Mariology

Father Hardon’s writings on Mariology explore the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in salvation history and Catholic spirituality. These articles examine Marian doctrine, devotion, apparitions, motherhood, and Mary’s unique relationship with Christ and the Church.

Mary, the Blessed Virgin

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Mary, the Blessed Virgin, mother of Jesus Christ and, according to Roman Catholic theology, the greatest of the Christian saints. The title “Mary” occurs only once in the Old Testament as the name of Moses’ sister (Exodus 15:20). Its etymology has been variously traced to mean beautiful, bitter, rebellion, […]

Mary, the Handmaid of Humanity

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Pope John Paul II’s devotion to the Blessed Virgin is so deep and so pronounced that it is not surprising she finds a place of honor in almost everything he says and writes. In one country after another where the Pope visits he seeks out the Marian shrines and […]

Mother of Divine Providence

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Today’s Gospel on the marriage feast at Cana tells us everything we need to know about Our Lady as the Mother of Divine Providence. The Church has given her this title because she, better than anyone else, is the perfect teacher of what Providence should mean in our lives. […]

The Mother of God

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. We address Our Lady as Mother of God every time we recite the Hail Mary, and say, “Holy Mary, Mother of God.” This title is at once the most fundamental Marian profession of our Catholic faith, and the most endearing in Catholic piety. Unless Mary is, indeed, the Mother […]

Our Lady in Type and Prophecy in the Old Testament

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. With the beginning of the month of October I thought it especially [??? Something is missing here] , There are many books on Our Lady that I could recommend. I strongly recommend if you don’t have a copy, The Secret of the Rosary by Saint Louis De Montfort. Simple […]

Our Lady of Fatima in the Light of History

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. May 13, 1947 was the thirtieth anniversary of the first apparition of the Blessed Virgin at the grotto of Iria on the outskirts of the little Portuguese town of Fatima. In October of the same year, Our Blessed Mother revealed herself as “The Lady of the Rosary” and asked […]

The Real Presence and Mary

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. There is so much confusion in professedly catholic circles about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist that someone had better make things clear. We begin to understand what the real presence means once we realize that the Holy Eucharist began in the womb of Mary the moment […]

Through Mary to Jesus

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. When we say through Mary, to Jesus, we mean that: Through Mary’s voluntary consent we have received Jesus. Through Mary’s example we are better able to imitate Jesus. Through Mary’s intercession we obtain graces from Jesus. To better understand what these phrases mean, is to more deeply appreciate what […]

Who is Mary?

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. I would then like to briefly repeat what I said before. I would like to speak on who is Mary; why we should love Mary; and third how we should show our love for Mary. Who is Mary? Mary as we know from the New Testament is the one […]

Marian Shrines

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. AACHEN (shrine) Sanctuary built by Charlemagne at Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen), forty miles southwest of Cologne, where Charlemagne died in A.D. 814. A chapel in the main cathedral of Aachen houses four major relics believed to be from biblical times. They were never exhibited before the fourteenth century and since then […]

Mary As Model

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us. God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us. God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us. God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on […]

The Blessed Virgin Mary Mother of Christ

Lesson 4 By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. After professing our faith in Christ as the only-begotten Son of God, we declare that He was “conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary”. Christ’s Divinity, therefore, means that He has the same uncreated nature as God the Father. Christ’s humanity means that He […]

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