​It is not difficult to see that we live in a wounded world. Broken families, civil unrest, anxiety, wars, social injustice... the list could go on and on. We are made for the unconditional love of God, and yet what we see and face each day seems so far from it, leaving us all badly wounded. While wounds can be just (discipline for a mistake), imaginary (insinuating an offense that didn’t occur), or disproportionate (one exaggerates the level of offense), many wounds are in fact ‘real’, meaning they are an act of injustice. If left untreated, these wounds, like a thorn in one’s body, will cause one to become infected with the disease of resentment.

For many non-Catholics and even many Catholics, the way that the Catholic Church honors Mary can seem confusing, weird, or just downright unbiblical. It might seem that, by honoring Mary, we are worshiping her or are taking away from the honor that should be given to God alone. How does the Catholic Church explain its intense devotion to Mary? Well, although on the surface the Bible seems to say very little about her, when we dig deep into Sacred Scripture, we do find Mary, in a profound way, and we can understand the high praise that Catholics give her.