text: This was a fabulous resource for understanding the evolution of the Marian cult. The one weakness of this book is that it did not deal with the pre-Christian origins of the Marian cult. Other resources, however, cover  the evolution of the Anatolian fertility cult of Cybele into the Roman  Magna Mater and later into the so-called "BVM". The author does a  good job of showing the origins of various aspects of Mariology and  contrasting these developments with Christianity in the West. The author  has done a great service to those who wish to more fully understand the  syncretic process which blended Christianity with various pagan religions  and medeival political structures to create the Roman Catholic Church
  