"Mary is an essential 'dimension' of the Gospel itself"

From one of the great Russian Orthodox theologians of the past century (he's got some fascinating stuff on sacramentality):

...if nothing else  were revealed in the Gospel than the mere fact of Mary's existence, i.e., that Christ, God and man, had a mother and that her name was Mary, it would have enough for the Church to love her, to think of her relationship with her Son, and to draw theological contemplations from this revelation.  Thus, there is no need for additional or special revelations; Mary is a self-evident and essential "dimension" of the Gospel itself.--Alexander Schmemann, "On Mariology in Orthodoxy", Celebration of Faith.