>I guess I shouldn't have assumed this, but I do believe the rosary is
>one of the most important parts of Catholic ritual, and that's why I
>mentioned it.
I would say "an important", rather than "most important." For example,
it is possible to be a good Catholic, and never say the rosary - unlike,
for example, going to Mass.
>Interesting. I was always under the impression that she had a much more
>prominent role in the mass service. Of course, it's not like I was
>counting or anything when I attended mass. :)
Yes, that is a common misconception.
>IIRC, at least two ex-girlfriends also recited the 'Hail Holy Queen'. I
>remember thinking it was a nice prayer and asked one of them to teach it
>to me. So is adding it in an accepted variation of the standard Rosary
>or were they just doing it wrong? :) (Hrm... it's not a version
>specifically for women, right?)
No. That is one variation on the rosary..... Basically the rosary is
just a "prayer aide", so there is a bit of flexibility in how you use it.
>More interesting to me at the moment is the phrase: 'most gracious
>Advocate', which agrees with Rob's description of Mary's status (as far
>as I understand you both).
Yes, Mary's status as "Advocate" arrises from the story of the "Wedding at
Cana" in the Bible, where Mary successfully pleaded with Jesus to perform a
public miracle on behalf of her friend. Since Mary has demonstrated this
rather unusual ability to seemingly be able to change Jesus/God's mind, on
behalf of a request from a friend - it makes Mary a particularly good
choice to have praying for her.
>It also makes sense, as I consider this, that Mary, as an 'advocate'
>would be considered more.... accessible? That's probably not the right
>word.
Exactly. Jesus, is of course a great choice to pray to, since he is,
after all the source. But, since Jesus has that whole divinity thing
about him, Mary - who is fully human - is sometiems amore accessible person
to pray to, since she is a bit more like each of us.
JDG
_______________________________________________________
John D. Giorgis - [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"The liberty we prize is not America's gift to the world,
it is God's gift to humanity." - George W. Bush 1/29/03
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