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| Our Lady of Victory at Naxxar parish, Malta. |
Today we celebrate the
birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Connected to this feast is the Immaculate
Conception which we celebrated exactly 9 months ago, to emphasize the duration
of a human pregnancy, even for Mary, being born of her mother Saint Anne. The
feast of the Nativity started in the 5th century when a basilica was
built in Jerusalem where St Anne lived and where Mary was born, traditionally
around 12 BC. Saints Joachim and Anne had their own feast on July 26, but today
we honor Mary’s birthday. Imagine the joy to see this little girl being born,
in the obscurity of her town, with no Angels, no shepherds, no Kings, but
that’s because she didn’t want to take the attention from her Son, who would be
born 16 years later. 4 parishes in Malta are dedicated to the Nativity of Mary,
Senglea, Mellieha, Xaghra on the island of Gozo and Naxxar, where my chapel is
located and where I say Mass frequently in the parish church. Processions are
held in each parish in the evening, and obviously the churches are dressed up
to their very best.
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