b'Theology of MaryMARY, THEMOTHER OF JESUS: A Marianist understanding of her faith as the first of all believersBy Father James Heft, SMT he Second Vatican Council (1962 to 1965) asked The Society of Mary undertook this important taskreligious congregations to dig deeply into their in 1981, at an international meeting in Linz, Austria.original charisms, that special grace that shapes The delay allowed ample time for prayer, research, andtheir identities. It also asked them, in the light of their discussion before making revisions. I was privilegedcharisms, to make changes in their rules of life (constitu- to be a delegate from the United States for this meetingtions) that state who they are and what their mission is.and was assigned to the subcommittee drafting thefirst of the seven chaptersthe one that describesIMAGES COURTESY OF THE MARIANIST LIBRARY AT UNIVERSITY OF DAYTON IN OHIO.the nature and mission of the Society of Mary. Morethan any other chapter, it spells out the theologicalfoundations of the Society. Within that chapter, four short paragraphs describethe unique Marianist understanding of Mary, themother of Jesus. Our subcommittee kept in mind that,after considerable debate, the bishops of Vatican IIdecided not to write a separate document on Mary,instead including her as an integral part of the documenton the nature of the Church, Lumen Gentium, theChurch as the light of the nations. In essence, theirdecision placed Mary within the Church, not above orapart from it. Therefore, she is the first of all believers. In this series, which is divided into two parts, I willaddress not only those four paragraphs but also anotherabout the critical importance of faith. Thus, this partof the series will address the fourth and fifth articlesin the first chapter of our Rule of Life.; the second part,in ALIVEsSummer edition, will detail the sixth througheighth articles.I will present each article in italics and draw atten-tion to certain phrases by putting them in boldface;then Ill comment on it. Article 4We strive to become men of faith and to ponder allthings in the light of revelation. By faith, we see howFather Chaminade at Saragossa by Bob Cary. Oil on canvas, 1962. Courtesy of the Marian Library, God is at work in human history and in the events University of Dayton. of our daily lives.4 Call 1.800.348.4732'