Mary, Mother of God
Feast day: January 1
Mary is the Mother of God because she gave birth to Jesus, the Son of God made man (01/01)
What is this feast?
On 1 January, the Church solemnly honors Mary with her highest title: Mother of God. It is the eighth day of the Octave of Christmas, so this feast carries on the joy of Christmas. The Church looks at the Child in the manger and at the Mother who gave birth to him.
The story
Saint Paul writes that when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman (cf. Gal 4:4). That woman is Mary.
In the fifth century, some people wrongly taught that Mary was only the mother of “the man Jesus,” not the Mother of God. In 431, the bishops gathered for a Council in the city of Ephesus and proclaimed: Jesus is one single Person, both God and man, so Mary truly is the Mother of God (in Greek, Theotokos, which means “the one who gave birth to God”). Tradition says that on that evening the people of the city carried torches as they escorted the bishops, cheering for Mary.
This title does not mean that Mary existed before God or that she gave birth to God’s divine nature. She is a creature, chosen by God to carry and give birth to the Son of God when he became man.
In the reform of the liturgical calendar in 1969, which took effect in 1970, the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God was placed on 1 January. The Gospel of the day tells of the shepherds coming to the manger, while Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them (cf. Lk 2:19).
Why does the Church celebrate it?
When the Church proclaims Mary as Mother of God, it proclaims that Jesus is truly God. Every word of praise for Mary leads us to her Son. On the first day of the year, the Church asks Mary, Queen of Peace, to pray for peace in the world.
A lesson for you
- On the morning of 1 January, go to Mass and offer the whole new year to God through Mary’s hands.
- Like Mary, keep God’s word in your heart and think about it.
- Pray for peace, and make peace with anyone you are angry with.
Identifying marks
- Mary standing, holding the Child on her left arm: she carries her Son, because she truly is the Mother of Jesus.
- Mary’s right hand turned toward the Child: as in ancient icons, she shows us Jesus, the Way to the Father.
- The Child raising his right hand in blessing: this tiny Child is God himself, who gives every blessing.
- A halo with a cross behind the Child’s head; a thin ring of light behind Mary’s: to tell the Son of God apart from his Mother.
- A white dress, a blue mantle, a white veil, and no crown: a simple, gentle picture of Mary, like a mother holding her child.
- Soft candlelight behind: a warm, candlelit church, where we come to greet Mary on the first day of the year.
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