The Holy Bible remains the Sacred Texts for Christians because it tells how God, through His Word, created the world(cf. Jn. 1:3) and made Adam and Eve the crown of creation(cf. Gen. 1:28). Adam and his wife: Evethe mother of all the living (cf. Gen 3:20) disobeyed God and became enslaved to sin and vulnerable to death (cf. Gen. 1 & 2). Since God truly loves the world, He gave us His only begotten Son/the Word/Jesus Christ, who had been with Him before the beginning of the world, through whom all things were made and who is Lord and God (cf. cf. Jn. 3:16; 1:1-3; 20:28), to redeem man from the power of sin and death, thus establishing a new creation on earth. The Word/Jesus Christtook flesh in the womb of a Virgin called: Mary—the “New Eve”, and dwelt among men as the Light that enlightens all men and through whom we all have received grace upon grace. (cf. Jn. 1:14, 1:16). The Holy Bible, though made up of two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament, tells usof how the world was created and redeemed through Jesus Christ—who is the New Adam and the Head of the new creation (Heb. 1:2). In the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, His mother: Mary/the New Eve, played a very vital role as the Bible and the Quran bear testimony to this fact. That is why the Quran sees Mary as the Greatest of all women (cf. Quran 3: 42) and the only woman whose name was directly mention seventy times (cf. Quran-surahs. 3; 4, 5, 19, 21, 23 and 66).Surprisingly, some persons still castigate Mary and keep questioning her place/relevance in the life of Her Son: Jesus Christ and in the Bible. Thus, one may ask: “Does Mary have a place in the Bible?”
MARY IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
The Old Testament is the prefiguration of the New Testament, as the New Testament is a fulfilment of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, God created the world and gave man the power to subdue it (cf. Gen. 1&2). Man lost his relationship with God through disobedience, thus, becoming slave to sin and death (cf. Gen. 3). The Old Testament, therefore, narrates the fall of man and how God promised to redeem man by sending the Messiah into the world. As God prepared for the coming of His Son—the Messiah, God also prepared the Virgin who would be the mother of His Son. Thus, a virginshall be with a child who shall be called Emmanuel—which means God is with us (cf. Isaiah 7:14). This virgin’s name, though not mentioned in the Old Testament, was made known to us in the New Testament as: Mary. Since Mary is not a personage in the Old Testament, there are lots of prophecies concerning her in it. In the protoevangelium—that is: Genesis 3:15, Mary is prefigured as the woman whose seed would crush the head of the serpent. It is important to note here that for the Jews, women do not have seeds but men. When the protoevangelium speaks of Mary’s seed, it prefigures Mary’s Immaculate Conception. The seedmentioned in the protoevangelium was later referenced in Romans 1:3 as Jesus Christ—who is the seed of David. In the book of Isaiah 66:7-14 and in Zeph. 3:14, Mary was prefigured as the Daughter of Zion. Hence, in the Old Testament, Mary is not a personage but the prefigured virgin, the pregnant daughter of Zion, and the mother of the seed whowould crush the head of the serpent.
MARY IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
The New Testament is the fulfilment of the Old Testament. In the New Testament, Mary is seen as the woman who gave birth to the Son of God (cf. Mk. 3:31-35; 6:1-6; Mt. Gal. 4:4). It is crucial to note here that the “brothers and sisters” of Jesus stated in Mk. 3:31-35 & 6:1-6 refer to the cousins or relatives of Jesus since the Jews had no word equivalent for cousins, nephews, nieces, etc. as the English does. The New Testament also sees Mary as, the spouse of Joseph(cf. Mt. 1:19), the Virgin who conceived of the Holy Spirit (Mt.1:18-25), the favoured one (cf. Lk. 1:28); the one who is full of grace (cf. Lk. 1:28), the mother of the beloved discipleof her Son—Jesus Christ (cf. Jn. 19:26-27); the doer of the Word of God which is the basis of her being the Mother of Christ who is Lord and God (cf. Lk. 1:38; Jn. 20:28); the intercessor between men and her Son—Jesus Christ (cf. Jn. 2), the new Ark of Covenant that would be overshadowed by the Holy Spirit (cf. Lk. 1:34-35); the Handmaid of the Lord(cf. Lk. 1:38); the contemplative one (cf. Lk. 2:19); the blessed among all women (cf. Lk. 1:42); the one whom the Bible said was to give her Son a name (cf. Lk. 1:30), the one who teaches the followers of Christ how to do whatever He tells them to do (cf. Jn. 2), the One from whom Jesus took his flesh and blood (cf. Jn. 1:14), etc. CONCLUSION It is obvious that the Bible, just like the Quran, places Mary in an exalted position, as there is no passage in it that relegates her role. According to the Bible, Mary is the blessed among all women (cf. Lk. 1:42); the one who is full of grace (cf. Lk. 1:28), and the virgin from whom the Word of God/ Jesus Christ took flesh (cf. Jn. 1:14), etc. Though some person still castigate Mary out of bias or hatred for Catholicism, it is important to note that Jesus who is God loves His mother: Mary, favoured her and made her the mother of not only the beloved disciple— John but the mother of all His beloved disciples. Are you a beloved disciple of Christ? If yes, then, behold your Mother—Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ (cf. Jn. 19:26-27)
