righteous” (v. 5) The wicked are those who say in their hearts “There is no
God.” They are the corrupt who do abominable deeds, who seek not after
God and have gone astray. The words quoted by St. Paul refer exclusively
to them. On the other hand, God is with the righteous and is their refuge (v.
6).
In the context of his letter to the Romans, St. Paul is quoting Psalm 14 to
make the point that the Jews are no better off simply because they received
the knowledge of the truth before the Gentiles. In saying that “None is
righteous, no, not one” St. Paul is telling his readers that the Jews as well as
the Gentiles labor under the power of sin (v. 9). He is not speaking of all
individuals being in sin but of all races and gives the specific example of
Greeks as well (ibid.). Though collectively, races may be estranged from
God that does not preclude the possibility of individuals within those races
being exceptions.
Second objection: “There is nothing in the Bible about the
Immaculate Conception, so why should I believe it?”
The Church finds support for the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception in
the words of the Angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary: “Hail, full of grace, the
Lord is with thee”; and of St. Elizabeth: “Blessed art thou among women”
(St. Luke 1:28, 42). Most Protestants would prefer to render the Greek
kecharitomene as “highly favored” rather than “full of grace.”
Kecharitomene certainly relates to “grace” as its root word charis literally
means “grace.”² In fact, a strict translation of kecharitomene is “you who
have been graced.” Of the two options, “full of grace” is the more clear and
definite rendering of the Angel’s words and expressive of a characteristic
quality. She, who was to conceive the Incarnate Word, the Holy of Holies,
must herself be supremely holy and therefore be preserved not only from
actual sin, but also from all stain of original sin. The Angel’s words would
not have been fully truthful had the Virgin Mary, for even one moment,
been deprived of grace.
The Church, furthermore, asserts that God, immediately after Adam’s sin,
cursed Satan and said: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and
2
The King James Version of the Bible translates the word charis 129 times as
“grace.”
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