Who was the Virgin Mary and why is she so important?
The Virgin Mary was the mother of Jesus Christ. The Bible describes the angel Gabriel appearing to Mary, who was a young lady engaged to be married to a man named Joseph. They were not yet married, and Mary was a virgin. The angel told her that she would have a Son, who would be the Son of God -- Jesus. Mary knew that this would not be possible in human terms since she was a virgin. Nevertheless, she believed in faith and said to the angel, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”
It happened just as the angel foretold, and Mary became pregnant. She went to visit her relative Elizabeth, who became the mother of John the Baptist. Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out, "Blessed among women are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?"
Elizabeth, inspired by the Holy Spirit, knew that Mary would be the mother of God. Mary responded with a beautiful statement that has been called the "Magnificat," which is Latin for magnifying the Lord, which Mary starts her statement by doing. In the Magnificat, she says,
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name."
All generations have called Mary blessed, and she was blessed in many ways by God, but she also had much heartache with what happened to Jesus on the cross. It is important to note that Mary did not stay a virgin, and she went on to have several children with Joseph. The Bible does not refer to her as the Virgin Mary but as Mary, the Mother of Jesus.