Mary is the Co-Redeemer.

An overview of a chapter from Maria Valtorta’s Poem of the Man-God.

 

(If you have been exposed to negative opinions about this book, please see the Nota Bene at bottom).

 

Jesus is with his apostles and some disciples at a town called Nob, not far from Jerusalem. He is talking about a woman who has been entrusted with a young boy. He remarks that she has a very womanly mission, that of bringing up this child. But this is not a child who needs milk, rather he is an infant in the faith. A woman, the Lord says, is always a mother and can do such things as bringing a child up in the faith. A woman is as good as a man, and has the power of maternal kindness to boot. 

 

Eliza, one of the female disciples who is present, looks a the Lord lovingly, and praises him for speaking so kindly about women. Jesus responds that He is simply being truthful. Israelis as well as other peoples have been accustomed to consider women as inferior beings. But it is not so. If she has been subjected to man, struck severely as punishment for Eve’s sin, if she has to carry out her mission with deeds and words that are veiled and not showy, nevertheless she is not less capable and not less strong than a man. 

 

Even without recalling the great women of Israel, Jesus continues, in the heart of a woman there is great strength – in her heart as in the intelligence of men. And the situation of women in the world is about to change, regarding customs and in many other things. And this will be justly so because grace and redemption will be obtained by a Woman, and particularly for women, as He will do for all men. 

 

An objection is raised by Judas Iscariot. With a mocking laugh he asks how can one expect a woman, a woman, to redeem?

 

Jesus replies by solemnly telling him that She is already redeeming. He asks the Iscariot if he knows what to redeem means. And Judas replies that of course he does, it means to remove from sin. 

 

The Lord answers yes, but just to remove from sin would not suffice, because the eternal Opponent would continue to keep laying snares. But the voice of God was heard in the earthly paradise saying “I will create enmity between you and the Woman; She will crush your head and you will lay snares for Her heel.” They will be nothing but snares, because the Woman will have within herself that which defeats the enemy. She has been redeeming with an active, but concealed, redemption even since She existed. She will soon come out in the open to the world, and women will be strengthened in Her. 

 

Judas says that he can accept that Jesus redeems, but as for a woman, he cannot accept it. 

 

The Lord asks does Jerusalem still have a Tabernacle in which God resides? Can the glory of God be present alongside the sins committed within the walls of the Temple? No, another holy Tabernacle was necessary in order to lead people who err back to the Most High God. That is accomplished by the Co-Redeemer, who will rejoice throughout the ages as being the Mother of the redeemed. 

 

Presenting the true hymn of the Co-Redeemer, the Lord begins to quote various scripture verses: “You shall shine with a bright light. All the peoples of the earth will prostrate themselves before You. The nations will come to You from afar bringing gifts and will worship the Lord in You . . . They will invoke Your great name . . . Those who will not listen to You will be among those cursed, and blessed will be those who gather round You . . . You will be happy in Your children because they will be the blessed ones gathered near the Lord.” 

 

Such is the true hymn of the Co-Redeemer, continues Jesus. She is the beginning of the new heavenly Jerusalem, and the angels who see are already singing. This is the truth, yet the world is not aware of Her. And the clouded minds of the rabbis of Israel do not know Her. 

 

The Iscariot asks the Apostle Philip, who is near him, just who Jesus is speaking of? Before Philip can reply, Eliza rather harshly responds that can’t he understand that Jesus is speaking of His Mother? 

 

Judas answers that the prophets only mention a Redeemer, and not a Woman martyr. He starts to say more but Eliza interrupts. She asks Judas if he thinks that there is only the torture of the flesh? For a mother that is nothing, compared to seeing her son die. Eliza says she does not know about the heart of Judas, but does not his mind, of which he is so boastful, tell him that a mother would undergo torture and death ten times in order not to hear her son moan? Continuing, Eliza says that although she is only a woman and he is a learned man, he is more ignorant that she is because he does not even know the heart of a mother!

 

Judas whimpers that she is offending him.

 

Eliza replies that no, she is older and is giving him advice. He should let his heart be wise, if he can, in order to avoid tears and punishment.

 

The frank, sharp words of Eliza to the Apostle who thinks he is so perfect elicit smiles on the lips of the other Apostles, who lower their heads to conceal their smirks, as they stealthily cast sidelong glances to each other. 

 

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An overview of Chapter 509 of the Poem of the Man-God by Maria Valtorta. 

 

Nota Bene: To anyone with concerns about reading the Poem, I recommend Stephen Austin’s 1300-page online encyclopedic Summa which refutes, and even utterly demolishes, the arguments put forth by the opponents of the Poem. See this Link. There are some educated and well-meaning Catholics who oppose it, often because they have been misled by flawed articles about the Poem. A very few even have recourse to personal innuendos about the authoress, Maria Valtorta, a woman who offered her sufferings to the Lord as a victim-soul. 

 

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