The Dignity of Women and the Example of Mary according to John Paul II

Sa？etak Mary is a role model to all - women and men. She is the image of the Church, the image of what every human being must achieve: holiness, obedience and eternal life with God. She accomplished all this because she was chosen by God and pronounced her “fiat”. Without her free consent, God could not have redeemed the world with the birth of Jesus Christ. She is a role model in motherhood and in virginity, in giving oneself to another and in attaining close union with God, what is the very purpose of existence. Although she is a role model to all, Mary is particularly a role model to women who, following her example, can achieve a deep union with God and their true essence, and become “keepers of the human heart”. Therein lies her special dignity. The dignity of women modeled on Mary was developed especially by John Paul II in the documents “Redemptoris Mater” and “Mulieris Dignitatem” that underlie the development of this topic