A great short piece by Melinda Henneberger at Politics Daily. Actually I like to see pieces like just as much in these surprising places--like PD--as in in the Catholic blogosphere since they reach the seekers, the curious, the doubtful and disbelieving, and make them think. Happy Feast Day.
Yet for me, the Immaculate Conception is an acknowledgement of one woman in a way that honors us all. It's what makes Mary the second Eve, the clean slate, full of grace, she who makes redemption possible. No less than when I was a kid, she's this pillar for me, but also a brave feminist role model – and as it turns out, the teller of the tale. Now if only I can stay awake for Mass.
I, too, was caught by this piece. Shortly after reading it, I got the Zenit newsletter that noted that the effort to encourage a fifth Marian dogma is still alive, and wondered at these two - certainly very different - understandings of Mary as ''agent'' (on my own blog). Both efforts point out something important, in our feminist day, but both are, it seems to me, products of this day, yes?