John Paul II – veritatis splendor no. 120 and evangelium vitae nos. 102-105: Mary, Mother of Life.

The two great encyclicals of Saint John Paul II on morality, Veritatis Splendor (1993) and Evangelium Vitae (1995), both end with a Marian section of exceptional importance. Mary is not merely added as a final devotion: she is presented as the existential foundation of Catholic morality and of the defense of life.

Veritatis splendor no. 120, “Maria, Mater misericordiae”

“Ad pedem Crucis Maria participat dono salvifico misericordiae et invitat omnes ad accipiendam Filii sui misericordiam. In illa Maria, novissima Eva, novum mulieris exemplar in genus humanum redactum est, quae adiuvat singulos in difficilibus inter veritatem et errorem electionibus”

At the foot of the Cross Mary shares in the salvific gift of mercy and invites all to receive the mercy of her Son. In her, in Mary the New Eve, a new model of woman was proposed to the human race, one who helps each person in the difficult choices between truth and error.

The context is fundamental: Veritatis Splendor is the encyclical that defends the existence of intrinsically evil acts (intrinsece malum) against the proportionalist and consequentialist currents. For John Paul II, Mary is the concrete example of one who never renounced moral truth in exchange for a false mercy; her “obedience of faith” was total.

Evangelium vitae nos. 102-105, “Mater vitae”

The conclusion of Evangelium Vitae, the encyclical on the defense of human life, is one of the most beautiful Marian sections of the pontificate of John Paul II. Four numbers (102-105) develop Mary as “Mother of Life”:

“Maria igitur, sive in Annunciationis sive in Calvariae mysterio, signum sublimissimum est et exemplar Evangelii vitae. Pulchritudo huius Evangelii ipsa pulchritudo est misericordiae Dei, quae apparet in vita Filii sui Iesu, et in eorum vita qui sequuntur eius vestigia, ut testes vitae”

Mary, therefore, whether in the mystery of the Annunciation or in the mystery of Calvary, is the most sublime sign and the exemplar of the Gospel of life. The beauty of this Gospel is the very beauty of the mercy of God, which is manifested in the life of His Son Jesus, and in the life of those who follow in His footsteps, as witnesses of life.

Mary and the woman of Revelation (no. 103)

John Paul II reads Rev 12 (the Woman and the Dragon) in the key of the contemporary defense of life: the “Dragon” that devours the child is any culture of death (abortion, euthanasia, genetic manipulation). Mary, the Woman clothed with the sun, defends the life that is about to be born.

Mary and the culture of life (no. 104)

The culture of life is born from the contemplation of Mary as the Mother who welcomes and keeps. Every gesture of human hospitality toward nascent life (assistance in pregnancy, adoption, children’s hospitals) is an extension of Mary’s “yes.”

Final prayer (no. 105)

The final prayer of Evangelium Vitae is addressed to Mary. It has become one of the most widely used Marian prayers in pro-life ministry throughout the world:

“O Mary, Dawn of the New World, Mother of the Living, to you we entrust the cause of life: look, O Mother, upon the immense number of children who are denied birth, of the poor for whom living is made difficult, of the men and women who are victims of inhuman violence, of the elderly and the sick killed by indifference or by a deceptive pity. Grant that those who believe in your Son may proclaim the Gospel of Life with frankness and love to the people of our time.”

The meaning in brief

These two encyclicals show how Mary, in the Magisterium of John Paul II, is not a pious appendix to moral teaching; she is the existential foundation. Catholic morality needs a concrete figure who shows that it is livable, and that figure is Mary.

Further reading

Mariology | Redemptoris Mater | Mulieris Dignitatem | Dives in Misericordia | Salvifici Doloris