From the Throne of Peter II

(photo credit - Holy Cards for Your Inspiration)

"...by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, for the honor of the Holy and undivided Trinity, for the glory and adornment of the Virgin Mother of God, for the exaltation of the Catholic Faith, and for the furtherance of the Catholic religion, by the authority of Jesus Christ our Lord, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own; We declare, pronounce and define that in the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary , in the first instance of her Conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful." -Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus, December 8, 1854