The Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception is the privilege by which Mary was preserved from original sin from the first instant of her existence. This privilege concerns the conception of Mary herself, in the womb of her mother: at the moment she began to exist, her soul was filled with grace and kept pure of every stain. The angel greets her by this name of grace before any other: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.” Luke 1:28 Where English says “full of grace”, the Greek carries a single word, kecharitōmenē (κεχαριτωμένη), which the angel uses in place of her name: it speaks of a grace already fully accomplished in Mary, and that abides.

Preserved from original sin

Since the fault of the origins, every man is born deprived of the sanctifying grace that God willed for humanity. This state of privation, handed on to all as an inheritance, is what is called original sin. Mary alone was preserved from it, kept unharmed from the first instant of her existence, filled with grace before she could even act. God had announced this total enmity between the woman and evil: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring.” Genesis 3:15

Redeemed by Christ in a higher way

Mary too was saved by Christ. She was so in a way still more perfect than others: by preservation, in view of the merits of her Son applied in advance to the instant of her conception. She is thus the first and most perfect of the redeemed, and she herself acknowledges God as her Saviour: “My spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.” Luke 1:47

The new Eve

Full of grace and free of all sin, Mary gave God an entire consent on the day of the Annunciation. She is the new Eve: by her yes, she opens to humanity the way of salvation that the first fault had closed, and she welcomes within her the Saviour of the world: “I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.” Luke 1:38

Preserved from sin at her origin, she remained so all her life: by the grace of God, she lived in a holiness without failing, wholly turned toward her Son.

Proclaimed by the Church

The Church believed from the earliest centuries in the unique holiness of Mary, and in 1854 she proclaimed the Immaculate Conception as a dogma of faith, a revealed truth to be held firmly. Shortly after, during the apparitions of Lourdes, the Virgin named herself by these words: “I am the Immaculate Conception.”

In her, the Church contemplates what the grace of God can accomplish and that to which all the redeemed are called. This is why all generations recognise her as blessed among all: “From now on all generations will call me blessed.” Luke 1:48