The Immaculate Conception and the Virgin’s Collaboration in Christ’s work of Redemption – Sermon by Father Levine

Fr. Joseph Levine; Holy Family Catholic Church and Missions, Burns, Oregon; December 8, 2025

On this Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, let me start by speaking of Christ, the Redeemer. Today’s 1^st reading from St. Paul to the Ephesians passed over the line: in him we have redemption, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. (Eph 1:7) The passage was perhaps omitted because the forgiveness of sins has no place in the Virgin Mary, but she was redeemed, as we shall see. Indeed, while the Church never regarded the Blessed Virgin as having been subject to sin, it took her a long time fully to recognize the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, because it was not readily apparent how it could be squared with her being redeemed.

We are familiar with the title of the Redeemer, but few people any more seem to be aware of what it means. The word “redemption” is no longer in common use in the English language. The word comes from the Latin “redemptio” and means, literally, “buying back”. So, if a man went to a pawn broker for a loan, he might give his precious watch as a pledge of repayment; then when he repaid the money, he would redeem the watch.

How, then, did Christ “buy us back” or “redeem” us?

In sum, on account of Adam’s sin, God handed the human race, embodied in Adam its head, over to the power of the devil, until the honor that Adam had “robbed” from God, as it were, was repaid. Jesus Christ, Son of God, High Priest, and Innocent Lamb, by offering his life to God on the Cross as a sacrifice in honor of his glory, paid to God the price of our redemption, freeing us from slavery to the devil. In particular, his Precious Blood is regarded as the “price” paid for our redemption. (cf. 1 Pe 1:18-19)

Now, when Christ died upon the Cross, the devil effectively lost his rights over mankind, but for us to benefit individually, the price had to be applied to us individually. We could imagine it as though by paying the price of our redemption, Christ put the money in the bank on our behalf, but that it remained for the money to be withdrawn from the bank and applied to each one of us. Generally speaking, since Christ’s death on the Cross, the price is applied to our redemption through faith in Christ and baptism.

The requirement of faith shows that we cannot be merely passive but must actively cooperate in our redemption. Further, there are two sides we could say to our being redeemed, deliverance from the power of Satan, which is brought about through the forgiveness of sin, and union with God, belonging to God, becoming his children, through the life of grace.

During the course of our life, we must continue to collaborate with the work of redemption by seeking to grow in the life of grace, grow in union with God. This growth takes place amid an ongoing battle against sin and temptation, because even if we do not consent to it, the disorder of sin remains within us.

On Sunday, I spoke about the perfect peace of the soul of Christ and how our soul must be conformed to his, but that we find ourselves unlike him, that there is a movement of rebellion and resistance to his reign within us, so we must walk a path of continual repentance, fighting temptation, opposing the interior rebellion, and welcoming the transforming action of his Holy Spirit in our lives.

The Holy Spirit moves us to cooperate with the work of redemption in ourselves through the interior life of faith, hope, and charity, through the practice of good works, through the acceptance of suffering in union with the suffering of Christ, through prayer, and through all of these things brought together in unity by the offering of ourselves, of our whole lives as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, through, with, and in Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, offered always new on the altar in the Holy Eucharist, to the glory of God the Father. (Cf. Rm 12:1)

We pray not only for ourselves, but for others as well, and by praying for others contribute to Christ’s redemption having an effect in their lives; further, when we do not just pray, but offer our whole lives, through, with, and in Jesus Christ, that prayer on behalf of others is even more effective. In this way, we collaborate in their redemption.

And the Blessed Virgin Mary?

In view of her predestined role as the Mother of God, the Mother of the Redeemer she was redeemed in a wholly unique and perfect manner. In willing to send his Son as our Redeemer, God inseparably willed to choose the Blessed Virgin as his Mother, and to make her a worthy Mother and so also a worthy partner in his redemptive work.

This is hinted at in today’s 1^st reading in the words of God to the demonic serpent: I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head while you strike at his heel. As Eve cooperated with Adam in man’s fall – and take note, it was Adam’s sin, as the head of the body, that was decisive for the human race; had he not sinned, the whole race would not have fallen – so Mary, as the “New Eve,” cooperates with Christ in the redemption; yet he, and he alone, pays the sufficient and more than sufficient price of his Precious Blood. (cf. CCC 511)

What is this unique manner of the Virgin’s redemption?

We heard in the opening prayer or “collect” that she was preserved from every stain “by virtue of the Death of your Son, which you foresaw”. So, first of all, she was redeemed beforehand, both before the death of Christ and in view of that death. Second, hers was a “preventative” redemption. She was not freed from sin and from Satan’s power, she was preserved from ever coming beneath the dominion of sin and Satan. From her first conception, God himself set an irreconcilable enmity between Mary and the Serpent.

Mary’s redemption is the greatest and most perfect fruit of Christ’s death on the Cross; in the Blessed Virgin Mary we see the full power of the Precious Blood of Christ. And this was all to make her the worthy Mother of her Son and, as a consequence, the worthy partner of his redemptive work as the “New Eve.”

Through her Immaculate Conception, the Virgin is not only freed from sin and Satan’s power, but she is also filled with grace and made the temple of the Holy Spirit, or even the “Spouse” of the Holy Spirit. Her Immaculate soul is the perfect mirror of the peace of Christ’s soul; in her there is no resistance to the Holy Spirit, but perfect docility to his inspiration and guidance.

As a consequence, when the angel Gabriel comes to her, as we heard in today’s Gospel, she has been prepared by God to give a perfect response, a perfect “yes”, opening the door that the Redeemer might enter the world. She says “yes” to her own redemption and to ours.

By way of contrast, we can think of all the imperfection that is found in all the good that we do. We can think how motives of pride and vainglory enter into our good works. We can think of how sluggish and tardy we often are even to do good. We can think of all the other ulterior motivations that creep into our actions, like “if I do this, maybe he will do that”. We can think of just the lack of intensity, commitment, and dedication in our actions. If we were to imagine them as a log in the fire, rather than being a burning glowing coal, wholly penetrated with the divine fire, they are often more like a smoking, sputtering, and sparking log, just trying to catch a flame.

Not so the Virgin Mary. Her purity glows white hot. With that white hot purity and the prudence of a holy mind filled with the knowledge of God, she says, “Yes” to the angel. With that same perfect holiness, with perfect faith, hope, and charity, she then accompanies her Son on his path until she arrives with him at the foot of the Cross.

While we can only cooperate with our redemption after the fact and imperfectly and on behalf of a limited number of others; at the foot of the Cross, the Immaculate Virgin, full of grace, joins herself to the work of redemption in its very accomplishment and on behalf of all those whom Christ redeems. Standing at the foot of the Cross, she says “yes” to the work of the Redeemer, she pronounces her “amen” to his sacrifice, she offers the innocent Lamb of God on behalf of all mankind and she offers herself, through, with, and in him, to the glory of the Father, for her own redemption, and for our redemption and salvation.

There Christ himself gives her to us as our Mother and from that day forward, especially after having being taken up to heaven body and soul, she continues to exercise her maternal care for each of the redeemed, until Christ be formed in us, until our soul becomes like the soul of Christ.  (cf. Gal 4:19) We could perhaps say that henceforth every grace that Christ bestows on men, he grants at the petition of his Mother.