Proof
that Catholics clearly teach
to
worship only God and
not to worship Mary
The Catholic Church clearly proclaims that God alone is to be
worshipped, that is, He alone is to be given the highest form of honor,
adoration, or in Latin “latria.” This is proclaimed in the liturgy at Mass as well as stated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
The Saints such as Mary are given a lesser and completely subordinate
form of honor. See Mary’s Role below
Proof #1 : Mass - Biblical Quotations
Proof #2 :
Catechism of the Catholic Church - The 10
Commandments
Explanation of : Mary’s Role
The Mass - Biblical Quotations
Every Catholic reiterates this belief every Sunday when he prays the
Gloria at Mass. We proclaim that we adore God the Father and Jesus
Christ who “alone is the Most High” with
the Holy Spirit. We worship only the Three Persons of the Blessed
Trinity.
There are several Biblical passages from both
the Old and the New Testament which teach this fundamental truth to
worship God and only God. These are proclaimed on a regular basis
throughout the year at Mass.
There is a three year cycle of readings, Year A,
Year B, and Year C which repeat continually. The readings are assigned
as follows such that this teaching is repeated every year without fail.
Matthew 4:10
“At this, Jesus said to him,
‘Get away, Satan! It is written:
“The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him
alone shall you serve.”’”
Year A First Sunday of Lent
Exodus 20:1-3
“Then God delivered all these commandments: “I,
the LORD, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt,
that place of slavery. You shall not have
other gods besides me.”
Year B Third Sunday of Lent
Luke 4:8
“Jesus said to him in reply, ‘It is written:
“You shall worship the Lord, your God,
and him alone shall you serve.”’”
Year C First Sunday of Lent
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) is
the sure norm of Catholic teaching. One whole section, Part 3, is based
on the
10 Commandments. The
first commandment clearly states that adoration goes to God alone.
Paragraphs of CCC
2112
The first commandment condemns polytheism. It requires man
neither to believe in, nor to venerate, other divinities than the one
true God. Scripture constantly recalls this rejection of "idols …
2113
Idolatry not only refers to false pagan worship. It remains a constant
temptation to faith. Idolatry consists in divinizing what is not God.
Man commits idolatry whenever he honors and reveres a creature in place
of God … Many martyrs died for not adoring “the Beast” refusing even to
simulate such worship. Idolatry rejects the unique Lordship of God; it
is therefore incompatible with communion with God.
CCC at
Vatican website
These Secondary Verses are also proclaimed as follows
Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters. He will
either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the
other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Year A Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Luke 16:13
“No servant can serve two masters. He
will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and
despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Year C Twenty-Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Mark 12:32
“And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth:
for there is one God; and there is
none other but he”
Year B Thirty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time
Psalm 81:9
“There must be no foreign god among you;
you must not worship an alien god.”
Year B Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Responsorial Psalm
Isaiah 45: 6b-8, 18,
21b-25
(6-7) “I am the LORD, there is no other;
I form the light, and create the darkness,
(21) “Was it not I, the LORD,
besides whom there is no other God?
There is no just and saving God but me.
(23-24) “To me every knee shall bend;
by me every tongue shall swear,
Saying, “Only in the LORD
are just deeds and power.”
Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent Reading 1
(Even Years - December 2009, and every other year after that)
Mary’s Role
The
highest form of honor, adoration (Latin “latria”) is given to God alone.
The Catholic Church has always, and will always teach this. For
example, the Catholic Church refuted the
Collyridians in the fourth century because they did adore Mary.
If
someone professes to give this highest honor to Mary, they sadly cannot
become a Catholic until they repent of this most serious error. If a
Catholic falls into this most serious error, despite the Catholic
Church’s strict prohibition against it, he must fully repent before he
can enter into heaven.
There are lesser forms of honor that God requires us to give to others.
He commands us to honor our parents in Matthew 19:19. The Catholic
Church uses the Latin term “dulia” to distinguish this lesser form of
honor from the highest honor which is given to God alone, “latria,” or
adoration.
Mary has a special role among the Saints so the special honor given to
her is called “hyperdulia” (hyper + dulia = more of the same.) The
honor given to Mary is greater in degree, but it still is of the same
kind as that given to the other saints. Because Mary is a finite
creature who was saved by Jesus Christ the type of honor given to her is
fundamentally different than the type of honor, “latria,” that is owed
to the infinite Creator.
When interpreting the various titles and
prayers to
Mary they must always be interpreted within the context of the
more fundamental teachings of the Catholic Church about Jesus Christ.
Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, paragraphs 60 and 62
“Mary’s function as mother
of men in no way obscures or
diminishes this unique
mediation of Christ,
but rather shows its power. But the Blessed Virgin’s salutary
influence on men originates not in any inner necessity but in the
disposition of God. It flows forth from the superabundance of the
merits of Christ, rests on
his mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from
it. It does not hinder in any way the immediate union of the
faithful with Christ but on the contrary fosters it. …
“Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked by the Church under the
titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix, and Mediatrix. This,
however, is to be so understood that
it neither takes away from nor adds anything to the dignity and
efficaciousness of Christ the one Mediator.
“For no creature could ever
be counted as equal with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer.
Just as the priesthood of Christ is shared in various ways both by
the ministers and by the faithful, and as the
one goodness of God
is really communicated in different ways to His creatures, so also
the unique mediation of the
Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives rise to a manifold
cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source.”
Also see CCC 970
Also please consider reading
To Pray - A
definition. Does it mean to worship ?
Why Pray to
Mary
Why Go
to Mary ?
Going Directly to God ...
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