Mary Is Omnipotent?

[Selah]

[b]Jesus, Who is omnipotent, made Mary also omnipotent; though of course it is always true that where the Son is omnipotent by nature, the Mother is so only by grace.(In Conc. Ev., c.17) Liguori[/b]

What does he mean here? How is Mary omnipotent?

[Thy Geekdom Come]

The key is that Mary's omnipotence is by grace, not by nature, which means that she is not omnipotent in and of herself. St. Alphonsus Liguori had been a lawyer before becoming a priest, and so while he is very theologically clear and logical, he also is very rhetorical and poetic. I'm not sure I would have used the word "omnipotent," although I see his point and he is theologically correct in using that term (in fact, the Bible says "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me," and omnipotence literally means the ability to do all). The idea is that through grace, we are brought into a relationship with God, and if we are perfectly conformed to God's will, then everything we will has God's own power and authority behind it, since He can do all things He wills. In a sense, all of us can share in God's omnipotence by submitting to His will, but it is not our own omnipotence, it is God's omnipotence in and through us (i.e. by grace, not by nature). His point, of course, is that Mary was sinless and perfectly conformed to God's will, so she has the fullness of what we are all called to. She shares more fully in the divine life of grace than any of us.

God bless,

Micah