👉🏾👉🏾👉🏾On the #Conception of the Most Holy #Virgin #Mary (#Nehase 7)
Beloved in Christ, children of the One, Holy, Apostolic, and Orthodox Faith, let us incline our hearts and ears to this divine mystery, which the Church in her wisdom holds forth to us on the blessed day of Nehase 7 the day of the conception of the Theotokos, the Most Pure and Ever-Blessed Virgin Mary. This is not a small thing, nor a passing commemoration, but a moment in which heaven and earth are joined in the counsel of God, preparing the vessel of our salvation.
The Righteous Parents, Joachim and Hannah
In the fullness of time, there lived a righteous man, Joachim, noble and steadfast in faith, and his equally virtuous wife, Hannah, adorned with purity but weighed down by a grievous sorrow. For though they were rich in righteousness, they were poor in the blessing of children. And in those days, barrenness was thought by the children of Israel to be a sign of God’s disfavor. The people would whisper that the blessing of Abraham was far from them. Yet they bore the reproach with patience, turning not away from God but toward Him with ceaseless prayer.
In the temple, they wept, pouring out their hearts to the Lord, making a solemn vow: “If You grant us a son, he shall be trained in the service of Your holy house; and if You grant us a daughter, she shall be Your handmaiden, a drawer of water, a weaver of gold for the holy place, a maker of the temple curtains, and consecrated in purity to You.”
The Appearance of the Archangel Gabriel
One day, as Joachim prayed alone upon a mountain, his heart lifted to the heavens, slumber overtook him. In that quiet, the mighty Archangel Gabriel descended, clothed in light, and spoke with a voice that carried both the peace of heaven and the authority of the Most High:
“Your wife Hannah shall conceive and bear you a daughter, the joy of the whole world, the light of the eyes of many, and through her you shall find salvation.”
At the same time, in another place, Hannah too was praying, her words mingled with tears: “O Lord, God of my fathers, hear Thy servant; give me a blessed daughter, the fruit of my womb, the hope of my heart and the joy of my eyes.” She looked upon a dove playing with its young and lamented: “O Lord, Thou who hast given a child even to this lowly creature, why hast Thou withheld one from me?”
The Blessing of Zechariah the Priest
Joachim and Hannah went to the priest Zechariah he who would later father John the Baptist and renewed their vow before him. Zechariah, filled with the Spirit, blessed them, saying: “May the Lord hear your prayers, accept your petitions, and fulfill the desires of your hearts.”
That night, God sealed His promise with heavenly visions.
Joachim’s Vision: He beheld the seven heavens opened like a curtain, and from the highest descended a white dove, which rested upon Hannah’s head, entered her ear, and came to rest in her womb a sign of the pure and spiritual conception ordained by God.
Hannah’s Vision: And Hannah saw that the rod of Joachim brought forth fruit in its season, and all creation was nourished by it.
They shared these visions with one another and understood that God had appointed them for a mystery beyond the understanding of men.
Continues 👇🏾