How did Jesus address Mary?
At the wedding feast of Cana, Jesus spoke the following to Mary:
“Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come” (John 2:4).
When Jesus was hanging on the cross, He said to Mary,
“ ‘Woman, behold your son.’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home” (John 19:26–27).
Earlier when Jesus was told that His mother and brothers wanted to speak to Him, Jesus replied,
“ ‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother’ ” (Matthew 12:48–50).
In the first two passages above, Jesus referred to His mother as “woman.” He did not show disrespect for her, but neither did He show her any special respect or honor. He referred to her as “woman,” which shows that she was just that—a woman. Jesus did not address her as “Most Holy Mother,” nor did He even address her as “mother.” Although Mary was a very special and righteous woman, she was still just a woman—not a venerated Helper or Benefactor, and definitely not an Advocate or Mediatrix.
Luke 11:27 and 28 demonstrate Jesus’ lack of emphasis on the importance of Mary:
“While he was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, ‘Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.’ He replied, ‘Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.’ ” (Luke 11:27-28)
The woman was publicly proclaiming that Mary was a special person who deserved special blessing. Some explain that this praise was intended to show that Mary was blessed because of Jesus. Either way, it was the perfect opportunity for Jesus to say, “Yes, My mother, Mary, is to be blessed and exalted.” Or at least, “Yes, you are correct.” But instead, Jesus responded by turning attention away from Mary and to the importance of hearing and observing God’s Word. He said, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” Jesus clearly placed greater value on God’s Word and the importance of hearing and observing it than He did on Mary.
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