The Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated nine months after the feast of the Immaculate Conception. This feast has been celebrated at least from the sixth century, when St. Romanos the Melodist composed a hymn for the feast. The feast spread to Rome in the seventh century, but it was a couple more centuries before it was celebrated throughout the West. Scripture does not give an account of Mary’s birth, but according to tradition Anna and Joachim are infertile but pray for a child. They receive the promise of a child that will advance God’s plan of salvation for the world. Such a story stresses the special presence of God in Mary’s life from the beginning.
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