The Cult of the Virgin Mary

"Every year over twelve million people make pilgrimages to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe and nearly four and a half million visit the shrine at Lourdes. Tracing this widespread and emotionally powerful devotion to Mary to psychological and historical processes that began in the fifth century, Michael Carroll offers lucid answers to a number of intriguing questions: What explains the many reports of Marian apparitions over the centuries? Why is Mary both "Virgin" and "Mother" simultaneously? Why has the Marian cult always been stronger in certain geographical areas than in others? The first half of the book presents a psychoanalytic explanation for the most salient facts about the Marian cult and the second addresses the question of Marian apparitions."--Publisher description