The doctrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the studies of Russian theologians of the pre-revolutionary period (in the context of polemics with the roman catholic dogma of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary)

This article is devoted to an evaluation of the doctrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the writings of Orthodox theologians and the determination of their position regarding the Roman Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. During the pre-revolutionary period, polemic literature in Orthodox theology was actively published, aimed at criticizing Roman Catholic mariology. Orthodox formulations identified the main aspects of the Roman Catholic teaching about the Virgin that are contrary to the doctrines of the Orthodox Church. They emphasized the continuity of the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary from previous generations of the holy forefathers Joachim and Anna. The author of the article chronologically examines a number of sources on the issue of the Orthodox dogmatic teaching about the Mother of God and draws attention to the connection of the teaching about the Mother of God with Christology. The main argument refuting the Roman Catholic dogma of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary is that the Mother of God could not be freed from original sin before the atoning sacrifice of the God-man Jesus Christ. Based on an analysis of the sources of the pre-revolutionary period, a significant difference between the Eastern and Western Churches in the doctrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary is shown.