An international symposium, dedicated to the study of Mary and her cultural and theological significance throughout history, commenced today at the Centro Russia Ecumenica in Rome.

The objective of the two-day event, entitled "Mary, Sign of Faith (and Only Hope)", is to explore the cult of Mary in order to explore her role in leading Christians towards greater devotion to Christ. Participants today had the opportunity to hear from a wide variety of experts, such as author Leonie Caldecott on the history of Marian images beginning with pre-Reformation England, as well as from historian Michael Hesemann on the historical person of Mary.

Edmund Mazza, history professor at Azusa Pacific University in Los Angeles, California, is the primary organizer for this symposium event. "It is important to look at Mary as a model, as a sign of faith," he said. "We're on our way to God, we don't see the beatific vision yet, so we need symbols, we need signs to take us on the road. And it's very important that we turn to Mary because as Louis de Montfort, the great doctor of the Church once said, it's through Mary that Jesus came into the world, and it's through Mary that Jesus will reign in the world. She had a role to play at the beginning when He first came, and she has a role to play now as we approach the end times."

This conference also comes just days before the opening of the bishops' synod on New Evangelization. Due to her unique role within salvation history, Mary is seen as central to evangelization. "Of course," Mazza continued, "any attempt at evangelization has to start with Mary because Mary was the first evangelizer. She held up little Baby Jesus and showed the Wise Men, and he was the light to the Gentiles. She helped Jesus work His first miracle when he began his public ministry."

Mary's role as evangelist, moreover, extends beyond the Gospels and to foreign continents. Our Lady of Guadalupe, for instance, was "the catalyst that helped to convert 9 million Aztecs over the course of 15 years, whereas before her apparition in Mexico City they had maybe a few hundred, or a few thousand converts."