A World renewed in Love - the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
On September 8, the Church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Scriptures do not mention the birth of Mary. It was necessary for the Creator of people, who was to be born as a man, to choose from among all the women, or rather to create, such a Mother who would be worthy for Him ...
"Your Nativity, Mother of God,
heralded joy to the whole world:
for the sun of righteousness has risen from you,
Christ our God. He has smashed the curse
he gave us a blessing, he defeated death,
eternal life he has given us.
(Byzantine Liturgy)
The hour has come when - one might say - the ticking of the world clock has ceased. Silence and listening. An extremely important point in history is coming. The One in whom "the Lord has prepared the Source of life" is born. On September 8, the Church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Scriptures do not mention the birth of Mary. Traditionally, Anna is considered Mary's mother and Joachim, a member of David's royal family, is considered the father. They were pious Jews. Since their marriage was childless, they earnestly asked God for a child. God listened to their prayers and, as a reward for the unlimited trust placed in him, he made Anna give birth to a daughter, Mary.
A few bits of information: We do not know the place or date of Mary's birth
We do not know the place or date of Mary's birth. According to all the information available to us, Mary was born between the 20 and 16 years before the birth of Jesus. We learn from the apocryphal writings that at the age of four she was consecrated to the Lord. Among the apocryphal writings about Mary, the following should be mentioned: the Proto-Gospel of Jacob, the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew, the Gospel of the Nativity of Mary, the Arabic Gospel of the youth of Christ, the Story of Joseph Carpenter and the Book of the Passage of Mary. The Proto-Gospel of James had the greatest influence on the Church's tradition. It dates from around 150, so it is very close to the Gospel according to St. John. It is from there that we learn that Mary's parents were St. Joachim and St. Anna, and that Mary, as a child of several years, was offered by her parents in the temple, where she also lived. This description is followed by the commemoration of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Church on November 21.
These are just a few pieces of information that we can gather about the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. One thing is certain, that all her greatness and uniqueness comes from the gift of God's love and the choice to be the Mother of the only begotten Son. St. Bernard, a doctor of the Church, praises her mystery in the following way: "It was necessary that the Creator of men, who was to be born as a man, choose from among all the women, or rather create, such a Mother who would be worthy and kind to Him. She was not found by chance at the last moment, but for centuries she was chosen, predicted and prepared by the Most High, guarded by angels, announced by the patriarchs, promised by the prophets ... Therefore, of all the movements of the soul, of all feelings and experiences, only love illuminates everything and allows Mary to respond to her Creator with reciprocity, admittedly not equal, but similar”.
Love lights up everything
Today's feast reminds us that Mary was an ordinary person. Though preserved from the corruption of sin, she had had free will all her life, and was not determined to do anything. Just like each of us, she had her parents, she grew up, played, helped with running the house, she had her friends and relatives. It was only her trust, obedience and a faithful response to God's voice that "all generations will praise her".
"... only love brightens everything ..." says St. Bernard - also the mystery of the birth of Mary, the mystery of her election as the Mother of Jesus, the mystery of her fiat, faithfully fulfilled up to the cross. It is in Mary - as Saint John Paul II emphasized - that “we know the transforming power of God's love. In her we see a world renewed in love ” (Ecclesia de Euchristia, 62).
Mary - Hope and Dawn for the salvation of the world - teach us the love that explains everything ...
Until Tomorrow
fr. george