Mary Conceived without Sin, Full of Grace!
Today is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is the day we honor the moment Ss. Joachim and Anne’s prayers were answered – they would conceive a child, a child they would consecrate to God. Today as a Church, we praise the Lord, because His great plan was for her to be – from the moment of her conception – without original sin.
Mary was preserved by God and the Holy Spirit to be “immune from all stain of original sin,” making her pure and full of grace – innocent and holy. All humanity was harmed by the sin of our first parents, Adam and Eve.
God’s plan was for Mary to be the Mother of Christ, and he chose her parents, Ss. Joachim and Anne, to be blessed with the Immaculate Conception of Mary. The couple was childless but longed desperately to be parents. They are mentioned in writings that complement the bible – the Proto-Evangelium of James the Less.
A story handed down from generation to generation recalls that while Joachim went into the wilderness to fast and pray for 40 days, St. Anne, deep in the throes of infertility, watched out her window as a family of sparrows build a nest. How she hoped to build her own nest to raise a happy family. Lamenting her inability to bear a child cried out in desperation to the Lord, “Why was I born?” Shortly after, the angel Gabriel appeared to announce that she would soon become the mother of Mary.
Joachim and Anne vowed to consecrate their child to the Lord. Therefore, when Mary was three the holy couple presented her to the priests at the temple. The priest at her reception said, “The Lord God has magnified your name for all generations; through you the Lord will reveal deliverance to the children of Israel in the last days.”
Researching the Hebrew meaning of the name Joachim you will discover it means God prepares. In Hebrew, Anne means God has given grace.Editor’s note: The digital art of Ss Joachim and Anne with infant Mary is by Catholic artists from Alabama through Saints Alive Art Studio, available at: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SaintsAliveArtStudio
