Why the veneration of our Lady the Theotokos (Mother of God) and ever-virgin Mary?
In struggling for a year with this question, it was a surprise to find out that even the reformers have no trouble in relating to Mary as the Mother of all Christians. Martin Luther from a Christmas sermon [1521-1522] presents us the spirit of Christmas so that we may boast of the pure and holy treasure that Mary is our rightful mother, Christ our brother, and God our father, springing forth every good work through faith and love. Even tracing further back to the 3rd century when the New Testament is yet to be canonized, Origen (AD 185-253) presents Mary as a mother to all who are called by Christ to be the ‘beloved disciple’ as a prerequisite to intimately comprehending the Gospel according to St John. In context of the role of the Holy Theotokos in an Orthodox worship environment, Facing up to Mary by Fr. Peter E. Gillquist has proven helpful.
