c. AD 1
Scripture
Mary Luke 1:38
“And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word."”
Short answer
The Church teaches that Christ is the one Mediator, and she quotes 1 Timothy 2:5 to say so. Mary is a creature who cooperated with her Son by faith and obedience and who prays for his people as a mother. The Second Vatican Council says this role rests on Christ's mediation, depends entirely on it, and neither takes away from nor adds anything to his dignity as the one Mediator. The title Mediatrix is used only in this subordinate sense, and a 2025 note from the Holy See asks for special prudence in using it.
Drafted from primary sources. Every quotation is checked against the page it links to.
16 quotations in date order
The Apostolic AgeAD 1 to 100
c. AD 30
Scripture
St. John John 2:3, 11
“When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." … This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him.”
c. 55
Scripture
St. Paul 1 Corinthians 3:9
“For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.”
c. 65
Scripture
St. Paul to Timothy 1 Timothy 2:1, 5-6
“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, … For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all…”
c. 65
Scripture
Letter to the Hebrews Hebrews 9:15
“Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred which redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.”
The Early Church100 to 325
c. 180
Church Father
St. Irenaeus of Lyons Against Heresies 3.22.4
“[Eve] … having become disobedient, was made the cause of death, both to herself and to the entire human race; so also did Mary, having a man betrothed [to her], and being nevertheless a virgin, by yielding obedience, become the cause of salvation, both to herself and the whole human race.”
c. 180
Church Father
St. Irenaeus of Lyons Against Heresies 5.19.1
“And if the former did disobey God, yet the latter was persuaded to be obedient to God, in order that the Virgin Mary might become the patroness (advocata) of the virgin Eve.”
The Age of the Councils325 to 800
c. 401
Church Father
St. Augustine of Hippo Of Holy Virginity, 6
“And a mother indeed in the Spirit, not of our Head, Which is the Saviour Himself, of Whom rather she was born after the Spirit: forasmuch as all, who have believed in Him, among whom is herself also, are rightly called children of the Bridegroom: but clearly the mother of His members, which are we: in that she wrought together by charity, that faithful ones should be born in the Church, who are members of That Head: but in the flesh, the mother of the Head Himself.”
The Middle Ages800 to 1500
c. 1273
Doctor of the Church
St. Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologiae III, q. 26, a. 1, body
“And, consequently, Christ alone is the perfect Mediator of God and men, inasmuch as, by His death, He reconciled the human race to God. Hence the Apostle, after saying, "Mediator of God and man, the man Christ Jesus," added: "Who gave Himself a redemption for all." However, nothing hinders certain others from being called mediators, in some respect, between God and man, forasmuch as they cooperate in uniting men to God, dispositively or ministerially.”
The Modern Era1800 to today
1896
Magisterium
Pope Leo XIII Fidentem piumque animum, 3
“Undoubtedly the name and attributes of the absolute Mediator belong to no other than to Christ, for being one person, and yet both man and God, He restored the human race to the favour of the Heavenly Father: … And yet, as the Angelic Doctor teaches, there is no reason why certain others should not be called in a certain way mediators between God and man, that is to say, in so far as they cooperate by predisposing and ministering in the union of man with God … Such are the angels and saints, the prophets and priests of both Testaments; but especially has the Blessed Virgin a claim to the glory of this title.”
1904
Magisterium
Pope St. Pius X Ad diem illum laetissimum, 13-14
“It cannot, of course, be denied that the dispensation of these treasures is the particular and peculiar right of Jesus Christ, for they are the exclusive fruit of His Death, who by His nature is the mediator between God and man. Nevertheless, by this companionship in sorrow and suffering already mentioned between the Mother and the Son, it has been allowed to the august Virgin to be the most powerful mediatrix and advocate of the whole world with her Divine Son … We are then, it will be seen, very far from attributing to the Mother of God a productive power of grace - a power which belongs to God alone.”
1964
Council
Second Vatican Council Lumen Gentium 60
“There is but one Mediator as we know from the words of the apostle, "for there is one God and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a redemption for all". The maternal duty of Mary toward men in no wise obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows His power. For all the salvific influence of the Blessed Virgin on men originates, not from some inner necessity, but from the divine pleasure. It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on His mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it.”
1964
Council
Second Vatican Council Lumen Gentium 62
“Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked by the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix, and Mediatrix. … This, however, is to be so understood that it neither takes away from nor adds anything to the dignity and efficaciousness of Christ the one Mediator. … The Church does not hesitate to profess this subordinate role of Mary.”
1987
Magisterium
Pope St. John Paul II Redemptoris Mater, 38
“The Church knows and teaches with Saint Paul that there is only one mediator … In effect, Mary's mediation is intimately linked with her motherhood. It possesses a specifically maternal character, which distinguishes it from the mediation of the other creatures who in various and always subordinate ways share in the one mediation of Christ, although her own mediation is also a shared mediation.”
1992
Magisterium
Catechism of the Catholic Church CCC 970
“No creature could ever be counted along with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer; but just as the priesthood of Christ is shared in various ways both by his ministers and the faithful, and as the one goodness of God is radiated in different ways among his creatures, so also the unique mediation of the Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives rise to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source.”
2025
Magisterium
Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith Mater Populi Fidelis, 24-25
“The biblical statement about Christ's exclusive mediation is conclusive. Christ is the only Mediator, … Given this clarity in the revealed Word of God, special prudence is required when applying the term "Mediatrix" to Mary. … the word "mediation" is commonly used in many areas of everyday life, where it is understood simply as cooperation, assistance, or intercession. As a result, it is inevitable that the term would be applied to Mary in a subordinate sense. Used in this way, it does not intend to add any efficacy or power to the unique mediation of Jesus Christ, true God and true man.”