Expert: Michael Clark, Ph.D. - 7/28/2004

Question
I am also a new Catholic (since Easter of this year) and was wondering: Mary being sinless in the womb and also leading a perfectly sinless life, why then did she need a Savior-- I mean if she is as sinless as Jesus Christ, she had nothing to attone for, right?

Answer
Hey Sue.. congrats for embracing the faith. I hope that it will be a smoother ride for you than it has been for me! Sometimes I get so ticked off with the "maleness" of it that I actually feel like going back to the Anglican Church (the Church of my baptism). But just today I attended Mass, and found that it, as it usually does, transformed a mediocre mood into a better one. And perhaps that's how I am finding answers these days. Not so much on theological quibbling, but on how the Church, in toto, makes me feel.

But to get to your specific question, I think you might find this link of help. Scroll down to the heading.. "Mary's Perfect Sanctity"

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15464b.htm

Whether or not she herself needed a savior, I don't know. There's a passage in the NT saying that Jesus came for sick souls, not the healthy. But I think the point is that her unique calling was to help to provide a savior. Jesus  (being the offspring of God and a human being) is regarded as being a step closer to the Lord than Mary (born of two human parents). Actually, Jesus is the Lord, as part of the Trinity. Mary, well, she will probably always be regarded as "The Mother of God" and the "Queen of all the Saints."

If you're interested, I also suggest you check out some of the Marian links on the net. Try keywords at google such as

Mariology, Marians, Mary, Blessed Virgin Mary

I hope this helps. Feel free to follow up.