Because of this, Rubin’s sources necessarily come from a wide spectrum of materials, formal theological treatises, miracle stories and plays, sermons, music and architecture and the visual arts.

Aside from the many more narrowly focused studies concerning Mary that appear each year, perhaps the most daunting prospect in such a task is the fact that there is no area of Christian life and thought, from at least the 2nd century on, that is not related in some way, whether devotionally or theologically to Mary. As such, it is a brave and ambitious work. Rubin’s book seeks to explore the myriad expressions of interest in Mary by presenting a complete history of Marian beliefs and devotion from its early roots in the Biblical texts until the close of the 16th century. Mary represents at one level every woman’s ability to conceive and nurture human life, but in her, that ability has been exalted to a participation in the Christian mystery of redemption through her willingness to welcome into her own body the God made flesh. In many ways, this statement encapsulates the focal point of both Rubin’s book and of the mystery and fascination that so many people have found in the person of the Virgin Mary. Throughout Christianitys journey from mysterious origins to global religion, the Mother of God has been a profound presence in countless lives - Mother of God is the story of that presence and a book that raises profound questions about the human experience.At the conclusion of her history of Marian devotion, Mother of God, Miri Rubin states, ‘For in woman’s capacity to act as a generous host, to contain a body in her body, there is an act of tremendous hospitality’ (p. Whether talking about the vast public festivals celebrating Mary that sweep up entire communities or the intense private agony of individual devotion, Rubins book is a triumph of sympathy and intelligence.

Marys role in the Gospels is a relatively minor one, and yet in the centuries during which Christianity established itself she emerged as a powerful, strange and ungovernable force, endlessly remade and reimagined by wave after wave of devotees, ultimately becoming a sort of God, in ways that have always made some Christians uneasy. Miri Rubins Mother of God is a major work of cultural imagination.

The focus for women, the inspiration of faith, the subject of innumerable paintings, sculptures, pieces of music and churches, Mary is so entangled in our world that it is impossible to conceive of the history of Western culture and religion without her. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is one of the most powerful, influential and complex of all religious figures.

Mother of God by Miri Rubin