Mary, Woman to Remember

In the last chapter of The Real Mary McKnight pulls together the treads with which he has been stitching his argument together. I agree with him when he writes,

It is time for us to give the real Mary her due, to honor her for who she is. The real Mary was an ordinary Jewish woman with and extraordinary vocation who struggled, as all ordinary Jews did, with who Jesus was. Through her struggle, she came to terms with the difficult reality that the Messiah's mission--unlike Mary's expectations--was to die for others. This real Mary, the one who struggled to embrace Jesus' mission, is no offense to Protestants, but rather she is a woman for us to honor (pp. 143, 144).

He then recommends that Protestants should pick one day a year and call it "Honor Mary Day."

McKnight proposes that we focus on five themes in Mary's life: 1. Faith leads to Jesus, 2. Faith is uniquely personal, 3. Faith is real, 4. Faith develops, and 5. Faith is dangerous and courageous.

For me Mary has come alive perhaps for the first time in my faith life. I have a far better understanding of the Roman Catholic position as well. I hope that over time I will make further progress in integrating Mary, her faith, and obedience into my own life.