Happy feast of the Nativity of Mary! Here is a snippet of history I found interesting:
One traditional Marian image is the Mother of God as a fruitful field. Christ is the great harvest, the blessed fruit, of her womb. It seems fitting, then, that the feast of Mary’s birth is celebrated on September 8, as the harvest is drawing to a close and the days of thanksgiving begin.
The Catholic Catalogue
I love learning about the intricate details behind the Church calendar! We don’t know when Mary was actually born, or even where, but her nativity has been celebrated since the early days of the Church.
A little more tradition for your enjoyment:
Traditionally, winegrowers brought the grape harvest to church to be blessed on this day. Farmers traditionally brought harvested crops and winter seeds to be blessed. It is a day for all who sow seeds of faith and charity to pray that they may bear and reap a rich harvest.
The Catholic Catalogue
A few months ago our Mary statue was stolen from our front yard. It happened just as the news of vandalism and destruction was breaking across our country. The chaos, up until that point, had felt far away. But this hit home.
As I watched the destruction of Mary statues appear on the news, I felt angry and defensive. But, when it happened in my own front yard, I felt reawakened to my love of her and the urgency to pray for those who do not yet know her.
Shortly after I found her missing, I decided to order The World’s First Love by Fulton Sheen. It’s a book I’d been eyeing for a while but left sitting in my Amazon cart as I finished the numerous other books I was reading.
This book has been a beautiful harvest from the hot, chaotic summer. And it is so timely. Fulton not only deals with the beauty of Mary and her role in our salvation but deals with it in a way that addresses all the issues happening in our world right now. Freedom, injustice, socialism, and equality are all things he speaks of. If you are in need of an interesting September read I can’t recommend it enough!
The Worlds First Love has brought peace to these “unprecedented times” (anyone sick of hearing that yet??). And it was just what I needed to re-inspire my devotion to Mary.
My parents surprised us with a new Mary statue just the other day. My prideful self wanted to put her back in the same spot in the front yard, and I predict I will put one there again eventually, but we opted for a cozy spot in the backyard under a shady tree. As we enjoy our backyard we are reminded to look to our Heavenly Mother, to say spontaneous Hail Mary’s, and simply enjoy her presence in our lives.
As we celebrate the birth of Mary, I pray we are reminded to look forward with hope. Especially a deep hope in the brilliant harvest who is Christ himself.
((PS. if you are looking to celebrate- the Catholic Catalogue recommends baking a cake and singing a Marian hymn in honor of Our Lady. We have no ingredients for baking, so Cooper took a flower out to the statue of Mary and we said a Hail Mary instead.))
Can you find anything about when she was named. I was always told September 12 was the day we celebrate the naming of Mary. I always knew about her birthdate being the 8th. So glad you have a new statue in the backyard where you can look at it out your kitchen window.
https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/n/name-of-mary-feast-september-12.php Here is an interesting article talking about the history of the Name of Mary feast day. It looks like the date has been changed around several times, but is on the 12th! I love how your birthday and name match up PERFECTLY. Major props to your parents – whether they meant to or not!