Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture: The Virgin Mary

One of Catholicism’s greatest departures from the Protestant faith is our veneration of the Blessed Virgin and her role as an intercessor in the Church. "Image and Pilgrimage" better contextualizes the relevance of this devotion and the impact that Mary has on those on pilgrimage. My confirmation saint is Bernadette of Lourdes--the French village girl who witnessed several apparitions of Our Lady in the 19th century.  For my community of female Catholics, Mary is a mother figure which comforts and protects them. As is said in James 5:16 to “Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects,” Catholics believe that after Christ, Mary is the most righteous of Christians in our communion of Christians and saints. She is full of grace and blessed among women, the mother figure figure which both men and women rely on for comfort and intercession.

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