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The Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Genesis 3:9-20
Luke 1:26-38

Today we observe an unusual feast: the Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Two other feasts commemorate events in the life cycle of St. Mary of Nazareth. Her Nativity, or birthday, which we will celebrate nine months from today, on September 8; and her Dormition, or death, which we will celebrate on August 15.

Though we encounter no mention of either event in Scripture, the Church regularly honors its saints on the day of their death. The birthday of only one other saint is observed: St. John the Baptist. The birth of St. Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus, like that of St. John the Baptist, his cousin and forerunner, is momentous in the unfolding of salvation history. Both events anticipate the birth of Jesus.

But why also observe St. Mary’s conception?

The birth of a child is like an announcement from the rooftop – after much visible but hidden growth, a new life arrives. A death is similarly evident, only in reverse: it is an exit, a departure.

But the conception of a child – the first moment of its personal existence – is like a secret whispered in an inner room, something we are right to be almost shy to mention. It is an event unfolding behind a closed door. Read More