Laus Beatae Mariae Virginis

We are now in the midst of an octave that contains three feasts of the Virgin Mary, her Nativity on September 8th, her Holy Name on the 12th, and the Seven Sorrows on the 15th. The historical starting point of this arrangement is of course the first of these, which was imported into the Roman Rite from the Byzantine tradition at the end of the 7th century, along with three other Marian feasts, the Annunciation, the Purification, and the Assumption. Unlike those other three, however, it was slow to catch on, and still not celebrated in many parts of western Europe even by the beginning of the 11th century. To a large degree, the impetus for its general acceptance came from the preaching of a Saint named Fulbert, who became bishop of Chartres in France in 1006, and held the see for 22 years. His city was already an important pilgrimage center because it possessed an object believed to be a garment of the Virgin Mary herself. Fulbert began rebuilding Chartres Cathedral after it was destroyed by a fire in 1020 in a much larger form, to accommodate the great crowds of pilgrims who came to venerate the relic. (As is so often the case with such projects, it was not completed until after his death. This new church in turn burned down in 1194, leading to the magnificent Gothic building which stands today, rightly recognized as one of the greatest architectural achievements of the Middle Ages.)

A stained glass window in the south ambulatory of Chartres Cathedral, known as Notre-Dame de la Belle Verrière (Our Lady of the Beautiful Window), or the Blue Virgin. The three large panels in the center were made in the 12th century, and are among the very few pieces of stained glass that were found to be salvageable from the fire of 1194 that destroyed the older church.

One of St Fulbert’s sermons about the Virgin Mary (PL 141, 338C etc.) came to be particularly well known, in part because it was somehow mistakenly attributed to St Augustine. Although it was originally preached on the Annunciation, the standard late medieval custom was to read it at Matins on the feast of Mary’s Nativity. In many churches (e.g. Notre-Dame in Paris), the peroration (or parts thereof) was read as the lessons of the Little Office of the Virgin. One section of it, (“Sancta Maria… commemorationem”) was also set to music and became of the most commonly used antiphons of the Divine Office.

“O beata Maria, quis tibi digne valeat jura gratiarum ac laudum рræconia impendere, quæ singulari tuo assensu mundo succurristi perdito? Quas tibi laudes fragilitas humani generis persolvat, quæ solo tuo commercio recuperandi aditum invenit? Accipe itaque quascumque exiles, quascumque meritis tuis impares gratiarum actiones: et cum susceperis vota, culpas nostras orando excusa. Admitte nostras preces intra sacrarium exauditionis, reporta nobis antidotum reconciliationis. Sit per te excusabile, quod per te ingerimus: fiat impetrabile quod fida mente poscimus. Accipe quod offerimus, redona quod rogamus; excusa quod timemus. Quia tu es spes unica peccatorum, per te speramus veniam delictorum; et in te, beatissima, nostrorum est exspectatio præmiorum. Sancta Maria, succurre miseris, juva pusillanimes, refove flebiles, ora pro populo, interveni pro clero, intercede pro devoto femineo sexu. Sentiant omnes tuum juvamen, quicumque celebrant tuam commemorationem. * Assiste parata votis poscentium, et repende omnibus optatum effectum. Sit tibi studium assidue orare pro populo Dei, quæ meruisti benedicta pretium ferre mundi.

The Gregorian antiphon Sancta Maria, succurre miseris.

A polyphonic setting of the same text as a motet by Victoria.

O blessed Mary, who might be able worthily to offer thee due thanks and praise, who by thy unique act of assent, didst come to the aid of a lost world? What praises might the frailty of the human race render to thee, which by thy exchange (with God), found the entrance to new life? Receive therefore these acts of thanksgivings, however meagre, however unequal to thy merits, and when thou shalt receive our request, do by thy prayers obtain pardon for our sins. Admit our supplications into the hallowed presence of thy hearing, give us in return the medicine of reconciliation. Let that prayer which we pour forth through thee find forgiveness, let us obtain what we ask with confidence. Receive what we offer, grant in return what we ask for, remit that which we fear, for thou art the only hope of sinners, through thee do we hope for the forgiveness of our crimes, and in thee, most blessed one, is the hope of our rewards. O Holy Mary, come to the aid of the wretched, help the fearful, comfort to the sorrowful, pray for the people, plead for the clergy, intercede for all devout women; may all that keep thy holy commemoration feel thy assistance. Readily accede to the prayers of those who ask, and render to all the desired effect. Be it thy care to constantly pray for the people of God, thou who are blessed, and merited to bear the ransom of the world.”

Music for the Nativity of the Virgin Mary

On the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the Magnificat antiphon at Second Vespers is borrowed from the Byzantine Rite, in which it is sung as the troparion at the Divine Liturgy. Here is the Greek original, the Latin translation used in the Roman Divine Office, and an English translation.

Ἡ γέννησίς σου Θεοτόκε, χαρὰν ἐμήνυσε πάσῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ· ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ Ἥλιος τῆς δικαιοσύνης, Χριστὸς ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν· καὶ λύσας τὴν κατάραν, ἔδωκε τὴν εὐλογίαν, καὶ καταργήσας τὸν θάνατον, ἐδωρήσατο ἡμῖν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον.

Nativitas tua, Dei Genitrix Virgo, gaudium annuntiavit universo mundo: ex te enim ortus est sol justitiae, Christus Deus noster: qui solvens maledictionem, dedit benedictionem, et confundens mortem, donavit nobis vitam sempiternam.

Thy birth, O Virgin Mother of God, proclaimed joy to the whole world; for from Thee arose the sun of righteousness, Christ our God; who released us from the curse, and gave us blessing; and confounding death, He granted us eternal life.

Here is a polyphonic setting of the Latin version by Palestrina.

And another by the Polish composer Bartłomiej Pękiel (died ca. 1670).

The Greek version of the tropar:

And the Church Slavonic:

Рождество Твое Богородице Дево, радость возвѣсти всей вселеннѣй: изъ Тебѣ бо возсїѧ Солнце правды Христосъ Богъ нашъ, и разрушивъ клѧтву, даде благословенїе, и оупразднивъ смерть, дарова намъ животъ вѣчный.

Laus Beatae Mariae Virginis

We are now in the midst of an octave that contains three feasts of the Virgin Mary, her Nativity on September 8th, her Holy Name on the 12th, and the Seven Sorrows on the 15th. The historical starting point of this arrangement is of course the first of these, which was imported into the Roman Rite from the Byzantine tradition at the end of the 7th century, along with three other Marian feasts, the Annunciation, the Purification, and the Assumption. Unlike those other three, however, it was slow to catch on, and still not celebrated in many parts of western Europe even by the beginning of the 11th century. To a large degree, the impetus for its general acceptance came from the preaching of a Saint named Fulbert, who became bishop of Chartres in France in 1006, and held the see for 22 years. His city was already an important pilgrimage center because it possessed an object believed to be a garment of the Virgin Mary herself. Fulbert began rebuilding Chartres Cathedral after it was destroyed by a fire in 1020 in a much larger form, to accommodate the great crowds of pilgrims who came to venerate the relic. (As is so often the case with such projects, it was not completed until after his death. This new church in turn burned down in 1194, leading to the magnificent Gothic building which stands today, rightly recognized as one of the greatest architectural achievements of the Middle Ages.)

A stained glass window in the south ambulatory of Chartres Cathedral, known as Notre-Dame de la Belle Verrière (Our Lady of the Beautiful Window), or the Blue Virgin. The three large panels in the center were made in the 12th century, and are among the very few pieces of stained glass that were found to be salvageable from the fire of 1194 that destroyed the older church.

One of St Fulbert’s sermons about the Virgin Mary (PL 141, 338C etc.) came to be particularly well known, in part because it was somehow mistakenly attributed to St Augustine. Although it was originally preached on the Annunciation, the standard late medieval custom was to read it at Matins on the feast of Mary’s Nativity. In many churches (e.g. Notre-Dame in Paris), the peroration (or parts thereof) was read as the lessons of the Little Office of the Virgin. One section of it, (“Sancta Maria… commemorationem”) was also set to music and became of the most commonly used antiphons of the Divine Office.

“O beata Maria, quis tibi digne valeat jura gratiarum ac laudum рræconia impendere, quæ singulari tuo assensu mundo succurristi perdito? Quas tibi laudes fragilitas humani generis persolvat, quæ solo tuo commercio recuperandi aditum invenit? Accipe itaque quascumque exiles, quascumque meritis tuis impares gratiarum actiones: et cum susceperis vota, culpas nostras orando excusa. Admitte nostras preces intra sacrarium exauditionis, reporta nobis antidotum reconciliationis. Sit per te excusabile, quod per te ingerimus: fiat impetrabile quod fida mente poscimus. Accipe quod offerimus, redona quod rogamus; excusa quod timemus. Quia tu es spes unica peccatorum, per te speramus veniam delictorum; et in te, beatissima, nostrorum est exspectatio præmiorum. Sancta Maria, succurre miseris, juva pusillanimes, refove flebiles, ora pro populo, interveni pro clero, intercede pro devoto femineo sexu. Sentiant omnes tuum juvamen, quicumque celebrant tuam commemorationem. * Assiste parata votis poscentium, et repende omnibus optatum effectum. Sit tibi studium assidue orare pro populo Dei, quæ meruisti benedicta pretium ferre mundi.

The Gregorian antiphon Sancta Maria, succurre miseris.

A polyphonic setting of the same text as a motet by Victoria.

O blessed Mary, who might be able worthily to offer thee due thanks and praise, who by thy unique act of assent, didst come to the aid of a lost world? What praises might the frailty of the human race render to thee, which by thy exchange (with God), found the entrance to new life? Receive therefore these acts of thanksgivings, however meagre, however unequal to thy merits, and when thou shalt receive our request, do by thy prayers obtain pardon for our sins. Admit our supplications into the hallowed presence of thy hearing, give us in return the medicine of reconciliation. Let that prayer which we pour forth through thee find forgiveness, let us obtain what we ask with confidence. Receive what we offer, grant in return what we ask for, remit that which we fear, for thou art the only hope of sinners, through thee do we hope for the forgiveness of our crimes, and in thee, most blessed one, is the hope of our rewards. O Holy Mary, come to the aid of the wretched, help the fearful, comfort to the sorrowful, pray for the people, plead for the clergy, intercede for all devout women; may all that keep thy holy commemoration feel thy assistance. Readily accede to the prayers of those who ask, and render to all the desired effect. Be it thy care to constantly pray for the people of God, thou who are blessed, and merited to bear the ransom of the world.”

Music for the Nativity of the Virgin Mary

On the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the Magnificat antiphon at Second Vespers is borrowed from the Byzantine Rite, in which it is sung as the troparion at the Divine Liturgy. Here is the Greek original, the Latin translation used in the Roman Divine Office, and an English translation.

Ἡ γέννησίς σου Θεοτόκε, χαρὰν ἐμήνυσε πάσῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ· ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ Ἥλιος τῆς δικαιοσύνης, Χριστὸς ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν· καὶ λύσας τὴν κατάραν, ἔδωκε τὴν εὐλογίαν, καὶ καταργήσας τὸν θάνατον, ἐδωρήσατο ἡμῖν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον.

Nativitas tua, Dei Genitrix Virgo, gaudium annuntiavit universo mundo: ex te enim ortus est sol justitiae, Christus Deus noster: qui solvens maledictionem, dedit benedictionem, et confundens mortem, donavit nobis vitam sempiternam.

Thy birth, O Virgin Mother of God, proclaimed joy to the whole world; for from Thee arose the sun of righteousness, Christ our God; who released us from the curse, and gave us blessing; and confounding death, He granted us eternal life.

Here is a polyphonic setting of the Latin version by Palestrina.

And another by the Polish composer Bartłomiej Pękiel (died ca. 1670).

The Greek version of the tropar:

And the Church Slavonic:

Рождество Твое Богородице Дево, радость возвѣсти всей вселеннѣй: изъ Тебѣ бо возсїѧ Солнце правды Христосъ Богъ нашъ, и разрушивъ клѧтву, даде благословенїе, и оупразднивъ смерть, дарова намъ животъ вѣчный.

The Vigil of the Nativity of the Virgin

The origin of the feast of the Virgin Mary’s Nativity is a matter of speculation, and the reason for the choice of date is unknown. It was celebrated at Constantinople by the 530s, when St Romanus the Melodist composed a hymn for it; by the seventh century, it had passed to the West, and Pope St Sergius I (687-701) decreed that it be should celebrated with a procession from the church of St Adrian (who shares his feast day with the Birth of the Virgin) to St Mary Major. It would seem, however, that it was rather slower to be accepted than the other early Marian feasts, the Purification, Annunciation and Assumption, since it is not mentioned in some important early liturgical books. Thus we find it included in the oldest manuscript of the Gelasian Sacramentary in roughly 750 A.D., but missing from the calendar in some later books. The liturgical commentators of the High Middle Ages such as Sicard of Cremona and William Durandus were aware that it was of later institution.

The Nativity of the Virgin, by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1335-42; originally painted for one of the side-altars of the Cathedral of Siena, now in the Cathedral Museum.

By the time the feast was universally accepted, the Roman Rite had mostly ceased to institute vigils for “new” celebrations; this holds true even for the medieval feast par excellence, Corpus Christi. Thus, the Nativity of the Virgin was only kept with a vigil in a limited number of places, and never at Rome itself. This vigil would have consisted of a fast on the day before the feast, accompanied by a Mass in violet after None, and without the Gloria in excelsis, Alleluia or Creed. As it generally the case with later additions, there is not a complete uniformity in the liturgical texts of these Masses from one church to another, but in most places, they were taken from the daily votive Mass of the Virgin or the vigil of the Assumption.

In the Ambrosian Rite, however, the feast is kept with such a vigil, as a feast of particular importance, the titular feast of the cathedral of Milan. On the façade over the central door is a large plaque with the two words “Mariae Nascenti - To Mary as She is born.”

On both the vigil and feast, the Ambrosian Mass reads a lesson which very cleverly links two Biblical passages traditionally associated with the Virgin Mary, the sixth chapter of the Song of Songs, and the twenty-fourth of Ecclesiasticus.

“Thus sayeth Wisdom: Song 6, 8-9 She is the only one of her mother, the chosen of her that bore her. The daughters saw her, and declared her most blessed: the queens and concubines, and they praised her. Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array? Sir. 24, 24-28 I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue. Come over to me, all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits. For my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb. My memory is unto everlasting generations.”

At the Mass of the vigil, the following Confractorium is sung; this is the antiphon that accompanies the Fraction rite, which is done immediately after the Canon, before the Lord’s Prayer.

Beatus ille venter qui te portavit, Christe, et beata ubera quæ te lactaverunt Dominum, et Salvatorem mundi, qui pro salute generis humani carnem assumere dignatus es. ~ Blessed is the womb that bore Thee, o Christ, and blessed are the breasts that bursed Thee, the Lord and Savior of the world, Who for the salvation of the human race deign to take on the flesh. (In the video below, this is the third piece, beginning at 1:10.)

In the same Mass, the Transitorium (the equivalent of the Roman Communio) was borrowed from the repertoire of processional chants used on the feast of the Purification, the first Marian feast to be accepted by the Ambrosian Rite in the post-Carolingian period. In this video, we hear it sung as part of that procession in the cathedral itself, starting at 1:22.

Magnificamus te, Dei Genitrix; quia ex te natus est Christus salvans omnes, qui te glorificant. Sancta Domina, Dei Genitrix, sanctificationes tuas transmitte nobis. ~ We magnify Thee, Mother of God, because from Thee was born Christ, who saveth all that glory Thee. Holy Lady, Mother of God, impart Thy sanctity to us.

The Byzantine tradition distinguishes twelve feasts, eight of Our Lord and four of Our Lady, as “Great Feasts”, with Easter in a category of its own as the Feast of Feasts. Whether by design or coincidence, the first of these in the liturgical year, which begins on September 1st, is the Birth of the Virgin, which is also the first historically. The Twelve Feasts also each have a Fore-feast, the Roman equivalent of a vigil, and an Afterfeast; the latter are like the octaves of the Roman Rite, but vary in length, and that of the Virgin’s Nativity is only 4 days long, ending on September 12th. A Fore-feast is a full liturgical day, and so unlike Roman vigils, which run from Matins to None, it begins at Vespers of the day which precedes it, in this case, on the evening of September 6th. Here is a selection of some of the hymns sung at that Vespers, followed by the proper hymns of the Divine Liturgy of the Forefeast on September 7th.

An icon of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, painted by Adrianoupolitis Konstantinos in the middle of the 18th century, now in the Benaki Museum in Athens. (Public domain image from Wikipedia.)

In Thy nativity, o Immaculate one, rays of joy dawned upon the minds of the whole world, foretelling to all the sun of Glory, Christ our God; for Thou were shown to be the mediatrix of true gladness and grace.

The glory of this Thy forefeast, o Immaculate one, foretells to all peoples the good deeds wrought by Thy favor; for Thou art the source of their present gladness, and the cause of the joy that shall come to us, the delight of divine happiness.

The maiden in whom God dwelt and pure Mother of God, the glory of prophets, the daughter of David, today is born of Joachim and the prudent Anne, and in Her birth, overthrows the curse of Adam that was against us.

Theotokion The multitudes of the Angels in heaven and the race of men upon the earth bless Thy all-venerable Nativity, a all-holy and pure Virgin, since Thou became the Mother of the Creator of all things, Christ our God. Ceasa Thou not, we pray, to supplicate Him for us, who after God, place our hopes in Thee, all-praised and undefiled Mother of God.

At the Divine Liturgy, the Troparion From the root of Jesse and from the loins of David, the godly child Mary is born to us today. Therefore, all creation rejoices and is renewed, together with heaven and earth rejoice. Praise Her, ye families of the nations; Joachim is gladdened, and Anna cries out in celebration: The barren woman gives birth to the Mother of God and the Sustainer of our Life.

The Kontakion Today, the Virgin and Mother of God Mary, the inviolate bridal chamber of the heavenly bridegroom, is born from a barren woman according to the divine plan to be made ready as the chariot of God’s Word; even for this was she predestined, the gateway of God, and truly the Mother of Life.

Celebrating Latter Marymass, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Nativity of Mary, anonymous, 17th century

Lost in Translation #77

The Blessed Virgin Mary is one of only three people whose earthly birthday (as opposed to their heavenly birthday into eternal bliss) is celebrated liturgically by the universal Church, the other two being Saint John the Baptist (June 24) and, of course, Jesus Christ (December 25).

All that we know of Mary’s birth comes to us from apocryphal literature, writings that were deemed by the Church not to be divinely inspired Sacred Scripture. “Apocryphal,” however, does not mean worthless, and the early Church made good use of these pseudo-Gospels. In these writings, Saints Anne and Joachim are a childless elderly couple who prayed to God for offspring and were rewarded with a daughter whom they named Miriam (Mary).

A feast in honor of Mary’s birth was first kept in Syria and Palestine in the fifth century, where it was then adopted by the Greeks and finally (some time around the eighth or ninth century) by the West. The feast spread slowly in the Latin Church, but by the twelfth century it was a major Marian feast and a holy day of obligation (until 1918, in fact). September 8 was chosen as the date because it was the anniversary of the dedication of a Marian church in Jerusalem. The feast so dominated the medieval and early modern imagination that it was sometimes called Latter Marymass -- since Assumption Day on August 15 was the first “Mary Mass” of the season, and so Mary’s birthday was seen as the “later Mary Mass" - at least before the institution of the feast of the Seven Sorrows on September 15.

Grapes, Cattle, and Swallows

September 8 also roughly marks the transition from summer to fall. In the wine regions of France, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin became the time for harvest wine festivals. Vine-growers bring their best grapes to church for a blessing and attach some of these first fruits to a statue of the Blessed Virgin. A festive meal is then held during which the grapes are consumed. In the Alps, the Abtrieb or “down-driving” of cattle and sheep from the summer pastures begins on this day. The lead animals are decorated with flowers in honor of the Virgin as they wind their way down from the high slopes to their winter quarters. And according to the Austrians, the swallows also begin their southern migration on this day.

aleteia.org

Blessing of Seeds and Seedlings

But the most universal custom on our Lady’s Nativity is the blessing of seeds and seedlings for the autumn planting season. The Roman Ritual contains a beautiful double blessing for the occasion.

Dómine sancte, Pater omnípotens, sempiterne Deus: pétimus ac rogámus, ut hos fructus ségetum ac séminum tuis serénis óculis hilaríque vultu aspícere dignéris: et sicut testátus es Móysi fámulo tuo in terra Ægypti, dicens: Dic filiis Israël, cum ingressi fúerint terram promissiónis, quam eis dabo, ut primitias frúctuum suórum ófferant sacerdótibus, et erunt benedicti; sic et nos rogámus te, Dómine, ut per auxilium misericordiæ tuæ emittas super hunc fructum ségetum déxteræ tuæ benedictiónem, quem ad exhibendum proferre dignéris, ut non súbruat grando, nec áëris inundatio extérminet, sed semper incólumis permáneat, propter usum animárum et córporum, et ad bene abundantem et pleníssimam maturitátem perdúcere dignéris: Qui in Trinitáte perfecta vivis et regnas in sǽcula sæculórum. Amen.

Omnípotens sempiterne Deus, cælestis verbi seminátor et cultor, qui nostri cordis áream spiritálibus rastris exerces: adesto propitius précibus nostris, et super agros, quibus si fúerint sémina ínsita, tuam largam benedictiónem infunde, ac ab eis omnem vim procellárum gratia tuæ defensiónis averte; ut omnis hic fructus et tua benedictióne repleátur et ad hórrea sine impedimento perveniat. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti Deus, per omnia sǽcula sæculórum. Amen.

Which I translate as:

Holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God: we request and we beseech that Thou wouldst deign to look upon these seedling fruits and seeds with cheerful eyes and a merry countenance. And as Thou didst promise to Thy servant Moses, saying, “Say unto the children of Israel, ‘When you shall have entered into the land which I will give you, that they may offer their first fruits to the priests, they will be blessed,’” so too, we beseech Thee, Lord, that through the help of Thy mercy Thou wouldst send upon this seedling fruit, which Thou hast deigned to bring forth for the harvest, the blessing of Thy right hand. May it not be crushed by hail or drowned by a flood of rain, but may it ever remain safe and sound for the use of soul and body, and mayest Thou deign to bring it well to full and abundant maturity. Thou who livest and reignest in perfect Trinity unto ages of ages. Amen.

Almighty and everlasting God, Sower and Cultivator of the heavenly Word, who tillest the topsoil of our hearts with spiritual rakes: kindly be present to our prayers, and pour fourth Thy abundant blessing upon the fields in which these seeds are to be planted, and by the grace of Thy defense turn away from them the violence of storms: that each of these fruits may be filled with Thy blessing, and may reach the granaries without hindrance. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God unto ages of ages. Amen. 

They are sprinkled with holy water, and, if possible, incensed. [Rituale Romanum (Rome, 1943), pp. 589-590.]

The first prayer beseeches God “to look upon these seedling fruits and seeds with cheerful eyes and a merry countenance.” It is one of the most charming petitions in the Latin liturgical tradition. The prayer goes on to link the current practice of blessing seeds and seedlings to the Old Testament feast of First Fruits or Shavuot (Lev. 23, 9-14). Finally, it concludes with a rare ending: “Thou who livest and reignest in perfect Trinity unto ages of ages.” The phrase “In perfect Trinity” appears only one other time in the Ritual (in a blessing for gold, frankincense, and myrrh on the Epiphany) and only one time in the 1962 Missal (in the blessing of candles on the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary). In the Ritual, the conclusion is used in prayers addressed to the Father, and in the Missal it is used in a prayer addressed to the Son.

The second prayer artfully correlates the mechanics of planting with God’s activity on our souls by addressing Him as the “Sower and Cultivator of the heavenly Word” who tills “the topsoil of our hearts with spiritual rakes” (another charming, almost campy, image). The prayer also covers its bases. While the first blessing focuses on seeds and seedlings, the second asks for a blessing of the fields in which they will be planted. There is no point in having healthy seeds or sprouts if they are going to get cut down in a hostile environment.

The Birth of the Virgin, by Andreas Herrlein (1738-1817); public domain image from Wikimedia Commons.

The two prayers combined are thus highly practical, but they are also a nice example of Christian “mysticism,” by which I mean an awareness of the mystical or hidden meaning of our ordinary, everyday lives. The first prayer reflects what Aquinas calls the “allegorical sense” of the sacred text, which sees practices in the Old Testament as a type or foreshadowing of the practices of the New Covenant (in this case, Shavuot is a type, and the blessing of seeds is a sort of anti-type.) The second prayer is an instance of the “ moral sense,” in which an ordinary activity like planting or raking is seen as a sacramentum or divine sign of a spiritual reality. In addition to blessing seeds and fields, the two prayers together are a veritable catechism in how to read reality with a robust Christian imagination.

Finally, aside from the agricultural timing, it is appropriate that we ask almighty God for blessings on the beginnings of new life in field and garden on the holy day that honors the Mother of God as a tiny newborn. And just as many of us today have a heightened sense of the fragility of the planet and the health of our seeds and fields, so too may we have a heightened sense of the need to protect unborn life.

Music for the Nativity of the Virgin Mary

On the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the text of the Magnificat antiphon of the Magnificat at Second Vespers is borrowed from the Byzantine Rite, in which it is sung as the troparion at the Divine Liturgy. Here is the Greek original, the Latin translation used in the Office, and the English.

Ἡ γέννησίς σου Θεοτόκε, χαρὰν ἐμήνυσε πάσῃ τῇ οἰκουμένῃ· ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ Ἥλιος τῆς δικαιοσύνης, Χριστὸς ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν· καὶ λύσας τὴν κατάραν, ἔδωκε τὴν εὐλογίαν· καὶ καταργήσας τὸν θάνατον, ἐδωρήσατο ἡμῖν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον.

Nativitas tua, Dei Genitrix Virgo, gaudium annuntiavit universo mundo: ex te enim ortus est sol justitiae, Christus Deus noster: qui solvens maledictionem, dedit benedictionem, et confundens mortem, donavit nobis vitam sempiternam.

Thy birth, O Virgin Mother of God, proclaimed joy to the whole world; for from Thee arose the sun of righteousness, Christ our God; who released us from the curse, and gave us blessing; and confounding death, He granted us eternal life.

Here is a polyphonic setting of the Latin version by Palestrina.

This is the Greek version:

And the Church Slavonic:

Рождество Твое Богородице Дево, радость возвѣсти всей вселеннѣй: изъ Тебѣ бо возсїѧ Солнце правды Христосъ Богъ нашъ, и разрушивъ клѧтву, даде благословенїе, и оупразднивъ смерть, дарова намъ животъ вѣчный.

The Nativity of the Virgin Mary 2018

Today the Blessed Virgin Mary was born of the lineage of David, * through whom the salvation of the world hath appeared to those who believe, whose glorious life hath given light to the world. V. Let us celebrate with rejoicing the birthday of Blessed Mary the Virgin. Through whom... (The first responsory of Matins.)

The Birth of the Virgin Mary, by Paolo Uccello, ca. 1435; in the cathedral of Prato, Italy.

R. Hodie nata est beáta Virgo María ex progenie David; * Per quam salus mundi credéntibus appáruit, cujus vita gloriósa lucem dedit sáeculo. V. Nativitátem beátae Maríae Vírginis cum gaudio celebrémus. Per quam...

The Vigil of the Nativity of the Virgin

The origin of the feast of the Virgin Mary’s Nativity is a matter of speculation, and the reason for the choice of date is unknown. It was celebrated at Constantinople by the 530s, when St Romanus the Melodist composed a hymn for it; by the seventh century, it had passed to the West, and Pope St Sergius I (687-701) decreed that it be should celebrated with a procession from the church of St Adrian (who shares his feast day with the Birth of the Virgin) to St Mary Major. It would seem, however, that it was rather slower to be accepted than the other early Marian feasts, the Purification, Annunciation and Assumption, since it is not mentioned in some important early liturgical books. Thus we find it included in the oldest manuscript of the Gelasian Sacramentary in roughly 750 A.D., but missing from the calendar in some later books. The liturgical commentators of the High Middle Ages such as Sicard of Cremona and William Durandus were aware that it was of later institution.

The Nativity of the Virgin, by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1335-42; originally painted for one of the side-altars of the Cathedral of Siena, now in the Cathedral Museum.

By the time the feast was universally accepted, the Roman Rite had ceased to institute vigils for “new” celebrations; this holds true even for the medieval feast par excellence, Corpus Christi. (One exception of the later medieval period is the Visitation, but its vigil, which clashed with the octave day of St John the Baptist, was later abolished.) Thus, the Nativity of the Virgin was never kept with a vigil in the Roman Rite, i.e., a fast on the day before, accompanied by a Mass in violet after None, and without the Gloria in excelsis, Alleluia or Creed.

In the Ambrosian Rite, however, it is kept with such a vigil, as a feast of particular importance, the titular feast of the cathedral of Milan. On the façade over the central door is a large plaque with the two words “Mariae Nascenti - To Mary as She is born.”

On both the vigil and feast, the Ambrosian Mass reads a lesson which very cleverly links two Biblical passages traditionally associated with the Virgin Mary, the sixth chapter of the Song of Songs, and the twenty-fourth of Ecclesiasticus.

“Thus sayeth Wisdom: Song 6, 8-9 She is the only one of her mother, the chosen of her that bore her. The daughters saw her, and declared her most blessed: the queens and concubines, and they praised her. Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array? Sir. 24, 24-28 I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue. Come over to me, all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits. For my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb. My memory is unto everlasting generations.”

At the Mass of the vigil, the following Confractorium is sung; this is the antiphon that accompanies the Fraction rite, which is done immediately after the Canon, before the Lord’s Prayer.

Beatus ille venter qui te portavit, Christe, et beata ubera quæ te lactaverunt Dominum, et Salvatorem mundi, qui pro salute generis humani carnem assumere dignatus es. ~ Blessed is the womb that bore Thee, o Christ, and blessed are the breasts that bursed Thee, the Lord and Savior of the world, Who for the salvation of the human race deign to take on the flesh. (In the video below, this is the third piece, beginning at 1:10.)

In the same Mass, the Transitorium (the equivalent of the Roman Communio) was borrowed from the repertoire of processional chants used on the feast of the Purification, the first Marian feast to be accepted by the Ambrosian Rite in the post-Carolingian period. In this video, we hear it sung as part of that procession in the cathedral itself, starting at 1:22.

Magnificamus te, Dei Genitrix; quia ex te natus est Christus salvans omnes, qui te glorificant. Sancta Domina, Dei Genitrix, sanctificationes tuas transmitte nobis. ~ We magnify Thee, Mother of God, because from Thee was born Christ, who saveth all that glory Thee. Holy Lady, Mother of God, impart Thy sanctity to us.

The Byzantine tradition distinguishes twelve feasts, eight of Our Lord and four of Our Lady, as “Great Feasts”, with Easter in a category of its own as the Feast of Feasts. Whether by design or coincidence, the first of these in the liturgical year, which begins on September 1st, is the Birth of the Virgin, which is also the first historically. The Twelve Feasts also each have a Fore-feast, the Roman equivalent of a vigil, and an Afterfeast; the latter are like the octaves of the Roman Rite, but vary in length, and that of the Virgin’s Nativity is only 4 days long, ending on September 12th. A Fore-feast is a full liturgical day, and so unlike Roman vigils, which run from Matins to None, it begins at Vespers of the day which precedes it, in this case, on the evening of September 6th. Here is a selection of some of the hymns sung at that Vespers, followed by the proper hymns of the Divine Liturgy of the Forefeast on September 7th.

An icon of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, painted by Adrianoupolitis Konstantinos in the middle of the 18th century, now in the Benaki Museum in Athens. (Public domain image from Wikipedia.)

In Thy nativity, o Immaculate one, rays of joy dawned upon the minds of the whole world, foretelling to all the sun of Glory, Christ our God; for Thou were shown to be the mediatrix of true gladness and grace.

The glory of this Thy forefeast, o Immaculate one, foretells to all peoples the good deeds wrought by Thy favor; for Thou art the source of their present gladness, and the cause of the joy that shall come to us, the delight of divine happiness.

The maiden in whom God dwelt and pure Mother of God, the glory of prophets, the daughter of David, today is born of Joachim and the prudent Anne, and in Her birth, overthrows the curse of Adam that was against us.

Theotokion The multitudes of the Angels in heaven and the race of men upon the earth bless Thy all-venerable Nativity, a all-holy and pure Virgin, since Thou became the Mother of the Creator of all things, Christ our God. Ceasa Thou not, we pray, to supplicate Him for us, who after God, place our hopes in Thee, all-praised and undefiled Mother of God.

At the Divine Liturgy, the Troparion From the root of Jesse and from the loins of David, the godly child Mary is born to us today. Therefore, all creation rejoices and is renewed, together with heaven and earth rejoice. Praise Her, ye families of the nations; Joachim is gladdened, and Anna cries out in celebration: The barren woman gives birth to the Mother of God and the Sustainer of our Life.

The Kontakion Today, the Virgin and Mother of God Mary, the inviolate bridal chamber of the heavenly bridegroom, is born from a barren woman according to the divine plan to be made ready as the chariot of God’s Word; even for this was she predestined, the gateway of God, and truly the Mother of Life.

EF Solemn Mass for the Nativity of the Virgin in Tyler, Texas

The chapel of Ss Peter and Paul in Tyler, Texas, will have a Solemn High Mass in the traditional rite on September 8th, the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, celebrated in the presence of His Excellency Joseph Strickland, the bishop of Tyler. The Mass will begin at 10am; the church is located at 1435 East Southeast Loop.

Dominican Mass of Our Lady’s Nativity in NYC

Our thanks to Arrys Ortañez for these photos of a Dominican Rite Missa cantata celebrated on Friday, the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, by Fr Innocent Smith at the church of St Vincent Ferrer in New York City. Below them are two photos sent in by Diana Yuan of Solemn Mass for the same feast at Our Lady of Mt Carmel, offered by Fr Stephen Saffron for living and deceased religious; after Mass, there was the traditional blessing of flowers, herbs, and seeds.

Preparation of the Chalice, which is done before the Gospel.

The acolytes stand facing the wall for the Gospel.

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