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1608 - 1697 AD
In Maria Rosa Mystica, Lisboa 1688.
Antonio Vieira SJ is considered a key person in Brasilian history
because of his courageous defence of the native Indians against the Portuguese
colonists. His theology covers more than 16 volumes of text.
Passages quoted in French by Réné Laurentin (in
Maria, Ecclesia, Sacerdotium, Nouvelles Éditions Latines, Paris
1952, pp. 322-326) and translated into English by John Wijngaards.
- Mary is Queen of the Rosary and bishop
- Mary is a bishop because she intercedes
- Mary is a bishop because she reconciles
sinners
- Mary sacrificed her son on Calvary
- Christ communicated the episcopal dignity to his
Mother
- Mary is the supreme pontiff of Christians
- The obstacle of the female sex has been overcome
in Mary
Mary is Queen of the Rosary and
bishop
“Before Mary was queen of the Rosary, one could not convincingly prove
that Christ her Son had bestowed on her the episcopal dignity; but ever since
she is Queen of the Rosary, we can. This is what you have to understand.”
Sermon on the Rosary, ib. p. 71.
Mary is a bishop because she
intercedes
“Three elements belong to the priesthood and
episcopacy: the call, the role of intercession, and sacrifice (Hebr 5, 1) . . .
[With regard to intercession] as Son of God Christ has all power over God.
Our Lady too, because she is the true Mother of God, has all power over God.
And if the prayers and intercessions of Christ are heard on account of the fact
that he is the Son, those of Our Lady will not be less heard, and are even
heard with more surety because of the fact that she is his Mother. Therefore it
is crystal clear that in Mary we find overwhelmingly the second quality
required for the dignity of a bishop!” Sermon on the Rosary, ib.
p. 74.
Mary is a bishop because she
reconciles sinners
“The third quality required for the dignity of the episcopacy . . .
. is to effect reconciliation through gifts and sacrifices . . . .Well, among
sacred ministers has there ever been any person so apt, so honourable, so well
prepared for this ministry of appeasing a God offended by sin as this purest
creature who was exempt from all sin?” Sermon on the Rosary, ib.
p. 67.
Mary sacrificed her son on Calvary
“Abraham did not see Isaac die and yet St.Peter Chrysologus says that he
sacrificed himself in his son in such a manner that he was at the same time the
sacrifice and the priest, the victim and the bishop. If the fact that he was
Isaac’s father was sufficient for Abraham to be priest and bishop, when we
think of this mother whose obedience and charity were infinitely greater than
those of Abraham, and whose Son and sacrifice were infinitely greater than
Isaac, who would then dare to deny or put into doubt her episcopal
dignity?” Sermon on the Rosary, ib. p. 76.
Christ communicated the episcopal
dignity to his Mother
In
chapter 7 of Zacharius God says: “I have made three shepherds rise up in
one month”.....
And although the prophet does not declare who these
three shepherds were, all those who have understood this text in the most
proper and literal manner say that they were Moses, Aaron and Mary the
prophetess who was sister of both men.
Mary, the sister of Moses and Aron
was a pre-figurement of the Virgin Mary . . .
If each of these two
brothers has communicated to Mary his own dignity, namely the royal and
episcopal dignity, because she was their elder sister, how would Christ not
communicate these two dignities to Mary who was not the figure but the reality,
since he was the Son and she his Mother.
If because Christ was a king- a
title he had not received from his mother, he communicated his royal dignity to
her, with how much more reason would he communicate the dignity of the
episcopacy to her since he was the great Bishop a title he had received from
his mother.” Sermon on the Rosary, ib. p. 78-80a.
Mary is the supreme pontiff of
Christians
“You are the supreme pontiff of Christians”, said Damascenos. He
calls her “pontiff” because of her episcopal dignity, and he calls
her the “supreme” in the feminine gender, because of the difference
of her sex. Sermon on the Rosary, ib. p. 80b.
The obstacle of the female sex has
been overcome in Mary
“
Since the obstacle of her sex has thus been clearly overcome by the authority
of the saints, by the example of scripture and the power of reason . . . , we
may now pass from a discussion of legality to the facts: let us see in the
Queen of the Rosary or in the Rosary of the Virgin, the title, power, and
exercise of her episcopal dignity . . . And in order that the proof and the
demonstration will be developed in all clarity, I will divide my argument in
three parts. In each one we will see that the blessed Virgin, through the
prerogatives of her rosary, was not only a bishop in the proper sense of the
term, but specifically:
1. A bishop through the meaning of the word.
2. A bishop through the tokens of her dignity.
3. A
bishop through the power of the keys. Sermon on the Rosary, ib. p.
81.
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