Immaculate Conception

For other uses, see Immaculate Conception (disambiguation).

Immaculata and Immacolata redirect here. For other
uses, see Immaculata (disambiguation) and Immacolata
(disambiguation).

dogma states that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the

rst instance of her conception, by a singular grace and
privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits
of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin.[6] Therefore,
being always free from original sin, the doctrine teaches
that from her conception Mary received the sanctifying
The Immaculate Conception, according to the teaching
of the Catholic Church, was the conception of the Blessed grace that would normally come with baptism after birth.
Virgin Mary in her mother's womb free from original sin The denition makes no declaration about the Churchs
by virtue of the foreseen merits of her son Jesus Christ. belief that the Blessed Virgin was sinless in the sense
[7]
Fulton J. Sheen said that, for those who say there is no of freedom from actual or personal sin. However, the
sinless personally, free
such thing as original sin, everyone is conceived without Church holds that Mary was also [8]
from
all
sin,
original
or
personal.
The Council of Trent
it, which is the Catholic Churchs denition of the imdecreed:
If
anyone
shall
say
that
a
man once justied
[1]
maculate conception of Mary. A similar observation
can
sin
no
more,
nor
lose
grace,
and
that
therefore he who
is attributed to G. K. Chesterton: The man who defalls
and
sins
was
never
truly
justied;
or,
on the contrary,
nies original sin believes in the Immaculate Conception
that
throughout
his
whole
life
he
can
avoid
all sins even
[2][3]
of everybody.
venial sins, except by a special privilege of God, as the
The Immaculate Conception is commonly confused with Church holds in regard to the Blessed Virgin: let him be
the doctrine of the Incarnation and the virgin birth of anathema.[9]
Jesus, though the two deal with separate subjects. The
Catholic Church teaches that Mary was conceived by normal biological means, but her soul was acted upon by God 1.2 Virginal conception
(kept immaculate) at the time of her conception.
Although the belief that Mary was sinless and conceived The doctrine of the immaculate conception (Mary being
immaculate has been widely held since Late Antiquity, conceived free from original sin) is not to be confused
the doctrine was not dogmatically dened until 1854, with her virginal conception of her son Jesus. This misby Pope Pius IX in his papal bull Ineabilis Deus. The understanding of the term immaculate conception is freCatholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate quently met in the mass media. Catholics believe that
Conception on December 8; in many Catholic countries, Mary was not the product of a virginal conception herself
[10]
it is a holy day of obligation or patronal feast, and in some but was the daughter of a human father and mother,
traditionally known by the names of Saint Joachim and
a national public holiday.[4][5]
Saint Anne. In 1677, the Holy See condemned the beProtestants generally reject the doctrine because they do lief that Mary was virginally conceived, which had been
not consider the development of dogmatic theology to be a belief surfacing occasionally since the 4th century.[11]
authoritative apart from Biblical exegesis. It is accepted The Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Conby some Anglo-Catholics, but is rejected by most in the ception (when Mary was conceived free from original sin)
Anglican Communion.
on 8 December, exactly nine months before celebrating
the Nativity of Mary. The feast of the Annunciation
(which commemorates the virginal conception and the
Incarnation of Jesus) is celebrated on 25 March, nine
1 Distinctions
months before Christmas Day.[12][13]

1.1

Original sin and actual (personal) sin

1.3 Redemption

The dened dogma of the Immaculate Conception regards original sin only, saying that Mary was preserved
from any stain (in Latin, macula or labes, the second
of these two synonymous words being the one used in
the formal denition).[6] The proclaimed Roman Catholic

Another misunderstanding is that, by her immaculate

conception, Mary did not need a saviour. When dening the dogma in Ineabilis Deus, Pope Pius IX explicitly
armed that Mary was redeemed in a manner more sub1

lime. He stated that Mary, rather than being cleansed after sin, was completely prevented from contracting Original Sin in view of the foreseen merits of Jesus Christ,
the Savior of the human race. In Luke 1:47, Mary proclaims: My spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
This is referred to as Marys pre-redemption by Christ.
Since the Council of Orange II against semi-pelagianism,
the Catholic Church has taught that even had man never
sinned in the Garden of Eden and was sinless, he would
still require Gods grace to remain sinless.[14][15]

History

A feast of the Conception of the Most Holy and All Pure

Mother of God was celebrated in Syria on 8 December
perhaps as early as the 5th century. Note that the title
of achrantos (spotless, immaculate, all-pure) refers to the
holiness of Mary, not specically to the holiness of her
conception.[16]

HISTORY

designated Mary as prokathartheisa (prepuried). Gregory likely attempted to solve the riddle of the Purication of Jesus and Mary in the Temple through considering the human natures of Jesus and Mary as equally holy
and therefore both puried in this manner of grace and
glory.[18] Gregorys doctrines surrounding Marys purication were likely related to the burgeoning commemoration of the Mother of God in and around Constantinople very close to the date of Christmas.[19] Nazianzens
title of Mary at the Annunciation as prepuried was
subsequently adopted by all theologians interested in his
Mariology to justify the Byzantine equivalent of the Immaculate Conception. This is especially apparent in the
Fathers St. Sophronios of Jerusalem and St. John Damascene, who will be treated below in this article at the section on Church Fathers. About the time of Damascene,
the public celebration of the Conception of St. Ann [i.e.,
of the Theotokos in her womb]" was becoming popular.
After this period, the purication of the perfect natures
of Jesus and Mary would not only mean moments of grace
and glory at the Incarnation and Baptism and other public
Byzantine liturgical feasts, but purication was eventually
associated with the feast of Marys very conception (along
with her Presentation in the Temple as a toddler) by Orthodox authors of the 2nd millennium (e.g., St. Nicholas
Cabasilas[20] and Joseph Bryennius).[21]
By 750 the feast of her conception was widely celebrated
in the Byzantine East, under the name of the Conception (active) of Saint Anne. In the West it was known as
the feast of the Conception (passive) of Mary, and was
associated particularly with the Normans, whether these
introduced it directly from the East[22] or took it from
English usage.[23] The spread of the feast, by now with
the adjective Immaculate attached to its title, met opposition on the part of some, on the grounds that sanctication was possible only after conception.[24] Critics included Saints Bernard of Clairvaux, Albertus Magnus and
Thomas Aquinas. Other theologians defended the expression Immaculate Conception, pointing out that sanctication could be conferred at the rst moment of conception in view of the foreseen merits of Christ, a view held
especially by Franciscans.[25]

Writers such as Mark Miravalle and Sarah Jane Boss

interpret the existence of the feast as a strong indication of the Churchs traditional belief in the Immaculate
An 11th-century Eastern Orthodox icon of the Theotokos Conception.[26][27]
[17]
Panachranta, i.e. the all immaculate Mary

Marys complete sinlessness and concomitant exemption

from any taint from the rst moment of her existence
was a doctrine familiar to Greek theologians of Byzantium. Beginning with St. Gregory Nazianzen, his explanation of the purication of Jesus and Mary at the
circumcision (Luke 2:22) prompted him to consider the
primary meaning of purication in Christology (and
by extension in Mariology) to refer to a perfectly sinless nature that manifested itself in glory in a moment of
grace (e.g., Jesus at his Baptism). St. Gregory Nazianzen

On 28 February 1476, Pope Sixtus IV, a Franciscan after whom the Sistine Chapel is named, authorized those
dioceses that wished to introduce the feast to do so, and
introduced it to his own diocese of Rome in 1477,[23] with
a specially composed Mass and Oce of the feast.[28]
With his bull Cum praeexcelsa of 28 February 1477, in
which he referred to the feast as that of the Conception of Mary, without using the word Immaculate, he
granted indulgences to those who would participate in the
specially composed Mass or Oce on the feast itself or
during its octave, and he used the word immaculate of

2.1

Denition of the dogma

Mary, but applied instead the adjective miraculous to

her conception.[29][30] On 4 September 1483, referring to
the feast as that of the Conception of Immaculate Mary
ever Virgin, he condemned both those who called it mortally sinful and heretical to hold that the glorious and immaculate mother of God was conceived without the stain
of original sin and those who called it mortally sinful and
heretical to hold that the glorious Virgin Mary was conceived with original sin, since, he said, up to this time
there has been no decision made by the Roman Church
and the Apostolic See.[31] This decree was rearmed by
the Council of Trent.[32]
One of the chief proponents of the doctrine was the Hungarian Franciscan Pelbartus Ladislaus of Temesvr. [33]
Pope Pius V, while including the feast in the Tridentine
Calendar, removed the adjective Immaculate and suppressed the existing special Mass for the feast, directing
that the Mass for the Nativity of Mary (with the word
Nativity replaced by Conception) be used instead.[34]
Part of that earlier Mass was revived in the Mass that
Pope Pius IX ordered to be used on the feast and that
is still in use.[35]
On 6 December 1708, Pope Clement XI made the feast
of the Conception of Mary, at that time still with the Nativity of Mary formula for the Mass, a Holy Day of Obli- Altar of the Immaculata by Joseph Lusenberg, 1876. Saint
Antonys Church, Urtiji, Italy.
gation.[24] Until Pope Pius X reduced in 1911 the number
of Holy Days of Obligation to 8, there were in the course
of the year 36 such days, apart from Sundays.[36]
It was not until 1854 that Pope Pius IX, with the support of the overwhelming majority of Roman Catholic
bishops, whom he had consulted between 18511853,
promulgated the papal bull Ineabilis Deus (Latin for In2.1 Denition of the dogma
eable God), which dened ex cathedra the dogma of
[40]
During the reign of Pope Gregory XVI the bishops in var- the Immaculate Conception:
ious countries began to press for a denition as dogma of
the teaching of Marys immaculate conception.[37]
We declare, pronounce and dene that the
doctrine
which holds that the Blessed Virgin
In 1839 Mariano Spada (1796 - 1872), professor of theMary,
at
the rst instant of her conception,
ology at the Roman College of Saint Thomas, published
by
a
singular
privilege and grace of the OmEsame Critico sulla dottrina dell Angelico Dottore S. Tomnipotent
God,
in virtue of the merits of Jesus
maso di Aquino circa il Peccato originale, relativamente
Christ,
the
Saviour
of mankind, was preserved
alla Beatissima Vergine Maria [A critical examination of
immaculate
from
all
stain of original sin, has
the doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas, the Angelic Doctor,
been
revealed
by
God,
and therefore should
regarding original sin with respect to the Most Blessed
[38]
rmly
and
constantly
be
believed by all the
Virgin Mary],
in which Aquinas is interpreted not as
faithful.
treating the question of the Immaculate Conception later
Pope Pius IX, Ineabilis Deus, December
formulated in the papal bull Ineabilis Deus but rather the
8, 1854[41]
sanctication of the fetus within Marys womb. Spada
furnished an interpretation whereby Pius IX was relieved
of the problem of seeming to foster a doctrine not in
agreement with the Aquinas teaching.[39] Pope Pius IX The dogma was dened in accordance with the conditions
would later appoint Spada Master of the Sacred Palace in of papal infallibility, which would be dened in 1870 by
1867.
the First Vatican Council.
Pius IX, at the beginning of his ponticate, and again after 1851, appointed commissions to investigate the whole
subject, and he was advised that the doctrine was one
which could be dened and that the time for a denition
was opportune.

The papal denition of the dogma declares with absolute

certainty and authority that Mary possessed sanctifying
grace from the rst instant of her existence and was free
from the lack of grace caused by the original sin at the
beginning of human history. Marys salvation was won

3 MEDIEVAL DISPUTE ABOUT THE DOCTRINE

by her son Jesus Christ through his passion, death, and Pius IX. Bernard would seem to have been speaking of
resurrection and was not due to her own merits.[42][43]
conception in the active sense of the mothers cooperation, for in his argument he says: How can there be absence of sin where there is concupiscence (libido)?" and
2.2 Later developments
stronger expressions follow, showing that he is speaking
of the mother and not of the child.[7]
For the Roman Catholic Church the dogma of the Immaculate Conception gained additional signicance from Saint Thomas Aquinas, the greatest of the medieval
the reputed apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1858. scholastics, refused to admit the Immaculate Conception,
At Lourdes a 14-year-old girl, Bernadette Soubirous, on the ground that, unless the Blessed Virgin had at one
not justly
claimed that a beautiful woman appeared to her and said, time or other been one of the sinful, she could
[52]
be
said
to
have
been
redeemed
by
Christ.
I am the Immaculate Conception. Many believe the
woman to have been the Blessed Virgin Mary and pray to Saint Bonaventure (d. 1274), second only to Saint
her as such.[44][45]
Thomas in his inuence on the Christian schools of his
[7]
Pope Pius IX dened the dogma of the Immaculate Con- age, hesitated to accept it for a similar reason. He
ception not so much because of proofs in Scripture or believed that Mary was completely free from sin, but
not given this grace at the instant of her
ancient tradition, but due to a profound sensus delium that she was
[53]
conception.
[46]
and the Magisterium.
Speaking of the witness of the Church Fathers in claiming The celebrated John Duns Scotus (d. 1308), a Friar Mifor Mary titles such as Free from all contagion of sin, nor like Saint Bonaventure, argued, on the contrary, that
from a rational point of view it was certainly as little
Pope Pius XII wrote:
derogatory to the merits of Christ to assert that Mary
was by him preserved from all taint of sin, as to say that
If the popular praises of the Blessed Virgin
she rst contracted it and then was delivered.[7] ProposMary be given the careful consideration they
ing a solution to the theological problem of reconciling
deserve, who will dare to doubt that she, who
the doctrine with that of universal redemption in Christ,
was purer than the angels and at all times pure,
he argued that Marys immaculate conception did not rewas at any moment, even for the briefest inmove her from redemption by Christ; rather it was the
stant, not free from every stain of sin?[47]
result of a more perfect redemption granted her because
of her special role in salvation history.[54]
The Roman Catholic tradition has a well-established phiThe arguments of Scotus, combined with a better aclosophy for the study of the Immaculate Conception and
quaintance with the language of the early Fathers, gradthe veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the eld of
ually prevailed in the schools of the Western Church. In
Mariology, with Pontical schools such as the Marianum
1387 the university of Paris strongly condemned the op[48][49][50]
specically devoted to this.
posite view.[7]
According to Bernard Ullathorne, a 19th-century English
Scotuss arguments remained controversial, however,
Roman Catholic prelate, the expressions - The Immacuparticularly among the Dominicans, who were willing
late Conception - The Immaculate Preservation - The Imenough to celebrate Marys sancticatio (being made free
munity - and Exception from original sin, are all phrases
from sin) but, following the Dominican Thomas Aquinas
which bear the same signication, and are used equally to
arguments, continued to insist that her sanctication
[51]
express one and the same mystery.
could not have occurred until after her conception.[24]

Medieval dispute about the doctrine

It seems to have been St Bernard of Clairvaux who, in

the 12th century, explicitly raised the question of the
Immaculate Conception. A feast of the Conception of
the Blessed Virgin had already begun to be celebrated in
some churches of the West. St Bernard blames the canons
of the metropolitan church of Lyon for instituting such a
festival without the permission of the Holy See. In doing
so, he takes occasion to repudiate altogether the view that
the conception of Mary was sinless. It is doubtful, however, whether he was using the term conception in the
same sense in which it is used in the denition of Pope

Popular opinion remained rmly behind the celebration

of Marys conception. In 1439, the Council of Basel,
which is not reckoned an ecumenical council, stated that
belief in the immaculate conception of Mary is in accord with the Catholic faith.[55] By the end of the 15th
century the belief was widely professed and taught in
many theological faculties, but such was the inuence
of the Dominicans, and the weight of the arguments of
Thomas Aquinas (who had been canonised in 1323 and
declared Doctor Angelicus of the Church in 1567) that
the Council of Trent (154563)which might have been
expected to arm the doctrineinstead declined to take
a position.[24][42]

Church Fathers

It is admitted that the doctrine as dened by Pius IX was

not explicitly mooted before the 12th century. It is also
agreed that no direct or categorical and stringent proof
of the dogma can be brought forward from Scripture.[24]
But it is claimed that the doctrine is implicitly contained
in the teaching of the Fathers. Their expressions on the
subject of the sinlessness of Mary are, it is pointed out,
so ample and so absolute that they must be taken to include original sin as well as actual. Thus in the rst ve
centuries such epithets as in every respect holy, in
all things unstained, super-innocent, and singularly
holy are applied to her; she is compared to Eve before
the fall, as ancestress of a redeemed people; she is the
earth before it was accursed. The well-known words of
St. Augustine (d. 430) may be cited: As regards the
mother of God, he says, I will not allow any question
whatever of sin. It is true that he is here speaking directly of actual or personal sin. But his argument is that
all men are sinners; that they are so through original depravity; that this original depravity may be overcome by
the grace of God, and he adds that he does not know but
that Mary may have had sucient grace to overcome sin
of every sort (omni ex parte).[7]

complete holiness from her Conception by the all pure

seed of Joachim and the womb wider than heaven of
St. Ann.[60]

The papal bull dening the dogma, Ineabilis Deus,

mentioned in particular the patrististic interpretation of
Genesis 3:15 as referring to a woman, Mary, who would
be eternally at enmity with the evil serpent and completely
triumphing over him. It said the Fathers saw foreshadowings of Marys wondrous abundance of divine gifts
and original innocence in that ark of Noah, which was
built by divine command and escaped entirely safe and
sound from the common shipwreck of the whole world;
in the ladder which Jacob saw reaching from the earth to
heaven, by whose rungs the angels of God ascended and
descended, and on whose top the Lord himself leaned;[61]
in that bush which Moses saw in the holy place burning
on all sides, which was not consumed or injured in any
way but grew green and blossomed beautifully;[62] in that
impregnable tower before the enemy, from which hung
a thousand bucklers and all the armor of the strong;[63]
in that garden enclosed on all sides, which cannot be violated or corrupted by any deceitful plots;[64] in that resplendent city of God, which has its foundations on the
holy mountains;[65] in that most august temple of God,
which, radiant with divine splendours, is full of the glory
of God;[66] and in very many other biblical types of this
Although the doctrine of Marys Immaculate Conception kind.
appears only later among Latin (and particularly Frank- The bull recounts that the Fathers interpreted the anish) theologians,[56] It became ever more manifest among gels address to Mary, highly favoured one or full of
Byzantine theologians reliant on Gregory Nazianzens grace,[67] as indicating that she was never subject to the
Mariology in the Medieval or Byzantine East. Although curse and was, together with her Son, the only partaker
hymnographers and scholars, like the Emperor Justinian of perpetual benediction"; they frequently compare her
I, were accustomed to call Mary prepuried in their po- to Eve while yet a virgin, while yet innocence, while yet
etic and credal statements, the rst point of departure for incorrupt, while not yet deceived by the deadly snares of
more fully commenting on Nazianzens meaning occurs the most treacherous serpent.
in Sophronius of Jerusalem.[57] In other places Sophronius explains that the Theotokos was already immaculate,
when she was puried at the Annunciation and goes
so far as to note that John the Baptist is literally holier 5 Patronages
than all 'Men' born of woman since Marys surpassing
holiness signies that she was holier than even John after Main article: Patronages of the Immaculate Conception
his sanctication in utero.[58] Sophronius teaching is augmented and incorporated in the great St. John Damascene
A number of countries are considered to be under the pa(d. 749/750). John, besides many passages wherein he
tronage of the Immaculate Conception by pontical deextolls the Theotokos for her purication at the Annuncicree.
ation, grants her the unique honor of purifying the waters of baptism by touching them. This honor was most These include Argentina, Brazil, Korea, Nicaragua,
famously and rstly attributed to Christ, especially in the Paraguay, Philippines, Spain (old kingdoms and the
legacy of Nazianzen. As such, Nazianzens assertion of present state), the United States and Uruguay.
parallel holiness between the prepuried Mary and pu- By royal decree under the House of Braganza, it is the
ried Jesus of the New Testament is made even more principal Patroness of Portugal.
explicit in Damascene in his discourse on Marys holiness to also imitate Christs baptism at the Jordan.[59] The
Damascenes hymnongraphy and De de Orthodoxa explicitly use Marys pre purication as a key to under- 6 Other churches
standing her absolute holiness and unsullied human nature. In fact, Damascene (along with Nazianzen) serves as For diering reasons, belief in Marys immaculate conthe source for nearly all subsequent promotion of Marys ception in the Catholic doctrinal form is not part of the

OTHER CHURCHES

ocial doctrines of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant churches.

6.1

Anglicanism

Belief in Marys immaculate conception is not a doctrine

within Anglicanism, although it is shared by many AngloCatholics.[68] In the Church of England's Common Worship prayer book, 8 December is designated a Lesser Festival of the Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (without the adjective immaculate).[69]
The report Mary: Faith and Hope in Christ, by
the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission,
concluded that the teaching about Mary in the two denitions of the Assumption and the Immaculate Conception can be said to be consonant with the teaching of the
Scriptures and the ancient common traditions.[70] But the
report expressed concerns that the Roman Catholic dogmatic denitions of these concepts implies them to be
revealed by God, stating: The question arises for Anglicans, however, as to whether these doctrines concerning Mary are revealed by God in a way which must be
held by believers as a matter of faith.[71]
Some Anglicans reject the doctrine that Mary was sin- The Immaculate Conception is also portrayed by artists in the
Orthodox Church, for example Holy Mary in Perlez, Vojvodina,
less and conceived without original sin, often citing that
Serbia.
it is not within the Holy Scripture and is against the Redemptive role and purpose of Jesus Christ merited for all
human beings.
as prepuried against the Dominican, Manuel Calecas,
who was perhaps promoting thomistic Mariology that denied Marys all-holiness from the rst moment of her
6.2 Eastern and Oriental Orthodox
existence.[75]
Contemporary Eastern Orthodox Christians often object
to the dogmatic declaration of her immaculate conception
as an over-elaboration of the faith and because they see
it as too closely connected with a particular interpretation of the doctrine of ancestral sin.[72] All the same, the
historical and authentic tradition of Mariology in Byzantium took its historical point of departure from Sophronios, Damascene, and their imitators. The most famous
Eastern Orthodox theologian to imply Marys Immaculate Conception was St. Gregory Palamas. Though many
passages from his works were long known to extol and
attribute to Mary a Christlike holiness in her human nature, traditional objections to Palamas disposition toward
the Immaculate Conception typically rely on a poor understanding of his doctrine of the purication of Mary
at the Annunciation.[73] Not only did he explicitly cite
St. Gregory Nazianzen for his understanding of Jesus
purication at His baptism and Marys at the Annunciation, but Theophanes of Nicaea, Joseph Bryennius, and
Gennadios Scholarios all explicitly placed Marys Conception as the rst moment of her all-immaculate participation in the divine energies to such a degree that she
was always completely without spot and graced.[74] In addition to Emperor Manuel II and Gennadius Scholarius,
St. Mark of Ephesus also fervently defended Marys title

In the tradition of Ethiopian Orthodoxy, the Kebra Nagast

says:

He cleansed eves body and sanctied it

and made for it a dwelling in her for adams
salvation. She [i.e., mary] was born without
blemish, for He made her pure, without pollution, and she redeemed his debt without carnal
union and embrace...Through the transgression
of eve we died and were buried, and by the purity of mary we receive honour, and are exalted
to the heights (emphasis added).[76]

6.3 Old Catholic

While Old Catholics do not reject the Immaculate Conception of Mary, and some of their parishes venerate
Mary as immaculately conceived and celebrate the feast
of her Immaculate Conception, they do not accept its definition as a dogma, since they reject papal infallibility and
with it the Popes authority to dene dogma.[77]

6.4

Protestantism

Martin Luther, who initiated the Protestant Reformation,

said: Mary is full of grace, proclaimed to be entirely
without sin. Gods grace lls her with everything good
and makes her devoid of all evil.[78] But in 1532 he denied Marys immaculate conception, declaring: Mary is
conceived in sin just like us.[79] However, some Lutherans, such as the members of the Anglo-Lutheran Catholic
Church, support the doctrine.
Most Protestants reject the doctrine because they do not
consider the development of dogmatic theology to be authoritative apart from biblical exegesis, and because the
doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is not taught in
the Bible.[80] The formal pronouncement of Marys Immaculate Conception by the Catholic Church in 1854
alienated some Protestant churches partly due to its implication that not all have sinned.[81]

Islam

any sin, like the rest of the children of Adam.[82]

In addition, further claims were made that the Roman
Catholic Church derives its doctrine from the Islamic
teaching. In volume 5 of his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, published in 1788, Edward Gibbon wrote:
The Latin Church has not disdained to borrow from the
Koran the immaculate conception of his virgin mother.
That he was speaking of her immaculate conception by
her mother, not of her own virginal conception of Jesus,
is shown by his footnote: In the xiith century the immaculate conception was condemned by St. Bernard as
a presumptuous novelty.[83] In the aftermath of the definition of the dogma in 1854, this charge was repeated:
Strange as it may appear, that the doctrine which the
church of Rome has promulgated, with so much pomp
and ceremony, 'for the destruction of all heresies, and the
conrmation of the faith of her adherents, should have its
origin in the Mohametan Bible; yet the testimony of such
authorities as Gibbon, and Sale, and Forster, and Gagnier,
and Maracci, leave no doubt as to the marvellous fact.[84]
Without making Islamic belief the origin of the doctrine
dened in 1854, a similarity between the two has been
noted also by Roman Catholic writers such as Thomas
Patrick Hughes,[85] William Bernard Ullathorne,[86] Giancarlo Finazzo.[87]

Certain books that speak of the immaculate conception

in relation to Islam confuse this term with the virgin birth
of Jesus, his conception by Mary, not Marys own conception by her mother.[88][89][90] Among writers who do
not mistake Marys immaculate conception as her virginal conception of Jesus, some say that Mary is credited in Islam with extraordinary holiness, herself immaculately conceived,[91] while others say that, with regard
to Marys putative immaculate conception, while classiManuscript of Chapter 19 (Sratu Maryam) from a 9th-century cal Islam holds the Qur'an to arm Mary virginity and
Qur'an, Turkey.
virtue, it repudiates the doctrine as it is known in Christianity. There is no inherited fault in the genesis of huOcial Islamic teachings highly regard the Virgin Mary mans that requires any further form of salvation than
as both a sublime model of purity and piety. An entire moral repentance and an interior act of commitment and
Sura chapter of the Qur'an is dedicated to her nobility, surrender.[92]
holiness, and at obedience to God. Among Islamic circles and discussions, she is often given a prominent status
being the supreme feminine model of sanctity and maternal virtue.
8 Prayers and hymns
Some Western writers claim that the immaculate conception of Mary is a teaching of Islam. Thus, commenting
in 1734 on the passage in the Qur'an, I have called her
Mary; and I commend her to thy protection, and also her
issue, against Satan driven away with stones, George Sale
stated: It is not improbable that the pretended immaculate conception of the virgin Mary is intimated in this
passage. For according to a tradition of Mohammed, every person that comes into the world, is touched at his
birth by the devil, and therefore cries out, Mary and her
son only excepted; between whom, and the evil spirit God
placed a veil, so that his touch did not reach them. And
for this reason they say, neither of them were guilty of

The Roman Missal and the Roman Rite Liturgy of the

Hours naturally includes references to Marys immaculate conception in the feast of the Immaculate Conception. An example is the antiphon that begins: "Tota pulchra es, Maria, et macula originalis non est in te" (You
are all beautiful, Mary, and the original stain [of sin] is
not in you. Your clothing is white as snow, and your
face is like the sun. You are all beautiful, Mary, and the
original stain [of sin] is not in you. You are the glory of
Jerusalem, you are the joy of Israel, you give honour to
our people. You are all beautiful, Mary.)[93] On the basis
of the original Gregorian chant music,[94] polyphonic set-

10

GALLERY

tings have been composed by Anton Bruckner,[95] Pablo

Casals, Maurice Duru,[96] Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki,[97] no:Ola Gjeilo,[98] Jos Maurcio Nunes Garcia,[99]
and Nikolaus Schap,[100]

Conception, and the problem was not fully solved for 150
years. The Italian Renaissance artist Piero di Cosimo was
among those artists who tried new solutions, but none of
these became generally adopted so that the subject matter
Other prayers honouring Marys immaculate concep- would be immediately recognisable to the faithful.
tion are in use outside the formal liturgy.
The The denitive iconography for the Immaculate Concephymn Immaculate Mary, addressed to Mary as the Im- tion, drawing on the emblem tradition, seems to have
maculately Conceived One, is closely associated with been nally established by the master and then fatherLourdes.[101] The Immaculata prayer, composed by Saint in-law of Diego Velzquez, the painter and theorist
Maximillian Kolbe, is a prayer of entrustment to Mary as Francisco Pacheco. Pachecos iconography inuenced
the Immaculata.[102] A novena of prayers, with a specic other Spanish artists such as Bartolom Murillo, Diego
prayer for each of the nine days has been composed under Velzquez, and Francisco Zurbarn, who each produced a
the title of the Immaculate Conception Novena.[103]
number of artistic masterpieces based on the use of these
same symbols.[105][106]
The popularity of this particular representation of The
Immaculate Conception spread across the rest of Europe,
9 Artistic representations
and has since remained the best known artistic depiction of the concept: in a heavenly realm, moments after
Main article: Roman Catholic Marian art
her creation, the spirit of Mary (in the form of a young
The 1476 extension of the feast of the Immaculate Conwoman) looks up in awe at (or bows her head to) God.
The moon is under her feet and a halo of twelve stars surround her head, possibly a reference to a woman clothed
with the sun from Revelation 12:1-2. Additional imagery may include clouds, a golden light, and cherubs. In
some paintings the cherubim are holding lilies and roses,
owers often associated with Mary.[107]

10 Gallery
di Cosimo Immaculate Conception, 1505
Rubens Immaculate Conception 1628-1629
Zurbarn Immaculate Conception, 1630
Murillo Immaculate Conception, 1650
Murillo Immaculate Conception, 1660
Murillo Immaculate Conception, 1678
Carlo Maratta, 1689
Juan Antonio Escalante 17th century
Santa Maria degli Angeli, Rome
Baroque altar in Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church, Portugal
Caxias do Sul museum, Brazil
Swiss emblem 16th century

ception to the entire Latin Church reduced the likelihood

of controversy for the artist or patron in depicting an image, so that emblems depicting The Immaculate Conception began to appear.[104]
Many artists in the 15th century faced the problem of
how to depict an abstract idea such as the Immaculate

Statue, Porto Alegre, Brazil, 19th century

Palmi, Immaculate Conception, 1925
Nicaragua Immaculate Conception, 1950
Our Lady of Aparecida, Brasilia
The Immaculate Conception, Church of the Immaculate Conception in Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain).

11

See also

[2] John Warwick Montgomery, Chesterton the Apologist,

in Global Journal of Classic Theoloogy, vol. 3, No. 1
(06/03)
[3] Christian History, The Un-Apologist
[4] Catechism of the Catholic Church, 490-493
[5] Christianity: Immaculate Conception. BBC. Retrieved
25 May 2014.
[6] the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin
Mary, in the rst instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view
of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the human
race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin
(Encyclical Ineabilis Deus of Pope Pius IX)

Immaculate Conception celebration in Guatemala.

[7] Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911, The Immaculate Conception

[8] Encyclical Mystici Corporis, 110

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (disambiguation)

Congregation of the Immaculate Conception
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
Immaculate Mary
Immaculata prayer
Miraculous medal
Marian doctrines of the Catholic Church
Mother of God (Roman Catholic)
Original sin
Patronages of the Immaculate Conception
Perpetual virginity of Mary
Roman Catholic Marian art
Virgin birth of Jesus

12

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Le Franc, Martin. The Conception of Mary -- A

Rhyming Translation of Book V of Le Champion des
Dames by Martin Le Franc (1410-1461). Ed. and
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[9] Denzinger 833, old numbering.

[10] As the Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) somewhat coyly puts
it, Her body was formed in the womb of the mother, and
the father had the usual share in its formation. The question does not concern the immaculateness of the generative activity of her parents, Immaculate Conception,
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[11] St Anne, Catholic Encyclopedia
[12] The Catholicism Answer Book by John Trigilio, Kenneth
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[14] Council of Orange II, Canon 19 That no one is saved
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[15] Theology for Beginners by Francis Joseph Sheed 1958
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[16] The celebration of the Mother of God as immaculate
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recognition of her Immaculate Conception ( John Anthony McGuckin, The Orthodox Church: An Introduction
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[17] Raymond Burke, 2008, Mariology: A Guide for Priests,
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[18] Patrologia Graeca 36: 326B 41-42; idem, 36: 633C 7-8
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10

[20] Nicolas Cabasilas (1371?). Homlies sur la Nativit,

LAnnonciation et la Dormition de la Sainte Vierge, ed.
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[21] Joseph Bryennius,
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all unworthy persons with respect to her, as is reasonable.
But she procured for herself the excellence superior to all
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[22] Francis X. Weiser, The Holyday Book (Harcourt, Brace
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[23] Michael Kunzler, The Churchs Liturgy (Continuum International 2002 ISBN 978-0-8264-1353-6), pp. 434-435
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[30] Saint Conleths Catholic Heritage Association
[31] Denzinger 735 (old numbering)
[32] Denzinger 792 (old numbering)
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[34] Paul Cavendish, The Tridentine Mass

[35] Marion A. Habig, Land of Mary Immaculate
[36] Supremi disciplin in Catholic Encyclopedia
[37] These petitions were renewed in these our own times;
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[38] Pareri dell'episcopato cattolico, di capitoli ... etc., sulla
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[39] 3-11-2013; Il mistero di Maria: teologia, storia, devozione
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Andaloro, P. Mariano Spada, o.p. interprete di San Tommaso sull'Immucolata Concezione, Catania, 1958
[40] The Creeds of Christendom by Philip Scha 2009 ISBN
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[41] Papal Denition of the Immaculate Conception.
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[42] Jenny Schroedel, The Everything Mary Book (Adams
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[43] Mark Miravalle, 1993, Introduction to Mary, Queenship
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[44] EWTN
[45] Vatican website
[46] Agenzia Fides - Congregazione per l'Evangelizzazione
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[47] Pope Pius XII, Encyclical Fulgens corona, 10
[48] Mariology
Society
of
mariologicalsocietyofamerica.us

America

http://

[49] Centers of Marian Study http://www.servidimaria.org/en/

attualita/promotori2/promotori2.htm
[50] Publishers Notice in the Second Italian Edition (1986),
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[51] Ullathorne, William Bernard, The immaculate conception
of the Mother of God, an exposition, 1855.
[52] Summa Theologica, III, q. 27, art. 3
[53] Marys Immaculate Conception
[54] Encyclopedia of theology: a concise Sacramentum mundi
by Karl Rahner 2004 ISBN 0-86012-006-6 pages 896898
[55] Merriam-Websters Collegiate Encyclopedia (MerriamWebster 2001 ISBN 978-0-87779-017-4), p. 795

11

[56] Brian Reynolds, Gateway to Heaven: Marian Doctrine

and Devotion Image and Typology in the Patristic and
Medieval Periods, vol. 1 (NY: New City Press, 2012),
348-353.
[57] Sophronios of Jerusalem, In Sanctissimae Deiparae
Annuntiationem (Patrologia Graeca 87.3:3248A
24): ,
,

, . N.B.,
oudeis kata se prokekathartai was rendered in Latin as
nemo, sicut tu, puricante gratia praeoccupatus est.
[58] Sophronios of Jerusalem, In Sanctissimae Deiparae Annuntiationem (Patrologia Graeca, 87.3: 3273D 43):
, , ,
,
.; idem, Encomium in S. Iohannem Baptistam, PG 87:3332C
[59] The air, the ery ether, the sky would have been made
holy by the ascent of her spirit, as earth was sanctied
by the deposition of her body. Even water had its share
in the blessing: for she was washed in pure water, which
did not so much cleanse her as it was itself consecrated.
See John Damascene, On the Holy and Glorious Dormition and Transformation of Our Lady Mary, Mother of
God and Ever-Virgin by Our Holy Father John, Monk of
Damascus and Son of Mansour. Homily 2, in On the Dormition of Mary: Early Patristic Homilies, tr. B. Daley
(Crestwood, NY :1998), 215.
[60] Christiaan Kappes, The Immaculate Conception: Why
Thomas Aquinas Denied, While John Duns Scotus, Gregory Palamas, and Mark Eugenicus Professed the Absolute Immaculate Existence of Mary (Bedford, MA:
Academy of the Immaculate, 2014), 39-61

[73] See
https://www.academia.edu/4375213/The_
Immaculate_Conception_Why_Thomas_Aquinas_
Denied_While_John_Duns_Scotus_Gregory_Palamas_
and_Mark_Eugenicus_Professed_the_Absolute_
Immaculate_Existence_of_Mary , pp. 69-81
[74] Christiaan Kappes, The Immaculate Conception: Why
Thomas Aquinas Denied, While John Duns Scotus, Gregory Palamas, and Mark Eugenicus Professed the Absolute Immaculate Existence of Mary (Bedford, MA:
Academy of the Immaculate, 2014), 69-92; 157-169
[75] Mark of Ephesus, On the Distinction between Essence
and Energy: First Antirrhetic against Manuel Kalekas.
Editio princeps, ed. M. Pilavakis (Unpublished doctoral
dissertation), London 1987: But He did so with her, after he prepuried () her through a most
profuse grace by means of the protecting Holy Spirit and
divine power [...]"
[76] Kebra Nagast, Chapter 96:Concerning the Prophecy about
christ
[77] Old Roman Catholic Church of North America - What
IS Catholic?". Orccna.org. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
[78] Luthers Works, American edition, vol. 43, p. 40, ed. H.
Lehmann, Fortress, 1968
[79] Gregory Lee Jackson Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant: A
Doctrinal Comparison ( 1993 ISBN 978-0-615-16635-3),
p. 249
[80] The Protestant faith by George Wolfgang Forell 1962
ISBN 0-8006-1095-4 page 23
[81] Jesus in history, thought, and culture: an encyclopedia,
Volume 1 by James Leslie Houlden 2003 ISBN 1-57607856-6 page

[61] Genesis 28:12

[62] Exodus 3:2
[63] Song 4:4
[64] Song 4:12
[65] Psalm 87:1
[66] Isaiah 6:1-4
[67] Luke 1:28
[68] Our Lady Saint Mary by J.G.H. Barry, 2008, ISBN 0-55424332-6, pages 25-27
[69] Common Worship: Festivals (Church House Publishing,
Church of England ISBN 978-0-7151-2114-6), p. 20
[70] Ecumenical Aairs - Dialogues - Anglican Roman
Catholic Paragraph 78 - Accessed 8 December 2008
[71] Ecumenical Aairs - Dialogues - Anglican Roman
Catholic Paragraph 60 - Accessed 8 December 2008
[72] John Meyendor, The Orthodox Church: Its Past and Its
Role in the World Today (St Vladimirs Seminary Press
1996 ISBN 978-0-913836-81-1), p. 181

[82] George Sale, Koran, commonly called the Alcoran of Mohammed, chapter 3, p. 39
[83] Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the
Roman Empire, vol. V, chapter 50
[84] The Evangelical Repository and United Presbyterian Review (Philadelphia 1865), vol. XLII, p. 433
[85] Thomas Patrick Hughes, A Dictionary of Islam. First
published London 1885; reprinted by Asian Educational Services 2001. ISBN 8120606728, ISBN
9788120606722. Entry IMMACULATE CONCEPTION. (Google Books) Quote: This doctrine was asserted by Muhammad (Mishkt, book i., ch. iii., pt. 1).
[86] William Bernard Ullathorne. The Immaculate Conception
of the Mother of God: An Exposition. First published
1855; ISBN 1-110-89977-7. Chapter XIV, Mahomet
and Martin Luther. (Google Books)
[87] Giancarlo Finazzo. The Virgin Mary in the Koran.
L'Osservatore Romano Weekly Edition in English, 13
April 1978, page 4. Quote: The dogma of the Immaculate Conception ... is univocally recognized by the Islamic
religion.

12

14

EXTERNAL LINKS

[88] Khwaja Nazir Ahmad, Jesus in Heaven on Earth, chapter

8

Catholic Encyclopedia entry on the Immaculate

Conception

[89] Roy Jackson, Mawlana Mawdudi and Political Islam

(Routledge 2011 ISBN 0-203-84872-1), p. 180

Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Original Sin

[90] Abdelwahab Bouhdiba, Muammad Marf Dawlb,

The Dierent Aspects of Islamic Culture (Bernan Associates 1998 ISBN 978-92-3-102742-0), p. 264
[91] Juan Eduardo Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam (Infobase
Publishing 2009 ISBN 978-1-43812696-8), p. 559
[92] Cleo McNelly Kearns, The Virgin Mary, Monotheism and
Sacrice (Cambridge University Press 2008 ISBN 978-052187156-3), p. 254
[93] The text (in Latin) is given at Tota Pulchra Es - GMEA
Honor Chorus.
[94] Tota pulchra es Maria, Canto gregoriano
[95] Anton Bruckner - Tota pulchra es
[96] Maurice Duru: Tota pulchra es Maria
[97] Poznaskie Sowiki - Tota pulchra es ( G. G. Gorczycki)
[98] Tota pulchra es, Grex Vocalis
[99] Jos Maurcio Nunes Garcia
[100] Tota Pulchra - Composed by Nikolaus Schap
[101] Immaculate prayers
[102] University of Dayton Marian prayers
[103] EWTN Immaculate Conception Novena
[104] Emblems for Immaculate Conception
[105] sotrisme, gnoses & imaginaire symbolique: mlanges offerts Antoine Faivre by Richard Caron, Antoine Faivre
2001 ISBN 90-429-0955-2 page 676
[106] Divine Mirrors: The Virgin Mary in the Visual Arts by
Melissa R. Katz and Robert A. Orsi 2001 ISBN 0-19514557-7 page 98
[107] Our Lady in Art by Katherine Lee Rawlings Jenner 2009
ISBN 1-103-32689-9 pages 3-9

14

External links

The Immaculate Conception in Art (Painting)

Ineabilis Deus (Apostolic Constitution of Pope
Pius IX dening the dogma of the Immaculate Conception)
Godzinki: The Little Hours of the Immaculate Conception
St. Alphonsus Liguoris writing on the Immaculate
Conception in his book The Glories of Mary

The Immaculate Conception. A study by a Melkite

archimandrite
The Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God
based on Juniper Carols Mariology and William
Bernard Ullathornee's book
St. Augustine and Original Sin a short article on the dierent understandings of Original Sin
in Eastern and Western Christianity, without distinguishing Protestant theology from Roman Catholic.
The latter holds that original sin does not have the
character of a personal fault in any of Adams descendants (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 405).
Mark I. Miraville (editor), Mariology: A Guide
for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated
Persons
Original Sin According To St. Paul by John S. Romanides
Catechism of the Catholic Church Conceived by
the Power of the Holy Spirit and Born of the Virgin Mary

13

15
15.1

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

Text

Immaculate Conception Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immaculate%20Conception?oldid=647747148 Contributors: AxelBoldt,

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, Jexen0127, Keith Cascio, Zink Dawg, Fastilysock, Athene cheval, PleaseStand, Tbhotch, HOTCC, Maynilad, Joseph Spadaro, TjBot, Beyond My Ken, Hajatvrc, MrRedBeard, Talmid3, Esoglou, Marishia01,
Stebunik, Slightsmile, Manfredwinslow, Judistian, Christina Silverman, BlizzmasterPilch, Aarondarlington, Willthacheerleader18, Parvulus
scholasticus, ClamDip, Imorthodox23, Jesusisthemessiah, ClueBot NG, IamKRnatino, PatrickGuadalupe, Satellizer, Stevenmillen, Hazhk,
Ianlopez12, Mannanan51, PT33Judistian, Jorgenev, Radovanovic, Helpful Pixie Bot, Jean-Pol GRANDMONT, GattiM, Juro2351, Messiaindarain, ElphiBot, Allenjambalaya, Dainomite, Arminden, Agneljose, Tpwhdeodhkd, BattyBot, LoveforMary, Cherboizzz, Andrej Mohorcic, Khazar2, Spetsnaz1991, McCreeper, AthanasiusOfAlex, Webclient101, Mogism, HeartyBowl1989, Quiet Editor, Tomlin87721,
QvisDevs, Frosty, SFK2, Matthewrobertolson, Hoppeduppeanut, Knatino, JaconaFrere, Filedelinkerbot, Horselover Fats, Hnc78, JudeccaXIII, TreasureIslandMediaBoss and Anonymous: 504

15.2

Images

File:046CupolaSPietro.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5a/046CupolaSPietro.jpg License: CC BY-SA

3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: MarkusMark
File:Coat_of_arms_of_the_Holy_See.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Coat_of_arms_Holy_See.svg
License: Public domain Contributors:
Bruno Bernhard Heim, Heraldry in the Catholic Church: Its Origin, Customs and Laws (Van Duren 1978 ISBN 9780391008731), p. 54;
Original artist: F l a n k e r
File:Commons-logo.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original
artist: ?
File:Emblem_of_the_Holy_See_usual.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Emblem_of_the_Holy_See_
usual.svg License: CC0 Contributors:
Keys: File:Sede_vacante.svg Original artist: Gambo7
File:Emblem_of_the_Papacy_SE.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Emblem_of_the_Papacy_SE.svg
License: Public domain Contributors:
File:Coat of arms Holy See.svg Original artist: Cronholm144 created this image using a le by User:Hautala - File:Emblem of Vatican City
State.svg, who had created his le using PD art from Open Clip Art Library and uploaded on 13 July 2006. User talk:F l a n k e r uploaded
this version on 19 January 2007.

14

15

TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

File:Gloriole_blur.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Gloriole_blur.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Eubulides
File:ImmaculateEmblem.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b5/ImmaculateEmblem.jpg License: Public domain
Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
File:Kirchenfenster_Bckweiler.jpg Source:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/02/Kirchenfenster_B%C3%
B6ckweiler.jpg License: CC BY-SA 2.0 Contributors: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11596438@N00/2435169073/sizes/o/in/
photostream/ Original artist: tiegeltuf
File:LaPurisimaInmaculadaConcepciondeRibera.jpg
Source:
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File:Lusenberg-Immaculata-1876.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Lusenberg-Immaculata-1876.
jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Wolfgang Moroder
File:Mary-header.svg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Mary-header.svg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Jayarathina
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conception.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Unknown Original artist: Bartolom Esteban Murillo
File:Panachranta.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/62/Panachranta.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: English Wikipedia Original artist: Alipij
File:Perlez_Mary-Immaculate.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Perlez_Mary-Immaculate.jpg License: CC BY 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Stebunik
File:San_Pedro_de_las_Bombas.avi.OGG Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/San_Pedro_de_las_Bombas.
avi.OGG License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Manfredwinslow
File:Turkey.Konya035.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Turkey.Konya035.jpg License: CC BY 3.0
Contributors: Own work (own photo) Original artist: Georges Jansoone (JoJan
File:Vladimirskaya.jpg Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Vladimirskaya.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

15.3

Content license

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0