Mariological papal documents
(Redirected from
Marian papal encyclicals and Apostolic Letters
)
Madonna and Child, Master of Badia a Isola
, c.1300Mariological papal documents have been a major force that has shaped
sensus fidei of the faithful as a whole, "from the bishops to the last of the faithful",[1] and papal documents have recorded those developments, defining Marian dogmas, spreading doctrines and encouraging devotions within the Catholic Church
.
Popes have been highly influential for the development of doctrine and the veneration of the
feast days, prayers, initiatives, and special privileges. Since Pope Leo XIII, Popes have promulgated Mariology also with encyclicals, apostolic letters and with two dogmas (Immaculate Conception and Assumption
). This article reviews the major official teachings by the popes.
Background
Historically a Papal bull was "an Apostolic letter with a leaden seal."[2] A papal bull is an official formal decree. In terms of formality, papal bulls and apostolic constitutions are above encyclicals, followed by apostolic letters. An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope, and is generally issued as a bull with the requisite formalities regarding seal and signature. By their nature, apostolic constitutions are addressed to the public, whereas encyclicals are usually addressed to patriarchs, primates, archbishops and bishops in communion with the Holy See.[3]
Dogmas
The perpetual virginity of Mary
- Dominici gregis – This papal bull was issued by Pope Clement VIII on 3 February 1603. It considered Marian piety the basis for Church and condemned a number of issues as errors, including the denial of the virginity of Mary.[4]
Mother of God
This dogma was proclaimed at the Council of Ephesus in 431 and promulgated by Pope Celestine I. This dogma has attached to it the penalty of an anathema. It was promulgated during the Arian Heresy who state that Mary was just the "Christotokos" (Mother of the Christ) rather than the "Theotokos" (Mother of God)
The Immaculate Conception
- Cum Praeexcelsa, a bull by Pope Sixtus IV, issued 28 February 1476, when plague was ravaging the country, established a Mass and Office for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
- Ubi primum is an encyclical of Pope Pius IX to the bishops of the Catholic Church asking them for opinion on the definition of a dogma on the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. It was issued on 2 February 1849.[5]
- Blessed Virgin Mary. The decree was promulgated on 8 December 1854, the date of the annual Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The decree surveys the history of the belief, citing its roots in the long-standing feast of the Conception of Mary as a date of significance in the Eastern and Western churches. It also cites the approval of Catholic bishops worldwide who were asked in 1849 to offer their opinion on the matter. (The decree had been preceded by the encyclical Ubi Primumof 2 February 1849 whereby Pius IX solicited the opinions of the bishops of the Catholic Church regarding defining dogma.
Pius X
- Mariology of Pope Pius X. One of the reasons the pope gave for writing the encyclical was his desire for the restoration of all things in Christ which he had defined as his motto Instaurare omnia in Christo: to restore everything in Christ, to whom there is no safer or more direct road than Mary.[6]
- Roman Catholic Mariology.[7]
The Assumption
- Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a dogma of faith.[8]
- Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a dogma of faith.[9]
On Mary as Queen of Heaven
- Queenship of Mary.[10]
Mary, as intercessor for Peace
Pius XII
's signature- Virgin Mary for world peace and the solution of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, given at Rome at St. Peter's, in the tenth year of his pontificate.[11]
- Christi Matri – an encyclical of Pope Paul VI issued on 15 September 1966, calling for special devotions during the month of October, invoking the intercession of the Blessed Virgin for peace.[12]
On the rosary
- Consueverunt Romani Pontifices is a papal bull by Pope Pius V issued on 17 September 1569 on the rosary.[13] This papal bull instituted the essence of the rosary's present configuration.[14]
- Supremi apostolatus officio, issued on 1 September 1883, is the first of Pope Leo XIII's many encyclicals on the Rosary.[15]
- Superiore anno, encyclical issued on 30 August 1884 by Leo XIII "On the Recitation of the Rosary".[16]
- Octobri mense is an encyclical on the Rosary by Pope Leo XIII, issued on 22 September 1891.[17] The subject was the power of prayer and the efficacy of the rosary.[18]
- Mother of God the destiny of the human family. The Pope strongly supports the idea, that Catholic families should pray the rosary together.[19]
John Paul II Coat of arms with the Marian Cross
- power of the rosary and states: Through the Rosary the faithful receive abundant grace, as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer.[20]
Sodality of Our Lady
- Gloriosae Dominae – by Pope Benedict XIV was issued on 27 September 1748. In this Apostolic Letter Pope Benedict XIV called the Blessed Virgin Mary "Queen of heaven and earth," stating that the sovereign King has in some way communicated to her his ruling power.
- ex cathedra. The Sodality of Our Lady dates to 1584. It consists of associations of persons, sodalists, dedicated to a Christian life, following the model of the Virgin Mary. In Bis Saeculari, Pope Pius XII pointed to the importance of the Sodality of Our Lady within the Church, which after four hundred years exists in all countries. It has produced virtuous lives among the faithful, priests and saints. It continues to prepare women and men to be active in modern society.[21]
Other documents
- Signum Magnum – an Apostolic exhortation by Pope Paul VI issued My 13, 1967 on consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary.[22]
- Blessed Virgin Mary in the plan of salvation and continues to focus on Mary's role in the Mystery of Christ. In this encyclical Pope John Paul II confirmed the title, Mother of the Church, proclaimed by Pope Paul VI at the Second Vatican Council on 21 November 1964.[25]
Notes
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- ^ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 92
- ^ Thurston, Herbert. "Bulls and Briefs." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 23 August 2017
- ^ Mann, Stephanie A., "What Is a Papal Bull?", Our Sunday Visitor, 1 September 2016
- ISBN 0852446500page 120
- ^ Pope Pius IX, "Ubi primum", 2 February 1849, PapalEncyclicals.net
- ^ Pope Pius X. Ad diem Illum, §7, 2 February 1904, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope Pius XII, Fulgens corona, 8 September 1953, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ISBN 1-4415-1051-6page 113
- ^ Pope Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus, 1 November 1950, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope Pius XII, Ad Caeli Reginam, 11 October 1954, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope Pius XII, Auspicia quaedam, 1 May 1948, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope Paul VI, Christi Matri, 15 September 1966, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ "of the Popes and Councils on the Blessed Virgin Mary", University of Dayton". Archived from the original on 12 October 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- ^ "The Rosary Predated St. Dominic", Zenit, 17 October 2002
- ^ Pope Leo XIII, Supremi apostolatus officio, Vatican, 1 September 1883
- ^ Pope Leo XIII, Superiore anno, Vatican, 30 August 1884
- ISBN 0-8189-0893-9page 285
- ^ Pope Leo XIII, Octobri mense, 22 September 1891, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope Pius XII, Ingruentium malorum , 15 September 1951, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 16 October 2002, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Bis Saeculari 13
- ^ Pope Paul VI, Signum Magnum, 13 May 1967, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ History of Marialis Cultus
- ^ Pope Paul VI, Marialis Cultus, 2 February 1974, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
- ^ Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Mater, 25 March 1987, Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Sources
- Pope Pius IX, Apostolic Constitution
- Pope Pius XII, encyclicals and bulls
- Pope John Paul II, encyclical, apostolic letters and addresses
External links
- List of papal documents at the Theology Library [1]
- Thompson, Thomas. "Twelve Rosary Encyclicals by Pope Leo XIII (1883-1898)", International Marian Research Institute, Dayton, Ohio Archived 30 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine