There is no historical record of the birth of Mary. The Church does believe, however, that from the very moment of her conception she was totally free from sin and remained free of sin for her whole life. It was not acceptable that Jesus, the Son of God, should be conceived in a body tainted by sin. Her birth is certainly something to celebrate. The Church, too, has given names to her parents—Joachim and Ann—and we celebrated their feast on 26 July.

Churches both in the East, in Constantinople (now Istanbul), and in the West, in Rome, have been celebrating Mary’s birth since the 6th and 7th centuries. The liturgy traces its origins to the consecration of a church in Jerusalem, known as St Ann’s Basilica, in the 6th century. Before that there had been a 5th century basilica in honour of Mary on a site known as the ‘Shepherd’s Field’ and supposedly the home of Joachim and Ann. It was replaced by a new basilica in the 6th century which was consecrated to St Ann.

Although the feast was celebrated on various dates over the centuries, September 8 predominated. The feast celebrating Mary’s conception without sin, on December 8, was later set to correspond to nine months preceding Mary’s birth (just as the Annunciation precedes the Birth of Jesus by nine months).

In the Eastern Church, Mary’s birthday is celebrated as one of the twelve great liturgies. The title for the liturgy in the East is: The Birth of Our Exalted Queen, the Birthgiver of God and Ever-Virgin Mary.

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