What is the Immaculate Conception, and what is its significance?
Ihe Immaculate Conception (celebrated sometime in December before Christmas) is the celebration of the conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is important because according to the Catholic Church, Mary was born without original sin (she never sinned during her life). The woman that was to bear the Savior (Jesus Christ) had to be pure, meaning that she was a virgin and without sin.
The previous answer is correct and does not contradict the bible as the subsequent commentator suggests. This is why: Pope Pius IX stated in his dogma of 1854 that “the most Blessed Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of Almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.” This states that Christ redeemed all human beings, including Mary although in her case it was done differently. According to the medieval Franciscan theologian, Duns Scotus (1266-1308) Christ’s role was to mediate for all men, and that to do so He must have been born of a pure mother. Since this mother was also mediated by Him, then His mediation would be to make her immaculate which would also facillitate His birth. This does not contradict the Bible in that subsequent to Adam and Eve’s fall from Eden, all men are born with Original Sin. In Mary’s case, Christ removed her sin, as we now
Simply put, the Immaculate Conception celebrates the conception of the Virgin Mary (not Jesus) without original sin. That means that even from the moment of conception, Mary was not meant to be prone to sin as most humans are thanks to Adam and Eve. Mary, by nature, did not have the potential to sin, as part of God’s plan. (A sinner can’t give birth to the Son of God.
