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Mary Through the Centuries: Her Place in the History of Culture
The Virgin Mary has been an inspiration to more people than any other woman who ever lived. For Catholics, Protestants, Jews, and Muslims, for artists, musicians, and writers, and for women and men everywhere she has shown many faces and personified a variety of virtues. In this important book, a world-renowned scholar who is the author of numerous books—including the best-selling Jesus Through the Centuries—tells how Mary has been depicted and venerated through the ages.
Jaroslav Pelikan examines the biblical portrait of Mary, analyzing both the New and Old Testaments to see how the bits of information provided about her were expanded into a full-blown doctrine. He explores the view of Mary in late antiquity, where the differences between Mary, the mother of Christ, and Eve, the "mother of all living," provided positive and negative symbols of women. He discusses how the Eastern church commemorated Mary and how she was portrayed in the Holy Qur'an of Islam. He explains how the paradox of Mary as Virgin Mother shaped the paradoxical Catholic view of sexuality and how Reformation rejection of the worship of Mary allowed her to be a model of faith for Protestants. He considers also her role in political and social history. He analyzes the place of Mary in literature—from Dante, Spenser, and Milton to Wordsworth, George Eliot, and Goethe—as well as in music and art, and he describes the miraculous apparitions of Mary that have been experienced by the common people.
Was Mary human or divine? Should she be revered for her humility or her strength? What is her place in heaven? Whatever our answers to these questions, Mary remains a symbol of hope and solace, a woman, says Pelikan, for all seasons and all reasons.
Jaroslav Pelikan examines the biblical portrait of Mary, analyzing both the New and Old Testaments to see how the bits of information provided about her were expanded into a full-blown doctrine. He explores the view of Mary in late antiquity, where the differences between Mary, the mother of Christ, and Eve, the "mother of all living," provided positive and negative symbols of women. He discusses how the Eastern church commemorated Mary and how she was portrayed in the Holy Qur'an of Islam. He explains how the paradox of Mary as Virgin Mother shaped the paradoxical Catholic view of sexuality and how Reformation rejection of the worship of Mary allowed her to be a model of faith for Protestants. He considers also her role in political and social history. He analyzes the place of Mary in literature—from Dante, Spenser, and Milton to Wordsworth, George Eliot, and Goethe—as well as in music and art, and he describes the miraculous apparitions of Mary that have been experienced by the common people.
Was Mary human or divine? Should she be revered for her humility or her strength? What is her place in heaven? Whatever our answers to these questions, Mary remains a symbol of hope and solace, a woman, says Pelikan, for all seasons and all reasons.
288 pages, Paperback
First published September 25, 1996
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559 people want to read
About the author
Jaroslav Pelikan
176 books133 followersJaroslav Jan Pelikan was born in Akron, Ohio, to a Slovak father and mother, Jaroslav Jan Pelikan Sr. and Anna Buzekova Pelikan. His father was pastor of Trinity Slovak Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois, and his paternal grandfather a bishop of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches then known as the Slovak Lutheran Church in America.
According to family members, Pelikan's mother taught him how to use a typewriter when he was three years old, as he could not yet hold a pen properly but wanted to write. A polyglot, Pelikan's facility with languages may be traced to his multilingual childhood and early training. That linguistic facility was to serve him in the career he ultimately chose (after contemplating becoming a concert pianist)--as a historian of Christian doctrine. He did not confine his studies to Roman Catholic and Protestant theological history, but also embraced that of the Christian East.
In 1946 when he was 22, he earned both a seminary degree from Concordia Seminary in Saint Louis, Missouri and a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago.
Pelikan wrote more than 30 books, including the five-volume The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (1971–1989). Some of his later works attained crossover appeal, reaching beyond the scholarly sphere into the general reading public (notably, Mary Through the Centuries, Jesus Through the Centuries and Whose Bible Is It?).
His 1984 book The Vindication of Tradition gave rise to an often quoted one liner. In an interview in U.S. News & World Report (June 26, 1989), he said: "Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living. Tradition lives in conversation with the past, while remembering where we are and when we are and that it is we who have to decide.
"Traditionalism supposes that nothing should ever be done for the first time, so all that is needed to solve any problem is to arrive at the supposedly unanimous testimony of this homogenized tradition."
According to family members, Pelikan's mother taught him how to use a typewriter when he was three years old, as he could not yet hold a pen properly but wanted to write. A polyglot, Pelikan's facility with languages may be traced to his multilingual childhood and early training. That linguistic facility was to serve him in the career he ultimately chose (after contemplating becoming a concert pianist)--as a historian of Christian doctrine. He did not confine his studies to Roman Catholic and Protestant theological history, but also embraced that of the Christian East.
In 1946 when he was 22, he earned both a seminary degree from Concordia Seminary in Saint Louis, Missouri and a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago.
Pelikan wrote more than 30 books, including the five-volume The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (1971–1989). Some of his later works attained crossover appeal, reaching beyond the scholarly sphere into the general reading public (notably, Mary Through the Centuries, Jesus Through the Centuries and Whose Bible Is It?).
His 1984 book The Vindication of Tradition gave rise to an often quoted one liner. In an interview in U.S. News & World Report (June 26, 1989), he said: "Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living. Tradition lives in conversation with the past, while remembering where we are and when we are and that it is we who have to decide.
"Traditionalism supposes that nothing should ever be done for the first time, so all that is needed to solve any problem is to arrive at the supposedly unanimous testimony of this homogenized tradition."
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
October 5, 2009
If you could somehow sort out everything in the history of Christianity pertaining to Mary, what would be left? So asks the author. It's a very helpful look at the history of Mary's cultural, social, and of course theological influences. There are some esoteric digressions into Goethe and Dante that I just couldn't follow, being unfamiliar with the works he examines, but most everything else was worthwhile. Those perplexed by Catholic Marian doctrine won't find a robust defense of it here, but it certainly does provide a survey of the whole that helps explain Mary's place at the heart of the Church--a heart that can never be considered in isolation from its Head.
March 21, 2016
I found the subject extremely interesting and there is so much 'meat' here in this beautifully produced and scholarly book. Here we learn of the perception(s) of Mary in the churches of the East and the West; in the Koran (pretty much reverenced here); 'daughter' (and alter ego) of Eve and mother of the Saviour, born to redeem all Eve's children.
The cult of Mary was particularly strong in the Middle Ages, one of her many roles was as a sort of war goddess (role model for Joan of Arc?) The different perceptions of the Holy Mother to Catholic and Protestant. Hugely interesting and some gorgeous illustrations and photographs.. there's a BUT though... the author's style of writing. Some ridiculously long sentences found me reading and re-reading these many times and often moving on, less enlightened as a result than I'd hoped to be. A pity...but I shan't be parting with this book in a hurry.
The cult of Mary was particularly strong in the Middle Ages, one of her many roles was as a sort of war goddess (role model for Joan of Arc?) The different perceptions of the Holy Mother to Catholic and Protestant. Hugely interesting and some gorgeous illustrations and photographs.. there's a BUT though... the author's style of writing. Some ridiculously long sentences found me reading and re-reading these many times and often moving on, less enlightened as a result than I'd hoped to be. A pity...but I shan't be parting with this book in a hurry.
February 22, 2015
Hard to read but worth it. Pelikan's scholarship is amazing; this is a brilliant study on two levels--first, as the title suggests, a thoughtful overview of the development of the church's interesting, moving, and often problematic relationship with Mary; second, as a careful and at times meticulous study of how doctrine develops and dogma is "settled." Hard to read because Pelikan's style is so convoluted and self-interrupting, but, as I said, worth it.
Anyone interested in the history of the church as a "dialogue" between popular piety and emerging doctrinal "clarity" should read.
I should also add: there is a really interesting ongoing discussion in this book around the role of art not only in the expression of doctrine but also in its influence on the development of doctrine.
Anyone interested in the history of the church as a "dialogue" between popular piety and emerging doctrinal "clarity" should read.
I should also add: there is a really interesting ongoing discussion in this book around the role of art not only in the expression of doctrine but also in its influence on the development of doctrine.
September 18, 2019
A helpful--and global--look at Mary's place in cultural history. She's often overlooked and downplayed in Protestantism, most often unmentioned in discussions of the gospel, so I found Pelikan's exploration enlightening. Considerations of the Black Madonna, Mary in Islam, and Our Lady of Guadalupe make this a timely volume.
August 5, 2025
An interesting look at Mary throughout history and culture. I thought there would be more interaction with art and cultural significances of Mary, but was pleasantly surprised at the theological conversations throughout the book.
October 6, 2016
This book is, as advertised, a primarily historical account of the development of Marian theology and belief, beginning with the Gospels all the way through the 20th century. Jaroslav Pelikan does a good job differentiating between popular piety and Church or scholarly authority—without placing all the weight on the latter.
The author maintains some scholarly detachment and does not pick sides in, for instance, Protestant vs. Roman Catholic quarrels of the Reformation. He does show that the relationship of the Roman Catholic Church to Marian devotion has been much more complicated than one might assume—and that Marian devotion is not without precedent in Protestant or even Muslim contexts.
The author maintains some scholarly detachment and does not pick sides in, for instance, Protestant vs. Roman Catholic quarrels of the Reformation. He does show that the relationship of the Roman Catholic Church to Marian devotion has been much more complicated than one might assume—and that Marian devotion is not without precedent in Protestant or even Muslim contexts.
March 3, 2017
I found this book incredibly thought-provoking. I took lots of notes throughout and have a dozen specific topics or other authors to look into having read and enjoyed it. So it was interesting, opened my eyes to whole new ideas and left me with a desire to learn more about a whole host of different subjects. That's a 5 star book for me.
February 4, 2017
Jaroslav Pelikan (1923-2006) was a distinguished 20th-21st century scholar, historian & theologian. Author of some 30 books, Pelikan was ordained a Lutheran pastor in the 1940's, but converted in 1998 to the Orthodox Church in America along with his wife.
This book, published in 1996, reflects his deep interest & knowledge in one aspect of both Roman Catholicism & the Orthodox tradition, viz., the person of Mary, mother of Jesus. Pelikan notes that, at the end of 1995, Yale University Library had a list of some 2424 books on the Virgin Mary just in that library alone! So, this book, while not an exhaustive treatise on Mary, is a wonderful survey & summary of the historical & theological highlights of the development of devotion to Mary, and its various manifestations, throughout the Christian Church denominations.
My opinion is that the book could be a helpful introduction to Mary for anyone, so theologically inclined, without a background in the Christian faith.
This book, published in 1996, reflects his deep interest & knowledge in one aspect of both Roman Catholicism & the Orthodox tradition, viz., the person of Mary, mother of Jesus. Pelikan notes that, at the end of 1995, Yale University Library had a list of some 2424 books on the Virgin Mary just in that library alone! So, this book, while not an exhaustive treatise on Mary, is a wonderful survey & summary of the historical & theological highlights of the development of devotion to Mary, and its various manifestations, throughout the Christian Church denominations.
My opinion is that the book could be a helpful introduction to Mary for anyone, so theologically inclined, without a background in the Christian faith.
June 1, 2024
The final entry in my Marian study of the past few months, Mary Through the Centuries chronicles the development of Catholic/Orthodox Marian doctrine, as well as Mary’s place in both Protestantism and Islam.
I appreciated the overview of Mariology in the Greek/Orthodox tradition (about which I know very little), and was fascinated to learn about Mary in the Qu’ran. But some of Pelikan’s other tangents felt much less relevant (the long description of Faust, for example) and his writing style is frequently dense and overly wordy.
Nevertheless, this is the book I would recommend to someone wanting to learn more of Mary in a non-didactic, scholarly manner. Pelikan makes no doctrinal assertions save that Mary is the woman with whom the world has grappled (and embraced) for the past 2000 years. I doubt anyone would dispute him on that point. What you believe from there is the work of God…and perhaps Mary herself.
3.75 stars.
I appreciated the overview of Mariology in the Greek/Orthodox tradition (about which I know very little), and was fascinated to learn about Mary in the Qu’ran. But some of Pelikan’s other tangents felt much less relevant (the long description of Faust, for example) and his writing style is frequently dense and overly wordy.
Nevertheless, this is the book I would recommend to someone wanting to learn more of Mary in a non-didactic, scholarly manner. Pelikan makes no doctrinal assertions save that Mary is the woman with whom the world has grappled (and embraced) for the past 2000 years. I doubt anyone would dispute him on that point. What you believe from there is the work of God…and perhaps Mary herself.
3.75 stars.
August 17, 2021
Jaroslav Pelikan’s book on Mary focuses less on the person of who Mary the both of Jesus was, but on the historical development of various aspects of Marian doctrine (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, even looking at Muslim/ the Quran’s view of Mary). Each chapter includes an artwork that is usually referenced later in the chapter and visually expresses whichever aspect of Marian doctrine he is focusing on.
This book helped me better understand how and why RC/ EO/ OO christians venerate Mary, and when/where/how doctrines such as Perpetual Virginity, Assumption or Immaculate Conception came about.
This book helped me better understand how and why RC/ EO/ OO christians venerate Mary, and when/where/how doctrines such as Perpetual Virginity, Assumption or Immaculate Conception came about.
February 26, 2025
This is a very academic but thorough history of Christian ideas about Mary. The adoration of Mary starts very early in Christian history. This is a laity lead series of idea that are made consistent with other dogmas by Christian philosophers. The book leads the reader through the development of the dogmas around Mary. This also includes the Protestant rebellion against the adoration of Mary but also the respect And teachings about her.
September 19, 2017
A lot of very academic flowery language; wading through all that was a challenge. Half the time the syntax itself was beyond my comprehension, and I struggled to find the "thesis" in practically every chapter. Nevertheless it wasn't so bad that I gave up on it. I did finish it, but I don't know if I could tell you what the main idea was supposed to be.
January 16, 2018
A nice survey of St. Mary's place across the history of Christian thought, from the first century to the present day, including reference to art, hymnody, and popular piety. Erudite and scholarly in its content, yet not overly thick or heavy, but more conversational, even whimsical, in its tone.
March 29, 2018
good introduction to mariology but mostly in the form of suggesting further primary sources. suffers, imo, from not doing as much discussion/analysis of mary in liberation theology & the global south as he could've.
April 10, 2025
Really solid overview of Mary through the centuries, though I take umbrage at calling Richard Crashaw a puritan (he was a laudian high church Anglican, okay!? He loooooooooved Mary even before he became a Catholic!).
December 9, 2025
Fantastic walkthrough of the development of how Christians view the Blessed Virgin. Historically and theologically well done.
February 24, 2018
What female name has been uttered more than any other in the West for the last 2 odd millennia? Pretty obvious when you think about it. So how did this come to be? If you're interested in the question you'll enjoy this academic, detailed book of Pelikan's. You need to read slowly and carefully as it is dense and at times seems to lose a bit of focus. Of particular interest and the sort of thing that more of those who adhere to the current clash of civilizations narrative should have thrown in their face is the reverence shown to her in the Koran and by Islam.
Some beautiful colour plates of different representations of The Annunciation through the ages round out this deeply engrossing study of one of the more attractive figures in the Christian pantheon. Even for those of us who are not practicing or believing Christians.
Some beautiful colour plates of different representations of The Annunciation through the ages round out this deeply engrossing study of one of the more attractive figures in the Christian pantheon. Even for those of us who are not practicing or believing Christians.
March 11, 2021
I picked this up because I loved the companion book, Jesus Through the Centuries. Unfortunately, I found the first book to be much clearer. I did learn a fair amount about the development of Marian thought, lots of which was entirely new to me with my Protestant background. Fascinating how so few lines in the Bible have transformed through the ages into a figure with a doctrine of her own and countless pieces of art, let alone the devotion of so many.
December 20, 2014
Mary Through the Centuries does not capture everything that people have ever thought about Mary, nor does it proceed systematically or chronologically. Instead, it contains the reflections of an old man reminding us of some of the gems from a religion that he loved more than life itself.
See my full review here: http://wordsbecamebooks.com/2014/12/2...
See my full review here: http://wordsbecamebooks.com/2014/12/2...
November 8, 2010
Very academic. I would recommend reading a few books (like the Gnostic bibles, some Pagel books, etc) before attempting. Well worth reading if you are at all interested in this subject.
January 13, 2011
Fascinating look at the way theology can develop through art prior to being articulated in argument.
January 27, 2013
Excellent study (somewhat academic) of the influence that the Virgin Mary has had on theology, art, and culture. Longer review here: http://eyesandearsblog.blogspot.com/2...
April 25, 2013
This is a good overview of how the Virgin Mary has been viewed thru the ages and from various traditions in Christianity (and Islam).
March 8, 2014
Very good historical account of Mariology.
April 15, 2016
This. Is. A. Extranary. Book.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews