Bogus Roman Catholic Memes #7

 This is a meme is often posted by Roman Catholics It's meant to demonstrate modern Protestants are not following the Roman Catholic Marian piety of the sixteenth century Reformers, especially using the phrase "Mother of God" like they did.  Here's how to respond:

1. For the Martin Luther quote: "The veneration of Mary is inscribed in the very depths of the human heart": In context, this quote is not a positive affirmation of Marian piety from Luther. Rather, the quote is part of a collection of sermons intended to wean people away from venerating the saints (including Mary). In context, Luther's point is that whatever respect Mary was due, the church of his day had collectively gone far beyond it. For full documentation of this quote, see: Luther: The veneration of Mary is inscribed in the very depths of the human heart.

2. For the John Calvin Quote: The most blatant error is that the quote in the meme is a mis-citation. Calvin did not write "Mother of God," but rather "mother of His Son."  Why is this important? Because Calvin avoided using the phrase, "Mother of God." According to Roman Catholic writer Thomas O'Meara, "Calvin nowhere calls Mary Theotokos or the Mother of God." O'Meara states, "...the reason for his hesitancy on the use of the term 'Mother of God' seems to be based upon a fear of falling into what he saw as the excesses of the past."Rome's defenders pour much more into the term "Mother of God" and Calvin realized this.n Calvin quote:  For full documentation of this quote, see: John Calvin on the Greatness of Mary.

3. For the Ulrich Zwingli quote: This one has bounced around the Internet for many years with a Roman Catholic tertiary source (not secondary!) used for documentation. I've done a detailed write up of this quote here. Interestingly, despite Zwingli's flowery Marian language, a number of scholars claim Zwingli did not adhere to Mary's Immaculate Conception... even the secondary Latin source this quote comes from says, "It is difficult to prove that Zwingli directly affirmed the doctrine of the immaculate conception of the Blessed Virgin" (E. Stakemeier, De Mariologia et Oecumenismo, (Rome, 1962), 455). The comment in context is a passing remark, not intended to be an exposition on Mary.

4. Conclusion: Zwingli, like Martin Luther, vehemently opposed a sine quo non of Roman Catholic Mariology: intercession. Rome's defenders seem to treat this denial like it's no big deal. However, all the distinctive Roman Catholic Marian attributes (Perpetual Virginity, Assumption, Immaculate Conception, etc.) were symbiotically related to her ability to intercede, in the sixteenth century and now. Take away Mary's ability to intercede, whatever is left really becomes a curiosity of history rather than something profoundly meaningful.

Addendum
Here's another version of the meme. Notice in the Calvin quote, "Mother of God" is now correctly, "Mother of His Son."