Catholics celebrate the Virgin Mary's birthday as the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 8, which is exactly nine months after the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
Christians normally celebrate the day on which saints died, because
that is when they entered into eternal life, but there are three major
exceptions. We celebrate the births of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and
Saint John the Baptist, because all three were born without original Sin.
History of the Feast.
The Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated at least by the sixth century, when St. Romanos the Melodist, an Eastern Christian who composed many of the hymns used in the Eastern Catholic and Eastern Orthodox liturgies, composed a hymn for the feast. The feast spread to Rome in the seventh century, but it was a couple more centuries before it was celebrated throughout the West.
The source for the story of the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary is
the Protoevangelium of James, an apocryphal gospel written about A.D.
150. From it, we learn the names of Mary's parents, Joachim and Anna,
as well as the tradition that the couple was childless until an angel
appeared to Anna and told her that she would conceive. (Many of the
same details appear also in the later apocryphal Gospel of the Nativity
of Mary.)
It's no surprise, then, that the Christians of the second century A.D. recorded the details of Mary's birth in such documents as the Protoevangelium of James and the Gospel of the Nativity of Mary. While neither document bears the authority of Scripture, they provide us with everything that we know about the life of Mary before the Annunciation, including the names of Saint Mary's parents, Saint Joachim and Saint Anna (or Anne). It's a good example of Tradition, which complements (while never contradicting) Scripture
The traditional date of the feast, September 8, falls exactly nine months after the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Perhaps because of its close proximity to the feast of the Assumption of Mary, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not celebrated today with the same solemnity as the Immaculate Conception. It is, nonetheless, a very important feast, because it prepares the way for the birth of Christ.
In earlier centuries, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated with greater fanfare. Nowadays, less so. However, like the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an important date in our salvation history. Christ needed a mother, and Mary's conception and birth, therefore, are events without which Christ's own birth would have been impossible.
Let us recommit to saying the Rosary each day. Even if you cant commit to the full 20 decades, then why not commit to saying one decade each day slowly and with fervour. One decade said well and reflecting on the mystery is a great start. Start it today on Our Blessed Mother's birthday.
It's no surprise, then, that the Christians of the second century A.D. recorded the details of Mary's birth in such documents as the Protoevangelium of James and the Gospel of the Nativity of Mary. While neither document bears the authority of Scripture, they provide us with everything that we know about the life of Mary before the Annunciation, including the names of Saint Mary's parents, Saint Joachim and Saint Anna (or Anne). It's a good example of Tradition, which complements (while never contradicting) Scripture
The traditional date of the feast, September 8, falls exactly nine months after the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Perhaps because of its close proximity to the feast of the Assumption of Mary, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not celebrated today with the same solemnity as the Immaculate Conception. It is, nonetheless, a very important feast, because it prepares the way for the birth of Christ.
In earlier centuries, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was celebrated with greater fanfare. Nowadays, less so. However, like the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an important date in our salvation history. Christ needed a mother, and Mary's conception and birth, therefore, are events without which Christ's own birth would have been impossible.
Let us recommit to saying the Rosary each day. Even if you cant commit to the full 20 decades, then why not commit to saying one decade each day slowly and with fervour. One decade said well and reflecting on the mystery is a great start. Start it today on Our Blessed Mother's birthday.
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