FAITH OF MARY, THE
Vatican II Insights into the Humanity of Mary

At the Annunciation, the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was to give birth to a son whom she was to name Jesus for he would save his people from their sins. “He will be great,” the angel told her, “and will be called Son of the Most High.” Then he went on to promise that God would give him the throne of his father David, that he would reign over the house of Jacob forever, and that his Kingdom would have no end. The problem for Mary, throughout her life and especially as she stood at the foot of the cross, was that most of these things did not seem to be coming true. And still she remained steadfast in her faith. All generations since have called her blessed because, as Elizabeth said to her, she believed that the Lord’s words to her would come true. From Pentecost on, Mary’s faith has become the model for all those who, coming after her, would believe. If faith is the confident assurance regarding things hoped for, and a firm conviction regarding things not seen, then Mary’s faith was certainly genuine in every sense of the word. Like us she struggled to understand, pondering the events of her son’s life and meditating on them in her heart as the Holy Spirit continued to enlighten her with respect to her own role in the mission of her son. In this book, Father Nachef relates Mary’s life and faith to our own and shows us how we can grow in wisdom and grace by imitating her example.

About the Author: Antoine E. Nachef studied Philosophy and Theology at the Gregorian University in Rome. Earning his Licentiate at Weston School of Theology in Boston and his Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton, Ohio, he is the author of Mary: Virgin-Mother in the Thought of the Cappadocian Fathers (Dayton, OH: Anderson Print & Copy, 1997); The Mystery of the Trinity in the Theological Thought of Pope John Paul II (New York: Peter Lang, 1999); and John Paul II, Mary, and the Church Since Vatican II (Ashland OH: Sheed & Ward, 2000).