Nativity of Mary
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Nativity of Mary, Marymas or the Birth of the Virgin Mary, refers to a Christian feast day celebrating the birth of Mary, mother of Jesus.
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary | |
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| Sinless Immaculate Without Original Sin | |
| Venerated in | |
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| Attributes | Birth of Mary, by her mother Saint Anne |
| Patronage |
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The modern Biblical canon does not record Mary's birth. The earliest known account of Mary's birth is found in the Gospel of James (5:2), an apocryphal text from the late second century, with her parents known as Saint Anne and Saint Joachim.
In the case of saints, the Church commemorates their date of death, with Saint John the Baptist and the Virgin Mary as the few whose birth dates are commemorated. The reason for this is found in the singular mission each had in salvation history, but traditionally also because these alone were holy in their very birth (for Mary, see Immaculate Conception; John was sanctified in Saint Elizabeth's womb according to the traditional interpretation of Luke 1:15).
Devotion to the innocence of Mary under this Marian title is widely celebrated in many cultures across the globe in various prayers and hymns such as the Novena in Honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.