For some believers, seeing Mary as a co-redeemer is a conviction. Mary is then placed alongside Jesus. She then becomes their saviour and mediator of God's grace. Their faith in Mary is certainly as great as that in Jesus. There are also people who see Mary as the highest and most important in their faith. Mary is then the only one to whom they pray and in whom they place their trust. Their hope is entirely directed towards Mary. These believers in Mary consider the title “co-redeemer” as self-evident, and have done so for centuries.
In the Catholic Church, the rule is not to agree that Mary is seen as a co-redeemer. Believers are instructed not to use the title of Mary as co-redeemer. The rule from Rome stands in stark contrast to what a believer feels and experiences with Mary.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith of the Vatican in Rome is an organ of the Roman Curia. This influential branch of the Vatican aims to promote and protect the integrity of Roman Catholic doctrine on faith and morals. On 4 November 2025, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith released a note warning against excessive Marian titles. The doctrinal writing is titled “Mater Populi Fidelis” (“Faithful Mother of the People“). The aim of the publication is to clarify the Roman Catholic position on the role of Mary in salvation history. It contains 80 paragraphs dedicated to the correct understanding of Marian titles. This is to clarify which titles ”Rome“ finds acceptable or not and to impose this on Catholics. The Vatican considers the title ”co-redemptrix“ inappropriate and bans it for Mary. The title ”mediatrix" is acceptable to this Church.
It is clear that the memo was intended to improve ecumenical relations. It is known that Protestants often adopt a critical attitude towards the veneration of Mary in the Catholic Church. Three successive church leaders have rejected the title of Mary as co-redeemer. First, this was done by Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger (1927-2022), Pope Benedict XIV from 2005 to 2013, then by Jorge Maria Bergoglio (1936-2025), Pope Francis from 2013 to 2025, and now by Robert Francis Prevost (*1955), Pope Leo XIV from 2025.
Rob (Robertus Gerardus Leonia Maria) Mutsaerts, auxiliary bishop of “s-Hertogenbosch since 2010, has criticised the Vatican's stance on the title ”co-redeemer‘. He argues that Mary's cooperation in redemption certainly does not threaten Christ's role, but rather is part of an age-old Catholic tradition. The auxiliary bishop finds it extremely strange that “Rome” wants to ban a word for fear it will be misunderstood.
Among believers, calls are being made to give Mary extra honour due to “Rome's” attitude. These people find it completely incomprehensible to strip Mary of titles. They also say that bowing down to Protestants is, because Mary can be seen as an obstacle to ecumenism.
By not calling Mary co-redeemer and universal mediator in the Catholic Church, her supernatural mystery is erased. The consequence of this is that the figure of Mother Mary is reduced to smaller proportions.
The question of whether to grant Mary the title of co-redemptrix has been debated for centuries. Innovative, philosophical thinkers and writers have published on this topic. A prominent figure is Edmund Burke (1729-1797). This Anglo-Irish author, philosopher, journalist, and politician writes about religious tolerance with the emancipation of Catholics. There is officially little evidence of this tolerance in the current Catholic Church.
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