Have you ever wondered about the basis for what the Catholic Church teaches about Mary?
Or – how did attention to Mary develop in the Church over time?

Find out on Thursday, October 24 at 7 pm when Father Thomas Buffer of St. Mary Church in Marion visits Lancaster to expand our knowledge on Marian doctrines.  Fr. Buffer’s talk will focus on the first four Christian centuries, explaining how and why the early Church thought and spoke about the Mother of Jesus Christ, showing how the seeds the today’s Marian doctrines and dogmas were planted early on.

Fr. Thomas Buffer, a priest of the Diocese of Columbus was ordained in 1991. Before entering the seminary, he obtained a Bachelor of Music in Music Theory and Composition from The Ohio State University and worked as a parish music director and a pipe organ technician. After completing his seminary studies in Rome, he served in parish work for 7 years, during which time he completed a Licentiate degree in Marian Theology at the International Marian Research Institute at the University of Dayton.

In addition to his parish duties as a pastor to St. Mary in Marion and Sacred Hearts in Cardington, Fr. Buffer is active as a teacher, writer, and musician. He teaches graduate-level courses in patristics every summer at the International Marian Research Institute in Dayton and has been a visiting lecturer at the Liturgical Institute in Mundelein, Illinois. His scholarly reviews and articles have appeared in The Josephinum Journal of Theology, Antiphon, Marian Studies, Commonweal, and The New Catholic Encyclopedia. He has translated the books Mary and the Fathers of the Church and Mary in the Middle Ages, both by Fr. Luigi Gambero, for Ignatius Press.

Join us in the church on October 24 to learn more about the influence of the Blessed Mother on our faith.