The Birthday of Our Lady

'Let us celebrate with joyful hearts the birth of the Virgin Mary of whom was born the Sun of Justice, Christ Our Lord.' Entrance antiphon.

This beautiful Feast of the Mother of God and our mother is an occasion of great joy because Mary's arrival is a sign that Redemption is drawing near.

In his encyclical, Redemptoris Mater, our late Holy Father, John Paul II said, 'As the dawn before sunrise, Mary is the Morning Star who precedes the Saviour, the Sun of Justice into the history of the human race.'

St Alphonsus Liguori said, 'She is the most beautiful human soul ever created, second only to the Incarnation of the Word.'

Today's feast should encourage us to respect the life of every human being. Parents co-operate in the act of procreation, and God infuses a unique immortal soul at the moment of conception.

John Paul II in his address in November 1985 said of this Feast, 'On the birthday of the Mother of God, the great joy we feel and celebrate bears with it a serious responsibility. We should be glad to learn when a child comes into being in the mother's womb, and rejoice when it enters the world. Even when the arrival of a new born implies hardship, entails renunciations, or presents restrictions and burdens, the child should always be accepted and feel safe in the love of its parents.'

Our Lady, Mother of the Church and our Mother,

Pray for us