How Can Mary Be Without Sin?

In Romans 3:23, St. Paul famously declared, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 1 John 1:8 says, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us,” and Romans 3:10 adds, “None is righteous, no not one.”

In light of these Scripture verses, our Protestant friends will say, Mary couldn’t have been sinless as Catholics believe she was. She must have been a sinner like every other human being, and needed redemption.

How should Catholics respond to these prooftexts?

When I’m asked about Romans 3:23, I like to respond with the same series of questions that a young Catholic Marine named Sgt. Matt Dula asked me nearly thirty years ago, when I was serving in the United States Marine Corps and just starting on my road to Rome. The conversation went something like this:

Matt: “Do you mean to tell me that you believe Jesus Christ was a sinner? I’ve never heard of a Christian believing that before.”

Tim: “Of course not!”

Matt: “Well, if you believe literally that ‘if any man says he has no sin, he is a liar’ . . . I have to ask you: was Jesus Christ fully man?”

Tim: “Well, yes, but he was also God.”

Matt: “Yes, and Mary is the Mother of God, but that is not the question. Was Jesus fully man? If he was, and we are going to take 1 John 1:8 in a strict, literal sense, then Jesus was a sinner.”

Tim: “Okay, I see your point, but Jesus was an exception to Romans 3:10, 3:23, and 1 John 1:8. The Bible tells us so in Hebrews 4:15, which clearly says Christ was ‘tempted as we are, yet without sinning.’”

Matt: “Oh, so you admit there are exceptions, do you? What if I were to show you that there are millions of exceptions to these verses?”

Matt then explained to me what I have explained to thousands since. First of all, we need to know that all three of those prooftexts are dealing with personal sin, not original sin. (Romans 5:12 deals with original sin, and we can demonstrate exceptions there as well.) 1 John 1:8 clearly refers to personal sin because in the very next verse John tells us, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” We don’t confess original sin because we didn’t do it! Confession is only for personal sins.

The context of Romans 3:23, that it refers to personal sin, can be seen a few verses prior:

None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands, no one seeks for God. All have turned aside, together they have gone wrong; no one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave. They use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness (Rom. 3:10–14).

Original sin is not something we do; it is something we’ve inherited. As a result of the sin of Adam, we possess a fallen nature. That is the essence of original sin.

After explaining all of this, Matt asked, “Has a baby in the womb, or a child of two, ever committed a personal sin?”

“No, they have not,” I had to concede.

“Or how about the severely mentally challenged who do not have the use of their intellects and wills; have they committed personal sins?”

Once again, I had to agree the answer was no. In order to commit a sin, a person must have knowledge of the sinful act and full use of his will in performing that objectively sinful act.

“There!” declared Matt. “Millions of exceptions to Romans 3:23 and 1 John 1:8!”

My response at this point was similar to the response I often get today: “Well, that may be, but you can’t show me why Mary is another exception.” I didn’t realize it at the time (it would hit me later like a ton of bricks), but in so saying, my three “go-to” texts against Mary Immaculate went up in smoke!