Our Lady's Birthday,  8th September

There are at least two events in life that everyone experiences. Everyone has a birthday and everyone dies. And whilst for many, the day of their birth is only important to themselves, their immediate family and, maybe, some friends, there are those whose lives have such an impact upon history that, even if the actual day of birth is not known, a special day is named so that people may recognise their importance in the unfolding of human affairs. Two such people, of course, are Jesus and Mary. The actual date of birth of either is not known, but, so important are these two persons, that history has set aside special days to recall their births - 25th December for Jesus and to-day, 8th September for Mary.

First Point: Mary's place in history.

Mary's place in history is important because through her the salvation of the world was made manifest to all who believe in her Son. In the Divine Office - that official prayer of the Church recited daily by Priests and Religious - we read -" The light of her light shines out upon the world".

With her birth, the stage was now set for the fulfilment of the centuries' old aspirations of the Jewish People, Israel. She became the bridge between the Old and the New Testament recognised as the Daughter of Zion. It was her destiny to become, in the fullness and purity of the mystery of her own person the living embodiment of the mystery of the Church; both the Church of the Old Testament which prepared for the coming of Christ, and the Church of the New Testament which perpetuates His presence in our midst.

Second Point: Parallel between Abraham and Mary.

Looking at the unfolding of the Fatherhood of Abraham and the Motherhood of Mary, one is impressed by the similarities of the two events. In the Book of Genesis, we read of the promise made by Yahweh to Abraham -"I will make a great nation of you; I will bless you and make your name great.... In you shall all the nations of the earth be blessed". And we hear Abraham's faith-filled reply - "Abraham believed the Lord". When told, however, that he and his wife Sara, would conceive a son, Isaac, even though they were both very old and Sara had been barren throughout their marriage, Abraham questioned "Shall a son be born to one who is a hundred years old? Shall Sara who is ninety bear a child? By way of assurance he was asked "Is anything too wonderful for the Lord". The child was born and named Isaac. To test Abraham's fidelity, the Lord then asked that the child be sacrificed; but, of course, we know that that request was only to test Abraham, and, when the crunch came, a ram was substituted.

And now let us look at Mary's case and we note the similarities.- There is the greeting -"Blessed are you amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb". There is the announcement that a child would be born, and, again, there is the question "How shall this happen, since I do not know man". Upon being assured that "nothing is impossible with God", Mary consents, and in due course, the child is born. Then comes the test - the child is to be sacrificed so that the fruits of salvation may be shared by those who believe, and just as Isaac had carried the wood for his own sacrifice, so Mary's child carried the wood on which He would be sacrificed.

Conclusion: And so it is that the promise made to an obscure chieftain thousands of years ago continues to be fulfilled. All nations continue to be blessed in Abraham because Mary, the Daughter of Zion, descended from the line of Abraham through David, has given birth to the One in whom all nations are blessed.

Little wonder, then, that the Church regards Mary with special veneration and sets aside special days and places so that the People of God can acknowledge their debt of gratitude to her. In the "Documents of Vatican 11" dealing with the role of the Blessed Virgin in the plan of salvation, the Church's Fathers have described her in the following terms:- "(she) stands out among the poor and the humble of the Lord, who confidently await and receive salvation from Him. With her, the exalted Daughter of Zion, and after a long expectation of the promise, the times were at length fulfilled and the new dispensation established. All this occurred when the Son of God took a human nature from her, that He might, in the mysteries of His flesh, free people from sin".

On this Feast of the Birthday of Our Lady, then, let us proclaim our praise of her in the words of scripture - Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus"! Amen