Therefore, we believe, teach, and confess that Mary conceived and bore not only a plain, ordinary, mere man but the veritable Son of God; for this reason she is rightly called, and truly is, the mother of God. (FCE, Tappert, p. 488)

On account of this personal union and communion of the natures, Mary, the most blessed virgin, did not conceive a mere, ordinary human being, but a human being who is truly the Son of the most high God, as the angel testifies. He demonstrated his divine majesty even in his mother's womb in that he was born of a virgin without violating her virginity. Therefore she is truly the mother of God and yet remained a virgin. (FCSD, Tappert, p. 595)

I have been contemplating the role of Mary as we come closer to Christmas, and I sat back and thought about Lutheran Mariology and how it all depends on our Christology. Being that we are still catholic, we still rightly bestow the title of Theotokos (literally "God-bearer") upon her and show the respect due to her via the Fourth Commandment. The Apostle Paul declares Christ's church to actually be his body. We are the body of Christ and his representatives on earth. Mary is the mother of Christ and our God. This makes me ask the question how do we not call Mary the mother of the church? This is what I spent much of my morning contemplating and trying to wrap my head around. Logically, Mary has to be the mother of the Church. It is simple a=b, b=c, thus a=c logic. Perhaps the better question to ask is does this matter and is it a matter of saving faith? I doubt it. This may have been a futile exercise on my part, like arguing how many angels can dance on a pin. Even with that, the Fourth Commandment demands I give Mary her proper role.