I think we have answered Kern's original question very well.
"Some Protestants make a big deal about the supposed "Mary worship" in the Catholic church and such.
I haven't been to many masses since I started going to church again, but I don't recall any mention of Mary except for the line in the Nicene Creed about the virgin birth. Is this standard, or are there some churches that emphasize it more?"
I think this thread gives a good summary now about the Catholic Church's position on Mary. To summarize some of the thoughts;
"..it is possible for those who have died, such as Mary and the Saints, to intercede on our behalf and pray with us to God."
"As far as "feelings about Mary," it is the teaching of the Church...Mary is referred to as "the Mother of Mankind."
"The woman in Revelation in Heaven, with the crown of twelve stars, is also taught by the Church to be Mary."
"Mediatrix" is a term used to describe Mary's intercession for us in prayer."
"Yes, we can go to Mary with our requests for her intercession in prayer. And we can look to her for the comfort of a mother."
"Mary cooperated in the redemptive work in a way quite special way."
"Mary has a wonderful assortment of Titles. No other human being has ever played such a critical role for mankind. Mary is called "the New Eve." She's also called the "Ark of the New Covenant."
"She is the Mother of God."
I have done an exhaustive search in my bible over the years to support any of these thoughts and I can't find anything even closely resembling these positions. I find instead that Jesus only rebukes a woman who tried to overly exalt Mary in a similar manner in His day. A good warning to us all today I think.
LUK 11:27 While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed."
LUK 11:28 But He said, "On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it."
If the thoughts expressed in this thread were truely reflective of how Jesus felt about Mary, this was an absolutely excellent time for Him to agree with the woman and even expand on her praise of Mary with the same thoughts expressed in this thread. But instead He says, "On the contrary..."
The only other time I read of Jesus speaking to Mary is when He said, "..Woman, what have I to do with thee?..."
I was in another thread recently, and we were discussing how many times the Catholic church had to recant and revise it's official teaching because it ended up not being Scriptural. It was truely staggering! I wonder if this will be one of those times as well?