The popular Christian sense of the Immaculate Conception
The Popular Christian SenseIn the history of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, the precedence of the popular Christian sense, inspired by a progressive revelation of the truth about Mary through her extraordinary role in the lives of the faithful, prompted the faith data to lead to a dogmatic definition. Consider what happened in the Iberian Peninsula and then in the evangelized peoples of the colonial expansion, heirs of a primarily popular Christian experience. The chivalrous spirit that evokes the beloved woman, present in Saint Ignatius of Loyola, who was ready to pierce with a sword someone who dared to insult Mary’s primordial purity. Also from this period comes the need to combat from Jewish sources the insinuations against Mary, who, to defame Jesus, claimed that Mary had an affair with a Roman soldier named Panther.Documenting popular faith is never simple, as it is not expressed through documents but through facts, cultural and artistic initiatives that are later documented and through which one seeks to reach the original inspiration. However, in recent decades, especially through the theological strength of CELAM documents, new perspectives on popular piety have been achieved, along with its framing and Christian value of not devaluing it.The primary intuitions that can be dated regarding the Immaculate Conception are found in the theme of Mary’s extraordinary holiness, which is already present in the *Protoevangelium of James* from the 2nd century and resonates in the popular environment surrounding the uniqueness of Jesus’ Mother. In the text also known as *The Nativity of Mary*, we find a *legend* where Mary’s conception occurs when Joachim is still in the desert, therefore without the participation of a man and without legal contamination. Of course, even if it does not speak of original sin in Mary, this reading suggests the need for Mary’s perfect and original holiness from her conception.
Reflecting clearly the virgin birth of Jesus, the intuition about Mary’s sanctity is not devoid of theological sense, as the Church Fathers unanimously treat her as All Holy, Totally Beautiful, Panagia, which confirms the theological conviction. However, the Western form we know only dates from the 11th century, which will see mature theological testimonies confirming and inspired by popular use. In this century, it becomes common to celebrate the feast of Mary’s Conception, which, once denied, sparked a popular uprising against those who denied the immaculate conception of Mary. The Benedictine Eadmer of Canterbury (d. 1134), a disciple of Anselm of Canterbury, in his Treatise on the Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, opposes the simple and humble devotion of the poor, who celebrate the feast of Mary’s Conception, to the superior and bold knowledge of the wealthy clergy who abolished the feast, declaring it lacking in foundation. The author takes the side of the simple, moved by affection for piety and sincere devotion to the Mother of God, declaring the conception of Mary free from all sin.
A few centuries later, in 1435, we find the testimony of John of Romiroy, who at the Council of Basel appealed to popular devotion as a primary reason why the Council Fathers should put an end to the controversy over the Immaculate Conception. This would annul the effect of scandal, where to deny the Immaculate Conception, it was claimed that Mary had been stained by original sin. But even this theological position, supposedly correct because heir to a system of grace and sin quantifiable, failed to extinguish popular inspiration.
The history of the Immaculate Conception, like Mariology in our days, had to meet with the reason of Dominican Melchior Cano, a Dominican from the school of Salamanca, who claimed to assert the truth or falsehood of propositions on faith as a competent and wise theologian. In the 17th century, we find faith in the Immaculate Conception as a universal and deeply rooted fact, justifying the creation of confraternities that added to the litany the invocation Sancta Virgo praeservata. At the same time, altars, chapels, and paintings dedicated to the Immaculate Conception were dedicated, such as the Purest by painter Murillo (d. 1685).
Unprecedented in Church history, the university movement in the 17th century in favor of the Immaculate Conception, with the votum sanguinis (blood vow) as happens at the University of Granada and Seville, among others. This movement spread among religious orders, confraternities, and faithful, exploding in controversies like the famous one of L.A. Muratori (d. 1750), who considered immature that someone could risk their life to defend the Immaculate Conception, given that it had not been declared a dogma of faith by the Magisterium. The response did not take long, and St. Alfonso Maria de Ligorio (d. 1787) refutes Muratori’s opinion for two reasons: the consensus of the faithful and the universal celebration of the feast of the Immaculate Conception are valid reasons for such a proof of firmness in faith. In the 9th century in Naples, the feast was celebrated on December 9 as Conceptio Sanctae Mariae Virginis, in England from the 11th century, and in the Universal Church from 1708 with Pope Clement XI.
The female presence deserves emphasis. In addition to the well-known text incorrectly attributed to St. Catherine of Siena, which would refer to Mary’s privilege as an error, we find the Revelations of St. Brigid (d. 1373), considered authentic by the Council of Constance (1415) and which had a great influence on Dominican Thomas Campanella (d. 1639), as it dissociated the marital act of Joachim and Anne from a practice of concupiscence, considering it an action of divine charity. Other women, like the Portuguese Beatriz da Silva (d. 1490), founded congregations dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, promoting the diffusion of this Marian faith.
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