Abbey-Roads2

Thoughts on death and dying…

As many Catholics know, some people insist that Our Lady did not die - that she was raptured into heaven or something.  They get mixed up on the Virgin Birth and the Immaculate Conception as well - those mysteries are not the same thing either.

So yeah, Our Lady did die, as Henry Karlson from Vox Nova told me; “I’ve had people tell me, since it says dormition, it means she is sleeping now, didn’t die — showing how literal they are with the word, not realizing how it is used in Scripture to indicate what we normally call death.”

Today’s reading from Ezekiel.

Henry makes these things clear in his post on the Dormition, but for my sola scriptura readers, I want to mention in simpler terms what I think he means by the scriptural understanding of death.  Providentially, today’s first reading at Mass explains it quite well.  First of all, in the reading from Ezekiel the Lord begins by saying:  “As I live” - therefore we know, and as Scripture affirms, God is the God of the living.  Then after further instructing the house of Israel on individual responsibility for sin and calling his people to conversion, the Lord says;  ”Why should you die, O house of Israel?  For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies, says the Lord God.  Return and live!” - Ezekiel 18: 30-32.  Since all men die a natural death, we understand clearly that the Lord is referring to “spiritual death” in this passage. 

The falling asleep - what we normally call death.

Henry explains it so much better than I could, this is what he wrote:  “For it shows us, through Mary, how biological death and eternity were meant to be related. Her death led directly to her glorification; her innocence did not undermine biological death, but rather, included it, for biological death is not contrary to purity. Sadly, her dormition has been misunderstood by many in the West.  Some believe that she did not die, despite what Catholic tradition has consistently said on the matter.  There are two reasons for this: they do not understand the implications of the immaculate conception, and they misread the declaration of the assumption in Munificentissimus Deus.”

“The first mistake comes from the confusion of biological with spiritual death; they think that if Mary is without sin, she cannot die, since sin is what brings death. However, the death made by sin is spiritual death, not biological. Mary’s death does not lead to spiritual ruin, but glorification. It leads to her eternal glory, and makes final her place in the heavenly kingdom. Indeed, it is surprising that anyone could ever suggest that those without sin cannot biologically die - because, of course, the whole point of Christianity is that Jesus, without sin, died.” - On the Dormition

Links:

Pius XII: Munificentissimus Deus - Defining the Dogma of the Assumption

Solemnity.

In the Eastern Church, this feast is called, The Dormition of the Mother of God - which means the “falling asleep” of the Mother of God.  Tradition has it that Our Lady passed from this life as in ecstasy, or an intense sleep.  Some believe she never died like the rest of us.  I can’t imagine Our Lady would have wanted that however, to have missed out on what her own divine Son experienced.  We will not know for certain until we get to heaven ourselves. 

Few Latin rite Catholics may realize that the Roman Church celebrates the Dormition as well, that feast is observed in the old calendar on August 13th, and 3 days later, the feast of the Assumption is solemnly celebrated.  The Church has never officially said the Blessed Virgin never died - what the Church has declared and defined  is that the Holy Mother of God was assumed -  raised bodily  - into heaven, since the Lord “would not allow decay to touch her body.” (Preface)  Thus, “She who bore Christ in her womb was raised body and soul to be with him in heaven.” (Collect)  There (she) “the queen takes her place at Christ’s right hand” in glory (Psalm 45).  In heaven Our Lady is the “beginning and the pattern of the Church in its perfection, and a sign of hope for (God’s) people on their pilgrim way.” (Preface)

“…the departure of the soul of Our Lady is not termed a “death” like that of other mortals, but rather a “dormition” — a “falling asleep in the Lord”, as the early Christians called it. (Cf. Acts 7:60) All writers on the subject are unanimous — it was Her supreme love for God, nothing else, which was its cause. Tradition affirms that She knew in advance that Her departure was at hand, and prepared with incredible fervor for the holy moment, when She would hear the voice of Her Son say: “Come to Your eternal repose, O blessed Mother: arise and come, You who are My Heart’s friend, the most beautiful of women. The winter is over, the springtime begins; come, My all-beautiful one, My beloved; there is no stain in You; I prefer Your perfumes to all others.” - Source

I too like to think Our Lady died in a rapture of love.  When we read the mystics on prayer, they often say that if the Lord did not end their ecstasies, many times they felt they would die of love, that the soul would leave their body.  They experienced intense pain and at the same time such ravishing love, their souls longed for death.  Certainly this could be something of what the Blessed Virgin’s dying of love must have been? 

Although I don’t know the manner of Our Lady’s dormition, it is with deep joy I confess that I certainly believe these and all the truths the Catholic Church teaches…

The dogma defined:

44. For which reason, after we have poured forth prayers of supplication again and again to God, and have invoked the light of the Spirit of Truth, for the glory of Almighty God who has lavished his special affection upon the Virgin Mary, for the honor of her Son, the immortal King of the Ages and the Victor over sin and death, for the increase of the glory of that same august Mother, and for the joy and exultation of the entire Church; by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: 

that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory. - Source

Henry Karlson also has a very good post on the subject here.

 

The errors of the day. 

A terrific Catholic man I once worked with occasionally would come into work repeating, “We’re all going to hell!”  And since I had the greatest respect for his theology and spirituality, I cornered him as soon as he was alone to ask, “John!  Why?  What do you mean?” 

He usually came to these conclusions after spending time in adoration the night before, or after prayerfully reading documents from the Council of Trent, or the writings of Katherine Emmerich, or something out of “The Sources of Catholic Dogma”.  By way of explanation, he would go on to cite matters and conditions, once considered anathema and sinful, that have become commonplace in our day - yet they continue to be anathema and sinful.

Yep.

So today, as I was reading bits and pieces from  “The Sources of Catholic Dogma” - I pretty much came to the same conclusion.  Or at the very least, gained a better understanding that the sense of sin has definitely been lost in the 21st century - no doubt about it. 

Some errors:

(Remember to preface the following statements with, “It is an error to believe…”)

1174: 24.  To call upon God as a witness to a slight lie is not a great irreverence, because of which God wishes or can condemn man.

(So the next time your kid says, “Swear to God, I did not eat all the Alice B. Toklas brownies!”  Slap them out the door.)

1176: 26.  If anyone swears, either alone or in the presence of others, whether questioned or of his own will, whether for the sake of recreation or for some other purpose, that he did not do something, which in fact he did, understanding within himself something else he did not do, or another way by which he did it, or some other added truth in fact does not lie and is no perjurer.

(”I did not have sex with that woman.”  - Bill Clinton.)

1191: 41.  Since ready cash is more valuable than that to be paid, and since there is no one who does not consider ready cash of greater worth than future cash, a creditor can demand something beyond the principal from the borrower, and for this reason be excused from usury.

(And the credit card companies ask, “What’s in your wallet?”)

1198: 48.  Thus it seems clear that fornication by its nature involves no malice, and that it is evil only because it is forbidden, so that the contrary seems entirely in disagreement with reason. 

(Where have we heard that before?)

1199: 49.  Voluptuousness* is not prohibited by the law of nature.  Therefore if God had not forbidden it, it would be good and sometimes obligatory under pain of mortal sin.

(*V word =M word, or as Oprah likes to call it, ’self-cultivation’.)

The above excerpts taken from: The Sources of Catholic Dogma, Denzinger;  Innocent XI, Various Errors on Moral Subjects (II) - Holy Office, March 4, 1679.

Art:  Innocent XI

Note:

The following is my response to an email as to why I continue to pray for Jeff Mylett, an actor I knew who died of AIDS.  I wasn’t going to publish it because my response is clumsy and very personal, but this morning - to my surprise, I noticed another article about prying for the dead on Zenit, and felt it was more than coincidence.  Especially the following quote:

Thus we ask that God’s mercy be expressed in not allowing those who have died to fall into the power of the Evil One. As such, the prayer most likely refers to the moment of judgment itself as the venue where this mercy and this prevention of Satan’s dominion is exercised.

In this way the petition is not essentially different from many other of the Church’s prayers for the departed in which God’s mercy is invoked for the souls of the deceased. That the particular judgment is immediately after death has never impeded the Church recommending prayer for the dead.

God is not limited to our categories of time and space, and even when we pray for those who have passed away long after they have gone, or even pray generically for the dead, we know that God will use the prayer to greatest advantage. - Zenit    

The original email question:

Dear Terry, I am pleased that you are willing to converse with me.  I was reading your blog and appreciate the fact that you are well versed in your faith.  I was wondering how to begin this conversation and I guess I’ll just be direct.  You said that you have prayed for Jeffrey since you met him and that you continue to.  I know that there is a Catholic premise for praying for those who have gone on before and I was wondering if you could direct me to the Scriptural basis for the practice? I look forward to your reply, God Bless, Beth 

My reply:

Dear Beth,

A quick reply to your question.  Consider the Gospel passage of the Transfiguration when Christ revealed his glory and appeared with Moses and Elijah (Luke 9: 28-36).  Then consider this event in the light of that Gospel passage wherein the scribes and Pharisees sought to test Jesus.  They presented him with the story of the wife who had seven husbands who had all died.  Those who sought to trip-up Jesus, challenged him and asked, “And whose wife will she be in heaven?”  Jesus in turn responded, teaching them that God is the God of the living, and in heaven we are not given in marriage, etc. (Matt. 22: 23-33)   I cite these passages to stress the point  that when we pass from this life we are not really dead are we, “but all are alive for God” - just as Moses and Elijah were alive and conversing with Jesus.

Now Moses and Elijah were conversing with Jesus on Mt. Tabor before the death and resurrection of Christ took place.  Indeed, they were alive, but no longer on earth, although not yet in heaven - so where were they?  (Actually, we believe they were in an interim state known as Limbo.)  Just so, not everyone who dies since the resurrection of Our Lord goes directly to heaven; some may go directly to hell, while others go to a place of purification, called purgatory.  This has been Christian teaching for centuries.

The apostle Paul understood this when he writes, regarding adoration of the Holy Name of Jesus, “every knee must bend in the heavens, on the earth, and under the earth, and every tongue proclaim, Jesus Christ is Lord.” (Philippians 2:10-11)  Thus we might infer that Paul is referencing both the living and the dead (those under the earth) in this passage.  In another place he writes, “You are strangers and aliens no longer.  No!  You are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God…” (Ephesians 2:19)  With these passages and others, I cannot have any doubt as to the doctrine of the Communion of the Saints, or the Mystical Body after that.  It is very much contained in scripture, as are all the tuths of our faith, albeit obscurely in certain instances.

Of course, The Catholic Church always cites the following passage from the Old Testament in support of prayers for the dead:

II Maccabees 12:43-46: “And making a gathering, he [Judas] sent twelve thousand drachms of silver to Jerusalem for sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the dead, thinking well and religiously concerning the resurrection, (For if he had not hoped that they that were slain should rise again, it would have seemed superfluous and vain to pray for the dead,) And because he considered that they who had fallen asleep with godliness, had great grace laid up for them. It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.” - See also here.

If you are serious about pursuing Roman Catholic teaching regarding the Communion of saints - or “the great cloud of witnesses” as you mentioned in another email, then I suggest you investigate the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which happens to be online here:  http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/  You will obtain the answer to all of your questions there, without any influence from my personal piety, or anyone else’s personal interpretation of scripture.  The Catholic Church contains the full deposit of truth, therefore you cannot do wrong but to educate yourself directly from the source. 

Even if you were to remain in whatever Christian denomination you are in, studying the Catechism and Catholic sources will only enhance and deepen your faith.  Perhaps if you come to realize the benefits of friendship with the saints, you would also come to understand the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.  You do not have to be Catholic to pray before him in the Blessed Sacrament, although you need to be to receive him in Holy Communion.

As for me and my private prayer for Jeff Mylett, I do so out of personal devotion. I have hope that God may anticipate my prayer for His Divine Mercy upon Jeff’s soul and grant him the salvation we all seek in Jesus Christ.  With God there is no time, He dwells in eternity, and with Him everything is an eternal present, which is why when he revealed his name to Moses he said, “I AM”.   Though I am not a theologian, nor a biblical scholar, I hope in the power of God’s mercy that “can do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine.” (Ephesians 3: 20)  Therefore I pray for the dead - in accord with Church teaching - for all those departed, whose state of soul God alone knows.  In doing so I exercise myself in charity, and love for my neighbor, knowing the most important goal and accomplishment of this life is eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. 

United in prayer,

Terry

PS:  If you don’t mind, I will post this on my blog, that way someone more knowledgeable than I am may have something to add to this.

[Photo:  Jeffrey Mylett]

There is a vast difference between Christ’s presence in the Eucharist and in the assembly or its members. 

The presence of Christ in this sacrament is unique and mysterious. Spiritual guides warn us not to inquire too curiously, because our minds can easily become confused in speaking about such an exalted mystery. It is better simply to accept the words of Christ, of Scripture, of the tradition, and of the Church’s Magisterium, which tell us what we need to know: Christ is really but invisibly present in this sacrament. His presence is such that the bread and wine after the consecration are truly, really, and substantially His body and blood… 

The Church has no other spiritual riches than Christ and what He communicates to her.

At the very outset it must be said that the Church accepts the real presence as a matter of faith, because it contained in the word of God, as attested by Scripture and tradition. Jesus said clearly, “This is my body … this is my blood”, and in controversy with the Jews He insisted that He was not just using metaphors. “My flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him”. (Jn 6:55-56) Many of the disciples found this a hard saying and parted from His company, but Jesus did not moderate His statements to win them back.

In 1551 the Council of Trent gave a full exposition of the Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist in which the real presence receives special emphasis.

In describing Christ’s presence in this sacrament the Council of Trent used three adverbs. He is contained in it, said the Council, “truly, really, and substantially”. (DS 1651) These three adverbs are the keys that open the door to Catholic teaching and exclude contrary views, which are to be rejected.

In saying first of all that Christ is truly contained under the Eucharistic species, the Council repudiated the view that the sacrament is a mere sign or figure pointing away from itself to a body that is absent, perhaps somewhere in the heavens.

In the end we have to acknowledge that the mystery is ineffable and should be greeted with wonder and amazement.

Secondly, the presence is real. That is to say, it is ontological and objective. Ontological, because it takes place in the order of being; objective, because it does not depend on the thoughts or feelings of the minister or the communicants. The body and blood of Christ are present in the sacrament by reason of the promise of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, which are attached to the proper performance of the rite by a duly ordained minister. In so teaching the Church rejects the view that faith is the instrument that brings about Christ’s presence in the sacrament. According to Catholic teaching, faith does not make Christ present, but gratefully acknowledges that presence and allows Holy Communion to bear fruit in holiness. To receive the sacrament without faith is unprofitable, even sinful, but the lack of faith does not render the presence unreal.

That body is present substantially in the Eucharist but not in the Christian community.

Thirdly, Trent tells us that Christ’s presence in the sacrament is substantial.  …Substance, meaning what a thing is in itself, may be contrasted with function, which has reference to action. Christ is present by His dynamic power and action in all the sacraments, but in the Eucharist His presence is, in addition, substantial. For this reason, the Eucharist may be adored. It is the greatest of all sacraments. After the consecration the bread and wine have become, in a mysterious way, Christ Himself. Vatican II quotes Saint Thomas to the effect that this sacrament contains the entire spiritual wealth of the Church, for the Church has no other spiritual riches than Christ and what He communicates to her. -Avery Cardinal Dulles

Was your baby properly baptized?

Depending upon what type of Roman Catholic church the kids were baptized in may make the difference.  No, it has nothing to do with the unique and unheard of baby name you came up with, or whether it was a priest, a deacon, or  in some cases, even a nun who administered the sacrament, it is the formula that may have been used.

Ohhhhh!  The formula needs to be Christian? 

The Vatican has stated persons baptized using the following formula are not only illicitly, but invalidly baptized: “Baptism conferred with the formulas «I baptize you in the name of the Creator, and of the Redeemer, and of the Sanctifier» and «I baptize you in the name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer»”  (Yeah, they’re illicit and invalid.) 

Therefore, if you or your children were baptized in this way - you/they aren’t really baptized and you have to do it over.  Look on the bright side, you can maybe get more gifts.

Who knew?

Rorate Caeli posted the document.   

Gender Neutral Formula Invalid - Pewsitter.com

H/T to Fr. Blake

When the Pope speaks. 

Cardinal Bertone revealed the Holy Father is finishing a new social encyclical, with special concern for the third and fourth world .  It is rumored it will be signed on the feast of St. Joseph and released during Easter.  CNA  has the story.

Are papal encyclicals infallible?

Maybe not according to dissident Catholics or those outside the Church, and even die-hard traditionalists who reject Vatican II.  Nevertheless, when the Pope speaks through an encyclical, what he says does command consent on the part of the faithful.  As Pius XII affirmed in his 1950 encyclical Humanae generis:

“Nor must it be thought that what is expounded in encyclical letters does not itself command consent, on the pretext that in writing such letters the Popes do not exercise the supreme power of their teaching authority. For these matters are taught with the ordinary teaching authority, of which it is true to say, ‘He who heareth you, heareth me.’ … But if the Supreme Pontiffs in their official documents purposely pass judgment on a matter up to that time under dispute, it is obvious that the matter, according to the mind and will of the same Pontiffs, cannot be any longer considered a question open to discussion among theologians.” - Pius XII

Later, the Council Fathers of Vatican II teach that:

“loyal submission of the will and intellect must be given, in a special way, to the authentic teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff, even when he does not speak ex cathedra in such wise, indeed, that his supreme teaching authority be acknowledged with respect, and that one sincerely adhere to decisions made by him, conformably with his manifest mind and intention, which is made known principally either by the character of the documents in question, or by the frequency with which a certain doctrine is proposed, or by the manner in which the doctrine is formulated.”- Lumen Gentium

Links:

What is Papal Infallibility?

Are they few in number who will be saved? 

This subject seems to be on the mind of several bloggers these days.  This surprised me since I have been thinking a lot about it myself.  Most recently, considering the moral discussions which have taken place on this blog, I wondered if perhaps St. John of the Cross was correct when he told someone he believed most people go to hell.  Of course, no one knows how many people go to hell, in fact, when asked, Jesus simply replied, “Strive to enter by the narrow gate…”   You know the rest.

Most of us think we know who will go to hell if they do not repent of obvious sin; murderers, child molesters, terrorists, politicians, and so on, although we cannot know this for certain.  God’s mercy is inscrutable. 

I’m okay - you’re okay?

As Catholics, hopefully we all strive to live our faith in obedience to the commandments and the teachings of the Church.  We pray, frequent the sacraments, and try to live moral lives, therefore, we hope we will be saved.  Nevertheless, we dare not become complacent or presumptuous as regards our salvation, as Fr. Kimel reminds us in his post, Counting the Saved. 

For the rest of us, it is all too easy to confuse moral decency and goodness, or at least absence of grievous sin, with spiritual life. Christians presume a state of grace for those involved in the sacramental life of the Church, yet the Church has always warned her members of the mortality of sin and the need for continual conversion to Christ. We may not presume that others are saved or in the process of being saved because they are decent or at least not truly wicked people. We may not presume that we are saved or in the process of being saved because we are decent or at least not truly wicked people. There is no substitute for gospel, repentance, and prayer. We must cast ourselves upon the mercy of Christ and pray for the anointing of the Spirit. We must seek to be found in Christ, for he alone is the assurance that we are on the right path. - Pontifications

These thoughts must necessarily give one pause to stop and examine our own spiritual life.  Although, in charity, I also cannot help but think of others and feel concern for their salvation, especially dissident Catholics who reject various teachings of the Church, or those who have fallen away and simply do not believe any longer.  In the end, will Our Lord say to them, “Ah, my son, I know you could not accept the teaching of the Magisterium and taught others to reject it as well.  I know you were sincere and loving, filled with compassion for those who rejected my teaching, therefore, because you were so sincere and loved peace, enter into the kingdom of my Father.”

The chances of the Lord saying that are pretty slim, especially when  scripture tells us, “Even the just man is saved with difficulty.” - 1 Peter 4:18 

Erring Catholics.

Shelray, a contributor to  Cosmos, Liturgy, and Sex, posted a piece on this subject - actually, her article led me to read Fr. Kimel’s piece.  Within her post are excerpts from a pamphlet entitled, “Cry of A Lost Soul” - a narrative of a soul who had been damned and appears to her friend.  Who knows if it is authentic, the lesson rings true nonetheless:

“Deep down I was rebelling against God. You did not understand it; you thought me still a Catholic. I wanted, in fact, to be called one; The lost Catholics suffer more than those of other religions, because they, mostly, received and despised more graces and more light. He who knew more suffers more cruelly than he who knew less. He who sinned out of malice suffers more keenly than he who sinned out of weakness. But nobody suffers more than he deserves.” - You fool - this very night…

“O my Jesus!  Forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, help those most in need of thy mercy!” - Fatima prayer.

Links:

Even Fr. Longenecker is writing about it - Go to Hell - his review of Thigpen’s book, My Visit to Hell, a sort of contemporary Dante’s Inferno.  I’m ordering it.

Before, during and after.

Do you ever think about that?  The perpetual virginity of the Blessed Virgin Mary?  Some people can become confused by the terms,”Virgin Birth” and “Ever Virgin”.  A few people think that Our Lady’s Immaculate Conception refers to the virgin birth, yet the virgin birth specifically refers to Christ’s conception and birth, not Mary’s.  The Immaculate Conception does not mean that Our Lady was conceived supernaturally, rather it means Our Lady was conceived without stain of original sin.  As the Catechism (491) teaches when quoting Pius IX in his solemn definition of the dogma: 

“The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved from all stain of original sin.” - Ineffabilis Deus

The mystery of Our Lady’s perpetual virginity.

In a sense it almost seems indiscreet to ponder, and being a mystery of faith, perhaps even beyond expression.  St. John Chrysostom said as much in his homily for Christmas morning:

“Though I know that a Virgin this day gave birth, and I believe that God was begotten before all time, yet the manner of this generation I have learned to venerate in silence, and I accept that this is not to be probed too curiously with wordy speech. For with God we look not for the order of nature, but rest our faith in the power of Him who works.” - St. John Chrysostom

Photo:  Venerable Mary of Agreda, incorrupt. 

I have pondered this mystery over and over, full of wonder and awe.  I recall my skepticism once, upon reading Mary of Agreda’s account of the birth of our Lord, how the Lord mysteriously, miraculously,  ’passed’ through the womb of Mary and was found lying upon the floor of the stable or something.  I wondered how such a birth could be.  Of course,  we are bound to believe that Mary gave birth to our Lord while remaining a virgin - her virginity intact.  This mystery also implies that Our Lady, being the Immaculate Conception and therefore not bound under the penalty of original sin,  was in addition, not subject to the pains of giving birth either.

“Like light passing through glass.”

I can’t remember who wrote that the birth of our Lord occurred as light passing through glass, a statement which accords well with Ven. Mary of Agreda’s account.  I suspect not a whole lot of people really consider this aspect of the Virgin Birth.  Indeed, there are many Christians who no longer accept this teaching and insist that the Mother of God gave birth to Jesus Christ in the same manner any other woman gives birth.  But that is not the case.  Though we may not know or understand precisely how Our Lady remained a Virgin during birth, and therefore after as before, it is a dogma of faith we must believe.

In an allocution given by Pope John Paul II, the Holy Father addressed this very topic:

“Pope St Hormisdas explains that “the Son of God became Son of man, born in time in the manner of a man, opening his mother’s womb to birth [cf. Lk 2:23] and, through God’s power, not dissolving his mother’s virginity” (DS 368). This doctrine was confirmed by the Second Vatican Council, which states that the firstborn Son of Mary “did not diminish his Mother’s virginal integrity but sanctified it” (Lumen gentium, n. 57).” - The Church Presents Mary As Ever Virgin

And then from an earlier Council:

“If anyone does not properly and truly confess in accord with the holy Fathers, that the holy Mother of God and ever Virgin and immaculate Mary in the earliest of the ages conceived of the Holy Spirit without seed, namely, God the Word Himself specifically and truly, who was born of God the Father before all ages, and that she incorruptibly bore [him], her virginity remaining indestructible even after His birth, let him be condemned.” - First Lateran Council, 649 A.D..

I think I may go back and try reading Mary of Agreda for Advent.