Immaculate Conception
How did the Immaculate Conception occur in the Holy Virgin? Just think about it: Virgo conception. I mean, the Mother of God was a maiden. She didn't know her husband.
Some will say that this is all fiction and this cannot happen. It is difficult to take something for granted, especially in our time, when there is practically no trust and faith left. Nevertheless, for any Christian, conception by the Mother of God is one of the most important aspects of faith.
There is a wonderful poem by nun Maria (Mernova) on this topic. Here's an excerpt:
In a wonderful way, unnatural for us.
In the most honest, brightest and virgin womb.
He was born - the Divine Son,
Mira Lord. Master of us all.
That is, conception occurred miraculously. The fact that after him Maria remained innocent is enough. How so? How did it all happen?
Nobody will tell us this. The Immaculate Conception is a mystery. Perhaps in the next world everything will open up and become clear. There is a version that the Holy Spirit descended on the Virgin Mary while She was sleeping. Whether this was so is unknown.
Blue candle
Chapter ten of the poetic ensemble “Russian Gods” Daniil Andreev
II.
Ever-Virgin MOTHER,
Most Immaculate.
Ever-blessed. Heavenly love is a fertile flame, a shelter for the worlds and a stronghold! Incomprehensible! Ineffable! Powerfully anticipated by hearts There, in the blue of the heights! You, Whose wisdom shines and lies in the waves of galaxies, in the birth of universes, Near and distant stars! Face, hypostasis of the world-creating Trinity, Eternal Femininity! The goal of the perfect, A bridge to the Father's kingdom! You, at the dawn of cultures, pierced the thousand-colored windows of religions, the names of ancient goddesses! With fiery halos she overshadowed Young architecture, wise books, Music and writing! You condescended to the heart of the young man, You floated for him through the blue incense like a tender star, - Do not reject his sounding strings, Honor him with the distant pulpits of the coming temple. The gloomy spirit of cruel courage Ruled the peoples - from generation to generation And scourged them with a scourge. You alone fanned the community, nurtured in the lap of nature, without asking anything. You shone for us with the love of our beloved, You lit the fires of motherhood At home... A haven for the persecuted! Immortality of the ruined! Blessed bonds of unity And forgiveness to enemies! Quietly rejoicing! Affectionate! With You, the difficult path to the highest dream is easy! The world is full of foam, its songs and colors are beautiful and wonderful in joy and beauty only through You. Previously, You glimmered in the fairy tales of paganism, Above the Christian temple with lamps, In the caresses of the living earth; But the era of dominion of the furious, courageous, merciless is expiring, And at dawn, in the distance - Like the rosy archipelagos of the Cloudy layered sea, Like the petals of the worlds You are approaching - with luminous moisture The Soul of the planet, having washed from grief, is clothed in a white cover. You will replace the measures with a new measure, You will throw off the harsh weights from the scales In this terrible land... I believe, Marvelous! I believe! I believe in Brotherhood, unprecedented in the world, in Your Church. 1950-1955 III. HOUSE OF THE HOLY VIRGIN
1 The gloomy rocks of Galilee, charred to dust by the heat... Along the valleys are thin lilies and herds in the blue mountains.
Strange evening... Edge of Jerusalem, Quiet House. Twelve people. And She: is also audible and visible, As in a boat that has set sail forever. Not a boat - but a beggar's bed. Not a wave - death in an evil land. With every moment, the Face, more ghostly and stern, descending into an unearthly stream, brightens, radiates, melts, becomes transparent like crystal, and through the face an unprecedented distance flickers and shines with Mortals. He came down. He is here! He leads the Mother onto the path traveled only by Him: The world will lie like a blue tablecloth under the weightless foot. With the verse song of the archangels, the Evening is illuminated like a temple, And the steps of the universal staircase Quietly open to the eyes. What was perishable is no longer there: The course of the holy minutes will end - And the disciples, bowing their knees, will cling to the empty bed. 2 Nineteen centuries of ascent To the azure, highest pier, Screened from the earth by the censing of the Seraphim, Dominions and Beginnings; Nineteen centuries of enlightenment The thinned bodily decorations of Her spirit are ever purer, more imperishable, At the heights of the subtlest spaces: Those from where the demiurges of the Super-peoples, cultures and eras come, And from where the world of Rhea and Durga is like a fog that layers at the feet. Nineteen centuries of creation of the Omophorion of blessed love, Defense, protection, - the kiss of Peace in rainbows - Peace in blood. 3 Now with cherry blossoms, now with openwork towers, lifting the hope of peoples from the earth, Over the spring expanses, Cities and arable lands, Everything shines imperishable, everything is snow-white. The narrow spiers of churches serve as delicate supports for her, The narrow spiers of churches serve as lace underfoot, From the ships sailing Ave Mater, those yearning for Her are brought to her by the stillness of the sea. Whoever falls or stumbles, who grieves or despairs, who is offended by gloomy fate - the good Intercessor of all, the Most Holy Sorrow, the Protector of all in the fatal hour. In rocky Castile, in cypress-clad Umbria, and in Tyrol, and in poor Lithuania, the Virgin Mother, like a lily, quietly glows in the twilight, shines like a silver star in the blue. Came forth, invisible, Prison, scaffoldings, massacres, The bloody dust of the battlefields, - Protect, O All-praised, Treasure in the dark heart, Shed the dew of the spirit on destinies. 4 The All-Russian Demiurge stepped onto the hill In his great-grandfather’s age, primitive and rough, Through the hooting of logs and the grinding of saws, Through the first log cabins that smelled of resins. The sweeping forest grumbled incessantly And the heroic day rose in the sky, When a dazzling white crystal sparkled in the floor of the airy palm. And into the childish heart of a dense country, Under dew and showers, blizzard and powder, Here, in the black earth at the root of a pine tree, He laid down his radiant burden. And the boyars dreamed about the cramped courtyards, And the monks dreamed in a tiny cell, That here, on the hill, a temple was being erected and the Intercessor was holding a housewarming party in it. And he was incarnated, born, arose through the insight of the builders into the perfect world - the bodily double of the heavenly cathedrals from inert stone and humble clay. 5 Oh, silent midnight! - The pattern of thoughts is stricter, More diamond-like peaks, - their call is clearer... My soul magnifies Your light, O God, And my mind clothes praise in the fabric of words. - About the wondrous cathedral of bygone days, we all drink from the cup of living legends: Its five-headed head shines like helmets, And its stone face is enlightened like spirit. Didn’t the light of tea flow in myriads, in times of defeat and hordes, in the days of battles, here, where the ray of heaven shone from the pulpit, - a mysterious image in the lights of a hundred candles. From the Urals, from the Ukraine, from the free steppe rivers, from Onega, from Pomerania, where there is only the fray of birds, They flocked like a peaceful army to the capital city - To soften their spirit collectively, falling on their faces. The choir sang about the invisible cloth - the Blood of the World, He sang about the omophorion, white as light, And, repeating the clergy's verse with a thousand lips, the Cathedral was illuminated - all holy, all white. And in the autocratic hearts, in the hour of anger, the evil dispute fell silent among the noisy passions. When the Virgin Mother, the Sorrow of the Russian land, lowered her gaze on them. Having transformed the pain of groans into streams of love, the Soul comprehended its path, its cross... - Most honorable of all Cherubs, of all Thrones! The most glorious of all Seraphim, of all the stars! And, woven with hearts, sung with the praise of lips, the whole firmament shimmered like a single tent, Enveloping the people, like a cover of streams of light, More reliable than the kingdom, stronger than death. 6 Centuries have changed. The open doors welcomed other generations in succession, And the angels cherished the soul of the cathedral, Like the snow-white flower in a Russian garden. Centuries thundered - and to the rustling expanses - Nurture, get along, caress, heal with a bottomless, yearning feminine gaze. A wave of grace flowed from the icon. Centuries swirled - and at the feet of the Ever-Virgin the troops, monks and leaders bowed - - Praise! Hallelujah! - the tunes thundered, constraining the sobs in the people's chest. The centuries rose - and the crown of the half-world In the diamond lights was placed on the king, the Supreme Saint prayed for the peace of the world in the azure clouds of the altar. The centuries burned with fire and ruin, But faith wove into the cover of whiteness the Hearts of the deepest thinkers of the spirit, the Hearts of the greatest poets of the country. Centuries were erected - and in generations and generations the Tent of the holy offerings of the people flowed, embraced and trembled, the white crystal sown by an angel. 7 From deprivation, orphan abandonment - Having acquired an aura by the power of faith, Full of prayer, Into the waves of glory, the cathedral departed like a white ark. All my age-old Rus', enlightened for so many centuries in countless hearts, Prays for my land, Weeps for my land And will not be consoled in the crowns of heaven. Come out onto your roof! Get up on your feet! Measure the scales and cities with your eyes: “I’ll drink all this in blood!” “I will burn all this with lightning,” says this Beast. Stand above the watersheds, Or go to the slope, Kiss the Earth in the silence of the grave: The hour strikes over the homeland. Have mercy, Lord. Shorten the fatal period of her torment. 8 When you cannot separate the Abyss from the continents in a bubbling storm, on the night of troubles, There is only one Intercessor for those perishing in sorrow, And there are no lighthouses for us on the shores. We do not pray for the morning, for a quiet pier, For peaceful sunsets at the end of all days, And full of unceasing sadness, like the sea, Our clergy, our stern psalm is a call to Her: Give us strength to complete Our path shamelessly bequeathed by God in the ocean of the world! Give us strength not to waste on stormy roads the Gifts for which He extended our lives! Grant to everyone who cherishes their heavenly pearls, Who creates their temple in the struggle of the cross, To complete his unknown feat to the end Before the dark departure to other worlds. The storm hits, and the cast-iron sky is lower and lower, Our choir is scattered, scattered and deaf, But You listen to it, You can, - bow down, Sorrow of the dark earth, Your gaze. 1950-1955 IV. COMPAREER OF THE WORLD
In everything that is affectionate, that is favorable - Your light, penetrating the Earth, And if we whisper, praying “Madonna” - Through the face of Mary, greetings to You.
The breath of the wind from the spring distances will touch your face with a gentle stream - In the play of blissful elementals, Your smile, Your lips! How clear is Your joy to the spirit, When on the warm edge of the sea Baby's legs rush through the shallows And turn golden with damp sand! Are the stars shining in supreme glory, Are flowers blooming in the depths of the sea - In their fleeting, like a moment, frame, You, Beginningless, only You! As the sinless frost dresses the grieving earth with dust and dust, so with all-forgiving grace lies Your cloth in all the worlds. And if the heart is full of love, full of self-giving of love - It is delighted and directed towards Your caressing rivers at the top. You will laugh - drops are murmuring, Fountains are singing, streams in the ice, And the reflection ripples on the cradles, Beautiful buildings, poems, gardens. This is how You penetrate the everyday world, This is how you are reflected again and again in everything that is joyful, that is without anger, that is inspired, that is Love. 1955 V I foresee unprecedented temples, Full of soft azure haze, Star Prototype of the Beautiful Lady Above the Earth enlightened by the spirit. The altar rosary looks into the heart, The rainbow of windows trembles on the floor, - The heart rejoices, in every beat everything pours out only in praise. I listen, bowing prostrate at the threshold, to the Chorus of the Almighty, the Virgin of the Virgins, - the strict luminous clergy, the rising melody into the dome: She at whose feet, praising and blaring, the transformed worlds flow, She who is above the circles of the empyrean, Warmer friend, closer sister; The one by whom the hierarchies are permeated, the one by whom all the heights are sanctified, the one who is incomprehensibly reflected by the bottomless heart of Mary. 1955 File for downloading file Daniil Andreev “Russian Gods”
582 KV Daniil Andreev “Lily of the Mother of God”.
The Virgin Mary.
Annunciation. Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. Bogolyubskaya icon of the Mother of God. Fedorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God. Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. The Divine Plan is “World Salvaterra”. Femininity
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Annunciation
The Immaculate Conception is something that is hidden from the human mind. We cannot comprehend this miracle with our minds.
How is the Feast of the Annunciation connected with the conception and birth of the Savior? In the most direct way. Let's remember the history of the holiday.
The Mother of God was sinless from a young age. But, due to her humility, she could not imagine that she would have the honor of giving birth to the Savior.
Mary knew that Jesus Christ would be incarnate from pure virgin blood. And she wanted to be honored to become a servant of the One who would become His Mother.
At that time, Mary was betrothed to Joseph. That one took care of Her virginity. And so, 4 months after the betrothal, the Mother of God read Scripture. When the Archangel Gabriel came to Her with news. That's why the holiday is called Annunciation - good news.
Gabriel told Mary that She was chosen to be the Mother of God. The Savior will incarnate in Her. The Virgin was surprised: after all, She was innocent. And she asked the archangel how this would happen if She did not know her husband.
To which Gabriel replied that the Holy Spirit would descend on Her. And the Virgin Mary obediently accepted the will of God.
Here's another point. God didn’t just go and descend on the girl (the Mother of God was 14 years old). No, He humbly asked Her consent. And only when Mary gave a positive answer, Life was born in Her womb.
The mystery of the immaculate conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is hidden from us. Until a certain point.
Types of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Old Testament
[1]
The Orthodox Church in its liturgical canons and hymns, as well as in the works of the Holy Fathers, points to a number of Old Testament pre-images (prototypes) of the Ever-Virgin Mother of God. “ In all of the Divinely inspired Scripture, the attentive researcher will see various references to the Most Pure Virgin Mary, scattered everywhere
", notes Saint Andrew of Crete;
and Saint John of Damascus calls the Most Holy Virgin “ the Mother of God, according to the foreknowledge of God, predestined in the eternal council, foreshadowed and foreshadowed by the Holy Spirit in various images and words of the prophets
.” Among the references to the Virgin Mary are:
- Primitive virgin land
at the creation of the world. This land, although not cultivated by human hands or watered by rain, nevertheless produced an amazing variety of grasses and trees, and from it the very body of man was created. - St. Irenaeus: “ How the first-created Adam received his bodily composition from the pure, still virgin earth and was formed by the hand of God, i.e.
The Word of God, and in the incarnation of God the Word, the same thing was repeated: God the Word, restoring Adam with Himself, deigned to be born in the likeness of the restored Adam, for he was born of Mary, who was a Virgin .” - St. John Chrysostom: “ This virgin (i.e., the virgin land) was the image of another Virgin: just as this earth brought forth paradise for us without accepting seeds, so she without a husband brought forth Christ for us
.” - In the akathist, the Blessed Virgin is called “ the vegetated divine class, like an unearthed field [2] growing the gardener of our life, a field growing the harvest [3] of bounty
.”
- Paradise
, the original dwelling of man, was a beautiful garden, decorated with trees that were pleasant to look at and good in food.
The Blessed Virgin, as an “animated paradise,” showed in Herself the wonderful fruits of virtue: She is “ a beautiful real paradise of secret flowers (virtues)
.
In the middle of paradise, the tree of life was planted, and the Blessed Virgin had the Lord in Her: “ Thou art the Mystery, O Theotokos, paradise, uncultivated by the growth of Christ
.”
- Eva
, first wife and mother of all living. Likewise, the Mother of God became the mother of the living, giving birth to life itself. Just as Eve received her being directly from the hands of God, so the Blessed Virgin was given by God Himself to Her parents; After creation, Eve was introduced into paradise, the Blessed Virgin was introduced into the temple of the Lord. Other features of Eve’s life represented the Blessed Virgin in contrast. If through the sin of Eve death was introduced into the world and man was expelled from paradise, on the contrary, through the Most Holy Virgin Mary life was introduced into the world and eternal bliss was granted to people. Their contrast is best explained by the words spoken by both. Eve was told: give birth to a child in illness, and the Virgin Mary was told: Rejoice, full of grace; It is said to Eve: “Your address is to your husband,” and to the Virgin Mary: “The Lord is with you!” - St. Epiphanius: “ The first wife Eve, mysteriously called the mother of the living, prefigured the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Eve was only called the mother of the living when she heard: “You are earth and you will go back to earth,” i.e. after committing a sin; It is surprising that it was given such a glorious name after its fall. If we take into account what is external and subject to the senses, we will see that from this Eve the entire human race originated on earth; whereas the Virgin Mary introduced life itself into the world. She gives birth to life and becomes the mother of the living... Eve was the cause of death of the human race - through her death entered the universe; Mary brought life—through Her life itself was given to us .” - St. John of Damascus: “ Just as the foremother (Eve) was created from Adam, so the Most Holy Virgin gave birth to a new Adam, although according to the law of pregnancy, but above natural birth, because He is born from a Woman without a father, just as from a Father without a mother
.” - St. Irenaeus: “ Just as Eve was deceived by the speech of the devil to withdraw from God by transgressing His will, so the Virgin Mary was announced by an angelic word to accept God in obedience to His will;
just as she was tempted to distance herself from God, so this one is convinced to obey God .” - He also: “ Evin’s bonds of disobedience were loosed by Mary’s obedience: what Eve bound by unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed by faith
.” - St. Gregory of Nyssa “ The wife protected the wife;
the first (i.e. Eve) opened the way to sin, and This (i.e. Mary) served to reveal truth; she followed the advice of the serpent, she presented the Destroyer of the serpent and gave birth to the Giver of Light .” - Church hymns: “ Eve, through the illness of disobedience, instilled an oath, but You, Virgin Mother of God, through the vegetation of womb-bearing, you flourished with the blessing of the world
”;
“ Eve bring me the killing of the fruit;
But you, having given birth to hypostatic Life, the Most Pure One, have corrected this aby ”;
“ Our race, our great-grandmothers, came out of Eden for the sake of Eve;
called by You, who gave birth to us a new Adam - Christ ." - Tertullian: “ Eve believed the serpent, Mary believed Gabriel;
what she sinned by trust, this one made amends by faith .”
- The Ark
in which Noah escaped from the waters of the Flood. In a hundred years (as they say, the legends recorded in the ancient books) the ark was built: and the human race was preparing for a long time for the reception of the Savior and the birth of the Virgin Mary. The ark was built from trees that did not rot; the Most Holy Theotokos remained Ever-Virgin. Noah and his children were saved from the flood in the ark: through Mary, all those who obey the voice of God’s grace are saved from eternal destruction. From Noah, who came out of the ark, the post-Flood world was peopled; From Christ, born of the Blessed Virgin, the children of the New Testament originate. - St. John of Damascus: “ Rejoice, O ark, God-built dwelling, ruler of the newly created world, from whom comes Christ, the new Noah, filling the upper world with incorruption
.”
- Blueberry
, released by Noah from the ark, which notified him of the end of the global flood, arriving with an olive branch; released for the third time, it never returned. With the birth of the Most Merciful, the Mother of God heralded the end of the wrath of God and perfect peace on earth. - Church hymns: “ To the dove who gave birth to the Merciful
”;
“ Rejoice, you who saved the world from the drowning of sin!
»
- Sarah
, who gave birth to Isaac, is an image of Christ. - Church hymns: “ Sarah, having given birth to Isaac, the image of Jesus, the Lord has made me joyful,” says;
formed by Isaac, who gave birth and virginity, moreover, Rejoice, all-sung Mother of the Virgin ”;
“ The birth of Isaac from a childless mother was taken away from reproach and magnified with glory: what was born of You Holy brought the first glory to You, Most Pure Virgin and Mother
.”
- A ladder
, established on the earth and reaching the sky with its top, which was shown to Jacob in a mysterious vision on the way to Mesopotamia, in Bethel (Gen. 28:12). The angels on the ladder ascend and descend, because in her prayers the never-ceasing Mother of God commands the Angels to constantly help people with Her, so that when ascending they lift up the prayers of those praying to God, and when descending they bring help and gifts to people. - Church hymns: “ Rejoice, high ladder, you see Jacob to the south
”;
“ For you, a mental and animated ladder, on which our God has established himself, with which we have gained the ascent to heaven, with hymns, O Theotokos, we magnify
.” - The Church calls the Mother of God “ a ladder that raised everyone from the earth with grace, a heavenly ladder, with which God descended
.” - St. John of Damascus: “ The Lord built for Himself an animated ladder, with the base established on the earth, and the top touching the sky itself, and on which God is established.
The ladder is spiritual, i.e. Virgin, established on earth, because She was born on earth; Her head touched the sky, because Her head was God and the Father .”
- A bush
that burned but did not burn, which appeared to Moses the Seer of God. The bush, engulfed in fire, remained unharmed: so the Virgin, after the birth of the Savior, did not lose Her virginity. The Holy Church calls the Mother of God the “burning bush,” and the icon of the Burning Bush depicts Her surrounded by a fiery radiance. - “ The image of Your pure Christmas is a burning bush of display, unburnt
”;
“ Like a bush that is never scorched, so the Virgin gave birth, and the Virgin remained
.” - St. Gregory of Nyssa: “ What was there
(i.e. in the Old Testament)
represented by a flame and a bush, then, over time, was clearly revealed in the mystery of the Virgin: just as the bush burns there and does not burn, so here
(i.e. in the New Testament)
The Virgin gives birth to light and remains incorruptible
.”
The Jews, brought out of Egypt by the all-powerful right hand of God, were led not so much by Moses as by God in their journey to the Promised Land. He was present in the pillar of cloud that overshadowed them during the day and illuminated them at night. This pillar represented the Blessed Virgin. Having manifested Christ to us bodily - the Sun of Truth - and poured out the rain of His grace on the whole world, She became “an all-bright cloud, faithfully overshadowing”, “a luminous cloud, in the presence of all the Lord descended and became incarnate for our sake.” Having dispelled the darkness of unbelief and spread the light of true knowledge of God, she appeared as a “pillar of fire, instructing those in darkness,” leading humanity into a higher life. As “a cover of the world, wider than the clouds,” She covers and protects believers with Her merciful intercession from all troubles and misfortunes. Interceding for all of Her New Testament children, She tries to bring everyone into the Kingdom of Her Son and Lord: “a light-like cloud leading new people to the land of promise, you have appeared in God-gracious truth, and the gate leading to life.” “We do not despair of God’s mercy,” says St. Demetrius of Rostov, “for the imams on the path of our life are the most merciful Hodegetria (Guide), the merciful mentor, the Most Pure Virgin Mother of God, given to us from God, like a pillar to the Israelites, leading to the promised land. She is a pillar of fire and cloud, just as the Church speaks to Her in the akathist. Fire is not material, but divine, as if it enlightens those in the darkness and instructs everyone to the divine mind. There is a cloud that carries God and pours out rain of God’s mercy and grace for us. There is a pillar that affirms the Church fighting on earth and protects it from enemies visible and invisible.”
Further, we will say together with the Holy Church: “in the Red Sea of the unartificed Bride, the image was sometimes written; there is Moses the divider of water: here is Gabriel the minister of miracles; then the depth of Israel's procession was waterless: now the Virgin gave birth to Christ without seed; the sea, after the passing of Israel, remained impassable: Immaculate, after the birth of Immanuel, remained imperishable.” The Red Sea, having passed through the dry bottom of the Israelites, closed its waters and drowned the horde of Pharaoh, who was rushing after the people of God; and the Blessed Virgin is called “the sea that drowned the mental pharaoh.” Through the birth of the Lord, She appeared for Satan and all his power as a sea of destruction, and for believers in Christ, these true Israelis wandering to the Heavenly Fatherland, as a sea of salvation.
Wandering to the promised land through the waterless desert, the Jews felt a lack of water; Moses, by the will of God, struck the stone of Mount Horeb with his rod - and water flowed out from there in abundant quantities. The Most Holy Theotokos is “the stone that gives drink to those thirsty for life,” “O Most Pure One, You are the treasure of wisdom,” sings the Holy Church, “and the grace that sharpens the ever-flowing fountain of reason.” From the Most Holy Virgin, through the birth from Her of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom St. Apostle Paul means by the stone of Horeb (1 Cor. 10:4), flowed the water of grace, which could quench the thirst for eternal life.
The place of the special presence of God in the Old Testament was - first the tabernacle of Moses, then the temple of Solomon. Here the Lord seemed to dwell among people, accept the prayers of His people and give revelations to chosen men. As soon as the tabernacle of Moses and the temple of Solomon were dedicated, the glory of the Lord filled them. The Blessed Virgin, as the animated temple of God, is called “the place of consecration of glory,” “the vast village of the Word,” “the inconceivable container of God, the glorious village of Jehovah on the seraphim.”
The tabernacle and temple served as prototypes of the Virgin Mary. “The crying prophecy has been fulfilled, it says: I will restore the fallen tabernacle of sacred David, transformed in You, O Pure One.” “The Temple of Thee is pure and immaculate, Ever-Virgin Mother of God,” sings the Holy Church, “The Almighty One has returned from all eternity.” “From the end of the mountains of all the saints, the temple of God was, as the Prophet said before, Show me the temple of pure Christ, the Lady.” The Mother of God is truly “the Divine canopy of the Word, surpassing the Angels in purity,” in which “the only one, unapproachable to the cherubic creatures and terrible to the ranks of angels, dwells and renews us.” When the Temple of Solomon was destroyed and its wealth was plundered, a second temple was built in its place, upon the return of the Jews from captivity in Babylon. Although this temple was in many ways inferior to the first, so that the Jews could not help but cry when looking at it, the second temple, in fact, became more glorious than Solomon’s, because in it an animated village of God’s glory appeared.
Just as the tabernacle and temple served as prototypes of the Mother of God, so, according to the teachings of the Holy Church and the Holy Fathers, various sacred accessories of Old Testament worship represented Her. “The great inscription in the prophet Moses of Thee is the ark and the meal, and the candlestick, and the stamna (golden vessel with manna), figuratively marking the incarnation of You, the Most High Mother of the Virgin.” “Gloriously, O Pure One, you prefigured the law of Thee, the tabernacle and the divine frame, the strange (wonderful) ark, and the catapetasma (veil), and the staff, the indestructible temple, and the door of God.” “Rejoice, bright candlestick,” the Holy Church sings to the Mother of God, “Rejoice, little hand (vessel), in it is manna; Rejoice, Aaron's rod; Rejoice at the Divine Table." “In Thy truth, as the candlestick of the immaterial Light shines, the golden censer of the Divine coal, in the Holy of Holies infused, the pen and the staff, the tablet of God, the holy ark, the table of the Word of life, the Virgin, Thy Nativity.”
Let's take a closer look at these prototypes. The most important place of the tabernacle and temple was the Holy of Holies, where the Ark of the Covenant was located. It was available to one high priest and only once a year, when on the day of cleansing he entered here to sprinkle sacrificial blood. The Holy of Holies served as the image of the Mother of God, who contained the incarnate Word of God. But just as much as the sacrifice offered to God by the Lord was incomparably superior to the Old Testament sacrifices, and as much as the Lord Himself is higher than the high priests of Israel, so much is the Most Pure Virgin higher and more excellent than the Holy of Holies. "Rejoice, Great Holy of Holies."
In the inner compartment of the tabernacle and temple - the Holy of Holies - stood the Ark of the Covenant - a box covered with gold inside and out, containing the most sacred objects. This ark is likened to the Mother of God, who contained not the tablets of the Law, but the Lawgiver Himself. “The Ark, gilded by the Divine Spirit, the Most Pure One appeared; did not bear the tablet of the law, but Christ the Lord, whose law and the prophets of old foretold.” The animated ark of God was “gilded with the Spirit,” in other words: the Blessed Virgin was adorned with all spiritual gifts. And just as it was impossible to touch the ancient ark with an unsanctified and daring hand, so the New Testament ark of God is protected by the power of God from any such attempts; “Like the living ark of God, let the hand of the wicked never touch it.” In the second temple there was no ark of God: instead of it, the Most Holy Virgin Herself soon appeared in this temple.
The Ark of the Covenant was covered from above with a “purification place” - a golden lid, over which two Cherubim, also sculpted from gold, spread their wings. This purification was actually the place in the Old Testament where the omnipresent God revealed His special presence, revealed His will and accepted the prayers of His people. The Most Holy Virgin, according to the teachings of the Holy Church, is a “warm purification”, “purification for the world”, “purification of the whole world”. Through Her, the Only Begotten Son of God came to earth in order to justify before God all who believe in Him, not only Jews, but also pagans.
In the Ark of the Covenant, according to God's command, in memory of future generations, Aaron's rod miraculously vegetated and flourished. This rod represented the Blessed Virgin Mary. She came from barren parents just as the dry rod blossomed: “the growth of the dry rod indicated to Israel the election of a priest; and now the glorious birth of the Virgin from the barren one miraculously reveals the radiant dignity of those who gave birth.” “From the root of David and Jesse, Anna now begins to grow the Divine Rod, the Vegetated Mysterious Flower - Christ, the Creator of all.” Even more wonderful than the vegetation of Aaron’s rod was the birth of the Lord from the Most Holy Virgin: “Aharon’s rod sometimes vegetated, prefiguring the Pure Divine Nativity, as if you conceived without seed and remained incorruptible, and after the birth of a virgin appeared, the Child nourishing all God.” The Ever-Virgin, truly, is a “secret rod, an unfading flower that has flourished” and, in Her purity and innocence, is herself “the flower of incorruptibility,” “the unfading one,” “the unfading branch of the rod (branch).”
In addition to Aaron’s rod, in the Ark of the Covenant there was a stamna - a golden vessel filled with manna - heavenly bread, with which the Lord fed the people of Israel in the barren desert. The Holy Church sees in this statue the image of the Mother of God: “the manna handle (vessel) of Thee, Mother of God, sometimes represent; You bore Christ, the manna of reason who rained down upon all who worship Thee,” “Rejoice, you who bear the manna, who delights all pious feelings,” “the gold-plated one, from which flowed the life-giving myrrh of the faithful.” This vessel contained the “manna of life” - Christ - the bread of life and immortality that came down from heaven, saturating and delighting the souls of the faithful.
Behind the second curtain of the tabernacle, according to the testimony of the Apostle Paul (Heb. 9:4), there was a golden censer for burning incense before the Lord. New image of the Blessed Virgin! “Thou art a golden censer, for fire dwelt in Thy womb, the Word from the Holy Spirit.” “Rejoice, censer, golden vessel,” says St. John of Damascus, “You carry within You the Divine coal and from You has flowed the fragrance of the Spirit, expelling fetid corruption from the world.” The divine coal of this censer is the Lord Himself, as the Holy Church sings: “the coal appeared - the Sun rose from the virgin womb in the darkness to the lost.” The offering of incense, according to Holy Scripture, means the offering of prayer to the throne of God. And in this regard, the Most Holy Virgin is a “fragrant censer,” a “pleasant censer of prayer,” because She is our most zealous and reliable Prayer Book and Intercessor before God.
In the sanctuary of the tabernacle and temple there was a lamp made of gold with seven lamps filled with pure oil and constantly burning. The Most Holy Theotokos is a seven-luminous lamp, adorned with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit: “Imagine the luminous candlestick of Thee, who received the indescribably unapproachable Light, illuminating every light with reason,” “The seven-luminous candlestick of Thee, bearing the fire of God’s understanding, the Young Lady, prophet of ancient providence, shining in the darkness of ignorance to the needy.” , “The candlestick of the Law prefigured Thee who gave birth to the Light who enlightened, the Most Pure One”, “We see the Holy Virgin appearing as a light-receiving candle to those who exist in the darkness: the immaterial one, who burns fire, instructs all to the Divine mind.” “Rejoice,” St. John of Damascus calls to the Mother of God, “Rejoice, golden lamp and solid vessel of virginity: the light of this lamp is the grace of the Spirit, and the oil of the holy body, borrowed from pure flesh: from here comes the Everlasting Light - Christ, who illuminated those sitting with eternal life in darkness and the shadow of death."
In the same compartment of the tabernacle and temple there was a table made of rotting wood and overlaid with gold, on which 12 loaves were offered as a sacrifice to God. “Rejoice, Divine Table! - the Holy Church sings to the Most Pure Virgin, “As a meal contains secret bread, from which no one is more greedy, O All-Singing One.” From Her we have the Bread that came down from Heaven - Christ, feeding us for eternal life. Therefore, It is also called “an animated meal, containing animal bread.” In the courtyard of the tabernacle, between the sacrificial altar and the tabernacle itself, there was a copper laver in which the priests washed themselves before beginning their service. The Most Pure Virgin is the “bath that washes the conscience.”
In the tabernacle and temple, the Israelites offered sacrifices to God, and by the way, animals of various kinds, but with an indispensable condition - not having any defect, immaculate and pure. In particular, a young woman (heifer) was sacrificed for salvation and peace. “Rejoice,” the Holy Church cries to the Blessed Virgin, “you young woman who gave birth to an immaculate youth; the lamb who gave birth to the Lamb of God, who takes away the peace of all sins.”
The land of Canaan, promised to the people of Israel in the person of their righteous patriarchs and occupied by them after forty years of wandering, was in ancient times extremely fruitful: it, in the picturesque expression of Holy Scripture, “boiled with milk and honey.” The Most Holy Virgin, who brought forth for us the “animal bread” - Christ, is for us the true promised land. “Rejoice,” the Holy Church proclaims to Her, “land of promise, from which flows honey and milk.”
Having entered the promised land, the Israelites divided it between the twelve tribes, and out of the 48 cities allocated to the tribe of Levi, six were assigned for refuge to unintentional murderers: there these unfortunates, worthy of more pity than punishment, were safe from all searches, and not before death of the high priest, they could return to their original place of residence. The Blessed Virgin is for believing souls a “city of salvation”, a “refuge”, “a repository, a fence, a confirmation and a sacred refuge.”
Gideon, the fifth judge of the Israeli people, having heard from the Angel the will of God - to go and deliver the fatherland from the power of the Midianites, wished to receive a sign to certify that there was God's blessing for this matter. The sign he himself chose was this: on the fleece (sheep skin) he laid on the threshing floor, abundant dew fell at night, while all the ground around was dry; on another night the ground was wet with dew, and the fleece lying on the threshing floor remained completely dry. All the circumstances of this wonderful event are related to the face of the Most Holy Theotokos: the threshing floor, in a mysterious sense, signified the chosen people of God; fleece - the Most Pure Virgin, according to the interpretation of the Holy Church: “Rejoice, animated fleece, which Gideon foresaw.” The fleece was watered with dew and the Blessed Virgin was watered by the heavenly and divine rain that descended on Her. “Like on a fleece, the heavenly rain that fell on You, You lifted up, O All-Pure One.” “As the rain fell on the fleece into the womb of the Virgin, O Christ.” Animated fleece - the Virgin was watered with the grace of God, while, at the same time, the pagans and the Israelites themselves were spiritually dry - from the heat of superstition and unbelief. Gideon’s fleece was dry, and the earth was wet with dew, so the Virgin, after the birth of the Lord, did not suffer any change, while the earth was moistened with the dew of true faith. “Like a fleece descended silently from heaven, O Virgin, the rain fell into Thy Divine shower, and saved all withered human nature, O Most Pure One.”
The wise King Solomon, having built a judgment chamber in his house, placed in it a magnificent throne made of ivory and gold: this has not happened, the holy writer notes, anywhere else, in any other kingdom. “Rejoice, for you are the king’s seat,” says the Holy Church to the Most Pure Virgin. Having contained the prototype of Solomon - the Lord Jesus Christ, She became the animated throne of the King of Heaven. The seat of Solomon was exalted and the seat of the Lord - the Blessed Virgin Mary - is higher than the Cherubim and Seraphim, who serve as the throne of the King of glory. “We glorify the throne of God’s Word, O Mother of God, on which sits like a man God.”
Three pious youths - Ananias, Azariah and Misail - were pupils of Daniel at the court of the king of Babylon, and then his co-rulers.
One day, King Nebuchadnezzar erected a golden idol and commanded that all the noble people of his kingdom, according to a given sign, bow to the soulless idol. These three youths were not afraid of the “brutal rage”, did not worship the creature instead of the Creator, and for such disobedience they were thrown into a red-hot furnace (furnace), but by the power of God they were preserved unharmed. The angel of the great council of God - the Lord Jesus Christ, descended into the cave, turned the flame into dew and thereby foreshadowed His wonderful birth from the Blessed Virgin Mary. “Bless the youths, the Trinity of equal number, the Creator of the Father God, sing the Word that descended and turned fire into dew,” sings the Holy Church. The non-burning of the youths in the Babylonian cave, first of all, indicates the non-burning of the Most Holy Theotokos from the fire of the Divine: “The dew-bearing cave presented an image of a supernatural miracle: for it does not scorch the accepted youths, just like the fire of the Divinity of the Virgin’s womb.” Then, the safety of the young men in the fire, according to the concept of the Holy Church, means the ever-virginity of the Mother of God: “The miracle of the supernatural display of the image of the fiery furnace of old: for the young children did not fall into the fire, revealing Christ’s seedless divine nativity from the Virgin.” “The Old Testament youths, engulfed in flames without burning, prefigure the womb of the Maiden supernaturally giving birth, sealed.” Finally, the Babylonian cave served for the three youths not as an instrument of destruction, but of life and renewal: thus, through the Blessed Virgin, the world achieved its renewal.
The Holy Church finds a prototype of the ever-virginity of the Mother of God in the unharmed preservation of the prophet Jonah in the womb of a whale: “The sea beast vomited Jonah, (like) a baby from the womb, as he received him; and the Word, having dwelt in the Virgin and, having taken on flesh, passed away, preserving (Her) incorruptible.”
But all these prototypes, which, by God’s will, foreshadowed the future greatness of the Ever-Virgin Mother of God in the minds and feelings of the Old Testament children, are far inferior to the prototype itself. “We sing praises to the most honorable Law and the Ark of Thee, O Theotokos Mary!” “More than the tabernacle of Moses, God sanctify all of you, O Mother of God!”
Saint John of Damascus explains the relationship of the Old Testament pre-images to the face of the Blessed Virgin in this way: “there the word of God inscribed the law on stone tablets by the Spirit, as if with His finger; and here the Word of God itself became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and virgin blood... There is manna; here he delights in manna... Let the magnificent tabernacle, built by Moses in the desert from all sorts of precious substances, and before it the former tabernacle of the forefather Abraham, worship, let him worship the animate and intelligent Tabernacle of God!
This became not only a place of special action of God, but an essential container of the hypostatic Son and God. Let the ark, gilded on every side, and the golden frame that bears manna, and the lamp, and the table, and everything ancient, recognize its insignificance before Her!
All this was only important because it represented the spiritual Tabernacle, as a shadow of the true prototype.”
Ever-Virgin
Why is Mary the Ever-Virgin? After all, the birth of a child involves the deprivation of the hymen. More precisely, its final destruction. How did the Savior enter the world?
Here's another wonderful moment. It is known that Jesus Christ emerged from the side of his Most Pure Mother. How so? God is able to pass through obstacles, let's not forget this fact.
That is why the Mother of God is called the Ever-Virgin. She retained her virginity despite the birth of her Son.
Joseph's attitude to what happened
It is known that the husband of the Virgin Mary was many years old. He was very old, and She was very young. And the elder was entrusted with the Mother of God, so that he would preserve Her in purity and innocence.
What was Joseph’s horror when he realized that the Virgin was carrying a child? Fear of being blamed for it. Fear because he did not keep the Maiden pure.
But the elder did not make excuses and did not betray Mary. On the contrary, he told Her that he would let her go secretly, without telling anyone. Then an angel appeared to Joseph, telling him that Mary was not guilty before her husband. Her conception is the will of God, and the Child that the Virgin will give birth to is the Son of God.
The wise old man humbly accepted the will of God and began to care even more deeply for the Virgin Mary. And we know what happened next. Departure for the census and the Nativity of the Savior.
Who were the parents of the Mother of God and how did the streets of Moscow preserve the memory of them?
On the Feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, we also remember her parents, the righteous Joachim and Anna - the grandfather and grandmother of Jesus Christ.
According to legend, when the Virgin Mary was born, they were already middle-aged couples who remained childless for many years. In those days, childbirth was considered the meaning of every person’s life, so they were very sad because of their childlessness. There even came a moment when the High Priest refused to accept the festive sacrifice of the righteous Joachim with the words: “You have not created descendants for Israel.” This reproach hurt the God-fearing Joachim so painfully that he hid from people in the mountains, where shepherds guarded his flocks. (This seems like an insignificant detail, but it is still interesting that the parents of the Virgin Mary were very wealthy people). It was there, in the mountains, that Joachim heard the call of an angel who said: “God has graciously accepted your prayers. Your wife Anna will conceive and give birth to a daughter, about whom the whole world will rejoice.” And this promise came true.
Today in Jerusalem, just 70 meters from each other, stand the Orthodox monastery of St. Anne and the Catholic Basilica of St. Anne: both Catholics and Orthodox believe that the parental home of the Mother of God stood exactly on the spot where they now offer their prayers to her.
Interestingly, in Moscow there are streets named after the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saints Joachim and Anna. These are Bolshaya Yakimanka and Malaya Yakimanka streets. They got their name from the chapel of Joachim and Anna in the Church of the Annunciation, which was demolished in 1969. The temple was located at the intersection of Malaya Yakimanka Street and modern Yakimansky Passage.
Humility of the Mother of God
The virgin birth is something that is incomprehensible to the human mind. And here the complete humility of the Virgin Mary is revealed to us. She surrenders herself to the will of God. She is God's servant. Not in the sense in which the word “slavery” is known today: a person who does not have the right to express his opinion. Not at all, the Mother of God loves God. And he surrenders himself to His will not because of fear and lack of opportunity to object. She does this just out of love.
If appropriate, let's give an example from life. When we love someone very much, it won’t even occur to us to disobey or object. We know that if we are told to do it this way, then this is what we need to do. The one we love does not wish us harm. He knows better how to do it right.
It's the same here. The Mother of God had the firm confidence that God knows best what is good for her. And she agreed to become the Chosen One. Become the Mother of the Savior.
This wonderful color, this Child
She will give birth to the Savior.
From the cruel clutches of hell
The whole world will be freed.
These lines are from a poem by nun Maria (Mernova), dedicated to the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Ever-Virgin Mother of God
Mary "found grace with God"
(Luke 1:30).
She was chosen to serve the mystery of the Incarnation. By this eternal choice and destiny She was to some extent separated from humanity, separated from creation. We can say that She is placed above all creation. She is a representative
of the human race, but at the same time
superior
to it. There is a contradiction in this Divine election. Mary is set apart from humanity. Even before the Incarnation, as the future Mother of the Incarnate Lord, She is in a special and unique relationship with God, with the Holy Trinity, for what happens to Her is not just a historical event, but the fulfillment of God’s eternal decision. She has Her own special place in the Divine economy of Salvation. Through the Incarnation, man regains unity with God, which was severed and destroyed by the Fall. The sanctified humanity of Jesus became a bridge over the abyss of sin. And humanity was given to Him by the Virgin Mary. The Incarnation itself opened a new path for humanity, gave rise to a new man.
In the Incarnation, the “Last Adam” was born - Man truly, but more than just a man: “The second man is the Lord from heaven”
(1 Cor. 15:47).
And Mary, as the Mother of this “Second Man,” directly participates in the mystery of the redemptive new creation of the world. Of course, She is one of the redeemed, She is the first to receive Salvation. Her Son is Her Redeemer and Savior, as well as the Redeemer of the whole world. However, only for the Virgin Mary the Redeemer of the world is Her Son, the Child whom She carried and gave birth to. Jesus was born “neither of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God”
(John 1:13) - (this verse refers to both the Incarnation and the rebirth of a person in baptism) - and yet He in the most literal sense, the “fruit of Mary’s womb.” His supernatural birth is the image and source of a new being, a new, spiritual birth of all believers, which is nothing other than adoption to God - communion with sanctified humanity, the “Second Man,” “The Last Adam.”
The Mother of the “Second Man” undoubtedly enters a new life in Her own special way. And it would not be too bold to say that for Her the Redemption was in some way anticipated in the Incarnation itself. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”
(Luke 1:35).
This is a true “theophany” in the fullness of the Spirit and grace. “Overshadowing” is a theophanic expression and a theophanic symbol. And Mary is truly gracious, full of grace. The Annunciation for Her is an anticipation of Pentecost
.
The incomprehensible logic of Divine election pushes us to this bold comparison. We cannot consider the Incarnation merely as some kind of metaphysical trick that did not have any influence on the fate of the people who participated in it in one way or another. God never uses
man as a master of his instrument.
Every person is a living person. The Holy Virgin did not turn into an “instrument,” when she was “overshadowed by the power of the Most High.” Of course, the special position of the Holy Virgin is not Her personal “achievement,” not a reward for “merit” and not an “advance” in anticipation of Her future merits and virtues. It is a free gift of God, in the truest sense. This choice is pre-eternal and absolute, although not unconditional - it is conditioned by the mystery of the Incarnation. Mary occupies a special place in the universe not just as a Virgin, but as a Virgin Mother - parthenom
i tir
, the future Mother of the Lord. Her role in the Incarnation is twofold. On the one hand, She ensures the continuity
of the human race. Her Son by His “second birth” is the Son of David, the Son of Abraham and all the “forefathers” (this is emphasized in both versions of the genealogy).
According to Sschmch. Irenaeus of Lyons, Jesus “headed the long list of humanity,” (Adv. Haeres. 3, 18, 1) “gathered in Himself all the nations that spread from Adam” (3, 22, 3) and “took into Himself the ancient creation
"(4, 23.4).
But, on the other hand, He “showed a new birth
” (5, 1, 3).
He became the New Adam. There was a sharp break in the continuity of the human race, a true revolution
in the very essence of existence.
And this revolution begins with the Incarnation itself, with the Nativity of the “Second Man.” Sschmch. Irenaeus speaks of turning back -
from Mary to Eve (3, 22, 4). As the Mother of the New Man, Mary anticipates universal renewal.
Of course, Jesus Christ is the only Lord and Savior. But Mary is His Mother. She is the “Star that reveals the Sun,” foreshadowing the rising of the “Sun of Salvation.” She is “the dawn of the mysterious day,” (from the Akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos). And even the Nativity of the Mother of God Herself to some extent belongs to the mystery of salvation. “Your Nativity, O Virgin Mother of God, is a joy to proclaim to the whole universe: from You has arisen the Sun of righteousness, Christ our God” (troparion of the Feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary). Christian thought always moves in the space not of generalized ideas, but of personalities. For Her, the mystery of the Incarnation is the mystery of the Mother and the Son. The Motherhood of the Mother of God is the guardian of Gospel concreteness, from whose face all docetism flees. On the traditional eastern icon of the Mother of God we always see the Virgin and Child: this is the icon of the Incarnation. And, of course, no icon, no image of the Incarnation is possible without the Mother of God.
