“The Dawning of Salvation” by Peter Sonski (@29Sonski)

“The Dawning of Salvation” by Peter Sonski (@29Sonski)

Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

“Today God welcomes on earth the holy throne which he had prepared for
himself. He who established the heavens in wisdom has
fashioned a living heaven.” (Byzantine liturgy)

Piety

“We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

“Though I trusted in your mercy, let my heart rejoice in your salvation.” (Psalm 13:6)

“For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20C-21)

Study

The Feast of the Nativity of Mary follows exactly nine months after the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and is one of just three birthdays celebrated in the liturgical calendar: Jesus (December 25). Mary (September 8) and John the Baptist (June 24). All three are said to have been born without Original Sin (John having been purified in the womb of his mother, Elizabeth, by Christ at the Visitation).

Today’s feast anticipates the work of redemption. The Mass collect refers to Mary’s birth as the “dawning of salvation.” St. Augustine famously wrote of the Virgin Mary, “She is the flower of the field from whom bloomed the precious lily of the valley. Through her birth, the nature inherited from our first parents is changed.”

In the Litany of Loreto, the faithful invoke Mary, among many titles as “Spiritual Vessel,” meaning she is both the instrument and the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit in the Incarnation. “With and through the Holy Spirit, the Virgin conceives and gives birth to the Son of God” (CCC 723).

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council shared with us: “The predestination of the Blessed Virgin as Mother of God was associated with the incarnation of the divine word: in the designs of divine Providence she was the gracious mother of the divine Redeemer here on earth, and above all others and in a singular way the generous associate and humble handmaid of the Lord.... For this reason, she is a mother to us in the order of grace” (Lumen Gentium 8).

Action

The oldest known Marian prayer, Sub tuum praesidium, was discovered on ancient papyrus dating to approximately 250 AD. Today, in contemplating the importance of this liturgical feast, place hope in Mary’s intercession along with the earliest Christians: 

We fly to thy protection, O holy Mother of God, despise not our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.