Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer

The Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer is a fixed Great Feast of the Twelve. Though the Holy Scriptures do not speak of the birth of the Virgin Mary, none would dispute the reality of this event. Nevertheless, the Old Testament is replete with many foreshadowings, proclaiming not only the coming birth of the Savior of the world but also of His Mother. These include the ladder seen by Jacob in a dream, the bush from which the Lord spoke to Moses, the blossoming rod of Aaron, the gate from Ezekiel’s prophecy, and others. The parents of the Virgin Mary, the holy and righteous Joachim and Anna, were of royal and high-priestly lineage. Though of noble descent, their family had fallen into poverty, yet they led a righteous life, overshadowed by one sorrow: they had no children. In Old Testament Israel, childlessness was considered a grave misfortune. Every Israelite sought to leave offspring in Israel, hoping that, if not they themselves, their children might serve the coming of the awaited Messiah. If a person had no children, it was commonly believed to signify grave sins, for which the Lord punished them with barrenness. Holy Tradition recounts how, on one occasion, the righteous Joachim, bringing an offering to the temple during the Feast of Dedication, was publicly insulted by the high priest Issachar, who refused to accept his offering due to his supposed sinfulness, inferred from his lack of children. Joachim was pushed aside, deemed unworthy to offer a sacrifice to God before those who had heirs in Israel. Joachim departed to the wilderness, where he remained in fasting and prayer for forty days. The righteous Anna, at home and hearing of what had befallen her husband, suffered greatly, blaming herself for their inability to bear a child. Seeking some solace, she went into the garden, but upon seeing a nest with fledglings in a laurel tree, she fell into even greater distress. “Even a bird can embrace its young, but I cannot,” she exclaimed, vowing to dedicate her child to God if He would hear her prayer and grant her a child. Suddenly, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to her, announcing that the Lord had heard her plea and would grant her a daughter. The Archangel also appeared to Joachim in the wilderness with the same tidings. Rejoicing, Joachim and Anna hastened to the temple, where, without prior arrangement, they met at the Golden Gate. Soon after, Anna conceived and gave birth to a girl, whom the parents named Mary, who would later become the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer marks the beginning of the New Testament feasts. It is the first feast both in the church year and in the entire Gospel narrative. The event of the Virgin Mary’s birth is extolled in the sermons of Saints John Chrysostom, Epiphanius of Cyprus, Blessed Augustine, and Jerome. However, a distinct feast of the Nativity of the God-bearer did not emerge until at least the first half of the fifth century. The most ancient part of the liturgical texts still in use today is the troparion of the feast, composed in the fifth to seventh centuries, modeled on the troparion of the Nativity of Christ. We know that Saint Romanos the Melodist wrote a kontakion for this feast, but sadly, it has not survived. The remaining liturgical texts for the Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer were composed in the eighth and ninth centuries. Their authors include many holy men, such as Saint John of Damascus, who wrote the first canon of the feast, and Saint Andrew of Crete, who composed the second canon. Other authors include Herman, Patriarch of Constantinople, Anatolius, Bishop of Thessalonica, Stephen and Sergius of the Holy Mountain, and Joseph the Hymnographer. The Virgin Mary is glorified not only as the Mother of Jesus Christ, who was deemed worthy to give birth to the Savior of the world, but also as the Intercessor and Advocate for the entire human race. The chief characteristic of the iconography of the Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer is its depiction of the viewer’s intimate participation in a joyful family event that nonetheless carries universal significance. At the center, we see the righteous Anna, reclining or seated on a couch, having just given birth to her Daughter. The Newborn is held by a midwife and a servant, who bathe Her in a font, symbolizing the future cleansing and purification of the entire human race. Young women bearing gifts greet the newly delivered mother. On one hand, this reflects an ancient tradition in which noble court women congratulated Byzantine empresses on the birth of a child. On the other hand, the gifts themselves symbolize the God-bearer, as richly celebrated in Byzantine hymnography. These are not mere cups and pitchers but represent the vessel of virginity that contained God, Whom the whole world cannot contain, “the jar bearing the manna, delighting the senses of all the pious.” At the same time, the maidens bearing gifts are perceived as those who have come to the Source of Life, ready to draw living water with their vessels, opening the path to the Kingdom of Heaven. In ancient icons, the figure of Saint Joachim, the father of the Virgin Mary, is depicted either in a window of a small tower or in a doorway, but not beside Saint Anna, as men could not be present with their wives during childbirth. From around the late thirteenth century, icons of the Nativity of the Most Holy God-bearer began to include a separate scene known as the “Caressing of Mary.” In this scene, the righteous Joachim and Anna hold their newborn Daughter, gazing at Her as if unable to look away. This scene recalls the vow made by the parents to dedicate their Daughter to God, knowing they would soon have to part with Her. In church frescoes, scenes depicting the birth of the Virgin Mary are typically placed in the northern part of the altar, near the prothesis table, where the proskomedia, or preparation for the liturgy, is performed. Just as the life of the righteous Joachim and Anna and the birth of their long-awaited Daughter were a preparation for the Gospel events, so too the prosphora, from which the Lamb is taken for consecration during the Divine Liturgy, symbolizes the Virgin Mary, who gave birth to the Lamb that takes away the sins of the world. source