Egregoros

@vitalis @lizzie while i find the hyperdulia vs latria distinction somewhat unconvincing I believe marian devotion is important because God the Father and God the Son are both masculine figures, and God is not masculine, feminine, or even neuter. scripturally i think marian devotion is only supported by the gospel of luke while her immaculate conception, perpetual virginity, and assumption/dormition are not supported at all. but canon scripture isnt itself revelation, its "just" the words of holy people for the most part. only "genuine" parts of the torah, the words of the prophets, and the words of Christ (Q source) are direct revelation imo. and i believe that revelation is a continuous thing, and while a lot of marian devotion was created by theologians and mariologists much of it was genuinely revealed to saints and to people who would become saints. i also believe that the veneration of icons and even idols passes through to their source, as that one council of whatever said. so not all graven images are bad imo, unless theyre bowed to and believed to be more divine than anything of that material is. its like in hinduism, forms of God can teach you about God, but one must eventually look past the forms. just my two cents.