions Jesus’ brothers and sister – the other children of Mary. Christ alone is Ever Virgin, not His mother.

Immaculate Conception – Mary was cleansed of original sin before her birth. And she did not sin at all during her temporal life. Christ alone was sinless, not His mother. Scripture says that all have sinned.

The Assumption – Mary was assumed (translated) into Heaven. It is unclear if she was alive or dead when this allegedly happened. This dogma is not biblical. Christ alone was assumed to Heaven (by His own power) in the New Testament.

The vast majority of the Marian dogmas are unbiblical. Catholics have to believe these dogmas in order to be in good standing in their church. If one disagrees with any Catholic dogma they excommunicate themselves. This is a tragedy. The Mary of Scripture is a humble and pious woman who wants all glory for her Son and none for herself. This is in stark contrast to the Mary the Catholic church has constructed.