Facts about Mary
Christian churches teach various doctrines concerning Mary, and she is venerated in the Catholic and Orthodox traditions.
Mark's account, thought to be the earliest, explains that Mary and Jesus' brothers had come "to take charge of him, for they said, 'He is out of his mind.'"
Mary apparently remained uninvolved in supporting Jesus' ministry.
Most Anglicans, however, hold that Mary died and that after her death, her soul was transported to heaven without her body.
The House of the Virgin Mary near Ephesus, Turkey, is believed by some to be the place where Mary lived in later life with the apostle John.
According to Eastern Orthodox tradition, Mary died either in Jerusalem or Ephesus, surrounded by the apostles.
Most Protestants today reject the doctrine of Mary's perpetual virginity.
By the seventeenth century, the Catholic and Protestant churches came to see Mary as a major point of division.
Mary, mother of Jesus, enjoys a distinguished and honored position in the Qur'an, which relates detailed narrative accounts of "Maryam" in two places: 3:35-47 and 19:16-34.
The Orthodox believe that Mary was conceived like any one else, but was cleansed from the original sin when Christ took form within her.
According to the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of James, Mary was the daughter of Joachim and Anna.
The issue of Mary's perpetual virginity is related to the interpretation of the New Testament references to the siblings of Jesus.
The Immaculate Conception is the doctrine that states that Mary herself was conceived and born free of original sin.
Mary is the most prominent female figure in Christianity and is considered by millions to be the most meritorious saint of the church.
Mary presents her sewing to the high priest after the Annunciation, before continuing on to Zechariah's house.
The Apostles' Creed and Nicene Creed both refer to Jesus as born to "the Virgin Mary."
Mary immediately left for Zechariah's house, where she was greeted prophetically by Elizabeth and remained for three months.
Mainstream Catholics believe that Guadalupe was a manifestation of the Virgin Mary in the Americas, and recognize her as "Empress of the Americas."
Most Protestants likewise reject the idea that Mary was without original sin, believing that she had to accept Jesus and be baptized in order to receive salvation, like any other person.
Churches of the Anglican Communion celebrate the Purification of Saint Mary the Virgin (February 2) and the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (March 25) as principal feasts of the Church.
Before Mary's conception, Anna had been barren, and her parents were quite old when she was conceived.
Some argued that since Jesus was indeed God, Mary must be the "Mother of God."
Some locations where Mary appeared have become important places of pilgrimages for the faithful around the world.
Mary and Joseph promptly ended his dialog with the teachers and took him back to Nazareth.
Two of the most prominent leaders of the Reformation, Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli also defended the perpetual virginity of Mary against those who questioned the teaching.
A major trading power among the newly emerged West African states was Portugal, who began establishing settlements along the coast in 1445 C.E.
Roman Catholic, Orthodox and some Anglican Christians venerate Mary, as do the non-Chalcedonian or Oriental Orthodox, a communion of churches that has been traditionally deemed monophysite (such as the Coptic Orthodox Church).
Mary is frequently referred to by the Eastern Orthodox Church and related traditions as Theotokos, meaning "God-bearer," a title recognized at the Third Ecumenical Council, held in 431 C.E.
That Mary remained a virgin after the birth of Jesus is a doctrinal stance of the Catholic, Eastern, and Oriental Orthodox churches.
Mary was a relative of Elizabeth, wife of the priest Zechariah, who herself was of the lineage of Aaron (Luke 1:5; 1:36).
The Gospel of Matthew describes Mary as a virgin who fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14.
Asking how this could be since "I have known no man," Mary was told about Elizabeth's miraculous conception and informed that the "power of the Most High will overshadow you."
The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.
The Bible says that Joseph was warned by an angel, but for Mary, as she traveled back to Nazareth, alone and pregnant, to meet Joseph, her heart must have been filled with trepidation.
Some historians believe the icon was meant to syncretically represent both Virgin Mary and the indigenous Mexican goddess Tonantzin.
Most readers assume that sometime in the intervening period, Mary was widowed, for Joseph is not mentioned again.
The Orthodox Church observes the Feast of the Conception by Mary's mother, Saint Anna of the Most Holy Theotokos, on December 9.
Mary has often appeared to the faithful, including several popes, saints, and everyday people, in recorded visions and revelations from the fourth century onward.
The name was used theologically to emphasize that Mary's child, Jesus Christ, was in fact fully God as well as fully man.
Historical records of such Marian apparitions increase dramatically with the advent of the above-mentioned emphasis on the veneration of Mary in the Middle Ages.
Numerous additional apparitions of Mary have been reported in during the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
The traditional Christian view is that Mary was made to conceive by the Holy Spirit in Nazareth at the time of the angel's announcement, before she departed for Zechariah's house.
The belief in the assumption of Mary was formally declared to be dogma by Pope Pius XII in 1950.
The Apostles' Creed and Nicene Creed both refer to Jesus as born to "the Virgin Mary."
Mary (Mariam or Maryam) also has a revered position in Islam, where a whole chapter is devoted to her.
Mary resided at Nazareth in Galilee while betrothed to Joseph of the House of David (Luke 1:26).
Little is said of Mary's relationship with Jesus during his infancy and youth.
He ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559, and Mary briefly became queen consort of France, until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561. Four years later, she married her first cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, but their union was unhappy.
She became famous across Europe, especially after her execution in 1587, for plotting (it was said) against England's Queen Elizabeth I. Mary was born in 1542, when Henry VIII was King of England. ... Mary became Queen of Scotland as a baby. She was Queen until 1567, when she gave up the crown and left Scotland.