In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!
Old Testament times were nearing their end. The Jewish people were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah into the world. The seed of a woman would finally to crush the head of the serpent and establish the New Covenant between man and God. It was known that the Messiah would be born in the tribe of Judah, from the lineage of King David. However, where was the Holy Virgin, about Whom the Prophet Isaiah had predicted that She would give birth to the Messiah? How did this purest vessel appear among sinful people, which was to contain the uncontainable Word of God? The Lord willed that our salvation should mature far away from the hustle and bustle of this world. Not in splendid and luxurious royal chambers, but in the stillness and modesty of a poor Galilean hut in the town of Nazareth.
It was not at once that humanity, which was dying in sins and vices, was granted the Holy Virgin. She was the fruit of the many centuries of history of the God-chosen people, the fruit of the spiritual aspirations and feats of its best representatives. The mystery of salvation, and with it the image of the Holy Virgin, was gradually revealed in the Old Testament. Since hoary antiquity the image of the Most Holy Theotokos had been revealed to mankind in prefigurations—first in Jacob’s Ladder, then in the Burning Bush, then in the miraculous passage of the Jews across the Red Sea, then in the vessel with manna, and then in Gideon’s fleece, until finally the veil of mystery was thrown off and it was revealed to the whole world by the “Old Testament Evangelist”—the holy Prophet Isaiah—who predicted: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (Is. 7:14; Mt. 1:23).
And at long last, the time came for this Divine and purest vessel—the Virgin Mary—to be born on earth. The Holy Scriptures tell us nothing about this great event. But there is an ancient tradition about the Nativity of the Mother of God, which says that the Most Holy Virgin was descended from the ancient royal family of David, and that Her pious parents, Sts. Joachim and Anna, lived in Nazareth—a small Galilean town west of the Lake of Galilee. Both of them were righteous people, known not so much for their royal origin as for their humility and mercy. Their life was filled with love for God and other people. Like most Jews of that time, they waited for the coming of the Messiah into the world; but one thing grieved their pure souls—they remained childless until great old age.
The sadness of Sts. Joachim and Anna is understandable, because the Jews of that time considered childlessness to be Divine punishment for sins. According to them, barren people were excluded from participating in the future Kingdom of the Messiah. Therefore, despite their very old age, Joachim and Anna did not cease to implore God to deliver them from the shame of childlessness and send them an infant. Following the example of Hannah the Prophetess, the Mother of St. Samuel, they promised that if they had a baby, they would dedicate it to the service of God.
For their patience, unshakeable faith, and love for God and each other, the Lord sent great consolation to Sts. Joachim and Anna. After many years of waiting, the pious wish of the righteous couple came true, and they had a Daughter, Whom the happy parents named Mary. Mary’s birth brought joy not only to Her parents, but also to all people, because it was Her Who, by Divine Providence, was destined to become the Mother of the Son of God, the Savior of the world.
The Nativity of the Mother of God is the beginning of the mystery of God’s Incarnation and our salvation, which is unfathomable to the human mind. On the day of the Nativity of our Sovereign Lady Theotokos, let us turn to Her and ask Her, the Most Pure and Immaculate One, to help us overcome sin and all impurity, so that we can praise God with pure hearts and rejoice in Him. Those who turn to Her with faith and hope will never remain inconsolable or unheard, for She has been given the grace to pray for us and help us. Amen.
