The Old Testament can well be considered a sublime preparation for the Incarnation of the Word. When we place Our Lord Jesus Christ at the centre of human events, we truly understand history, because this is how God conceives it: in an architectonic and hierarchical manner, with His Only-begotten Son as the cornerstone.
It was reasonable, therefore, that the greater the proximity of the birth of the Saviour, the more would admirable and miraculous events abound, as St. John Damascene explains: since Our Lord is the Sun of Justice (cf. Mal 4:2), the paths that would open the way before Him “were to be prepared by marvels, so that the lower realities should be lifted up gradually to higher ones.”1
From such a sublime perspective, it is easy to understand that it was precisely in the fullness of this luminous course that the lives of St. Joachim and St. Anne, Our Lady’s parents, unfolded.
Regarding both of them, the absolutely certain information available is negligible. Details are deduced from tradition, largely from apocryphal writings, among which the Protoevangelium of St. James, written in the second century AD, is of great relevance.2 The episodes narrated here are not, therefore, dogmas of the Faith, nor are they entirely proven historical facts. Enriched by varied treasures from private revelations, with the addition of some pious reconstructions, they should not, however, be considered to be insignificant legends without any foundation.
Royal and priestly lineage
Joachim means “preparation for the Lord.”3 Like Jesus, he was born in Bethlehem, lived since childhood in Nazareth, and descended from King David.
An upright and just man, Joachim had great admiration for two exemplary priests of his time: Eleazar, a venerable ancient living in Bethlehem, and the young Simeon, who carried out his duties in Jerusalem. When he had reached the age customary for marriage at that time, Joachim, aware of the seriousness of taking such a step, did not hesitate to first seek advice from these illustrious Levites.
They both recommended a virtuous virgin called Anne, a name that means “grace”.4 Her father was from the priestly tribe of Levi and a native of Bethlehem, and her mother, a descendant of King David. Thus, we see united in Mary regal grandeur with priestly sacrality, which is entirely architectonic, “for She would give birth to Jesus Christ, King of kings and Supreme Priest, ‘holy, blameless, unstained, separated from sinners, exalted above the heavens’ (Heb 7:26).”5
After a certain period of time, the marriage took place, and the ceremony was officiated by the priest Simeon himself. The couple settled in Nazareth, where Joachim already lived. He was twenty-five years of age and Anne was approaching twenty. From the beginning, they endeavoured to ensure that their marriage was completely holy and pure, causing admiration among all those who knew them. In fact, God blessed them and they had – due to St. Joachim’s inheritance – a great deal of property.6 However, a terrible ordeal would befall their home.
The ordeal of unfruitfulness
As the years went by, the marriage proved fruitless in terms of offspring. In those days, this was often interpreted as a tremendous curse from God, because everyone married in order to have children, with the objective of achieving the honour of being ancestors of the Messiah. Because of this, it was not long before the holy couple began to suffer the worst insults, even coming from those closest to them. Twenty long years passed amid unspeakable humiliations. One day in particular, St. Joachim went, as usual, to make generous offerings at the Temple.7
Without offspring, Joachim and Anne endured twenty years of unspeakable humiliation before the Lord sent them the consolation of a promise
When he arrived, he was publicly rejected by a priest called Reuben, who declared that the offering of a man without offspring was not pleasing to the Lord.8 Msgr. João observes9 that, faced with such words, St. Joachim must have felt as though they were the confirmation, from the lips of a sacred minister, of his most grievous perplexity: “What have I done to God for Him to chastise me in this way?”
Thus he returned home and described to his wife the humiliation he had suffered. Then, with her consent, he decided to retire to the mountains for a few weeks to pray and fast. They both sent requests to the venerable priest Simeon to make offerings to God in the Temple, asking Him to grant them offspring. But the darkness continued as the days passed, for the silence from on high prevailed. After some time, St. Joachim returned from his sorrowful retreat.
However, in the midst of such trials, God’s hand can be glimpsed. Through the powerlessness of nature, He was preparing the way for His intervention, as St. John Damascene explains: “Nature had been overcome by grace and stood trembling, no longer ready to take the lead. Therefore when the Virgin Mother of God was to be born of Anne, nature did not dare to anticipate the fruit of grace; instead it remained without fruit until grace came forth with its own.”10
St. Gabriel and the Golden Gate
“The Daughter to be born of you will be the dawn of salvation, the door through which the Messiah will enter. She will be the ark of your victory”
A year later, the Archangel St. Gabriel appeared to Anne, announcing to her in mysterious terms that she would give birth to a Girl: “The Daughter to be born of you will be the dawn of salvation and the door through which the promised Messiah will enter. She will be the ark of your victory, and will draw God to this earth.”11 The same Archangel, appeared to Joachim in a dream, telling him of the heavenly visit that Anne had received and revealing that a Daughter would be born to them, whom he was to name Mary.
The next day, they discussed these supernatural events and decided to go to the Temple in Jerusalem to thank the Lord. By mutual agreement, they promised to consecrate the Child entirely to the service of God as soon as her age permitted.
When they arrived in Jerusalem, they entered through the Golden Gate, the only gate with direct access to the Temple from the surrounding areas. This site would later become known in the Christian iconography of the first centuries as symbolic of Our Lady. Joachim and Anne surely realized something of the significance of the place: their Daughter would be the “Golden Gate par excellence, through which God Himself would enter the world, inaugurating a new regime of grace for humanity.”12 Advised by angelic illumination of the couple’s visit, Simeon the priest also went there to accompany and bless them.
The birth of Our Lady
Nine months after these events, on September 8, the Blessed Virgin Mary was born in the town of Nazareth. It was a remarkable, awe-inspiring and ineffable event: who could have imagined how the Mother of God would come into the world? Begotten without concupiscence tainting her parents, conceived without original sin, gestated without causing discomfort to her mother, Mary Most Holy was born not only painlessly,13 but also completely enveloped in light.
Msgr. John believes that, “Contrary to the time that the birth of the Child Jesus would occur, […] Our Lady was born at midday, when the sun was at its zenith and radiated its maximal intensity of light in the firmament. If the Divine Redeemer’s birth would take place at midnight, as a symbol of His coming to rescue humanity from the darkness of sin, it seems congruous that Mary’s birth took place at exactly the opposite hour, since She was destined to bring to earth the Sun of Justice (cf. Mal 3:20), Christ our Lord.”14
When Our Lady completed her first year of age, her parents gathered some priests, the main leaders of the Sanhedrin and the people, as well as all the members of their family, in their home in Nazareth. Little Mary was presented to the priests of Israel, who invoked the blessings of Heaven upon her, saying: “God of our fathers bless this child, and give her a name that will be honoured from generation to generation.”15
The Presentation of Our Lady
When Mary had reached age three, Joachim and Anne set out to fulfil their promise to give her to God’s service in the Temple
When Mary had reached the age of three, Joachim and Anne set out to fulfil their promise to give her to God’s service in the Temple, and to this end the three of them set off for Jerusalem. Once they had settled in the Holy City after their arduous journey, as the sun was setting, St. Joachim announced to Mary that they would be going to the Temple the following day, which filled her with joy.
Arriving at the Temple, the couple proceeded with the Child to a room where Simeon was. After proclaiming a beautiful prayer composed that very moment, St. Joachim gave his daughter to the priest, saying: “My daughter, I commend You to this son of Levi to be offered to the Lord, that You may serve Him all the days of your life. Be an immaculate offering to the God of our people, and may He visit us with the coming of the awaited Messiah.”16 After mutual thanks, Our Lady was entrusted to one of the maidens’ teachers and her parents withdrew.
Last contacts on earth
St. Joachim and St. Anne frequently visited the Temple, of course, to be with their Daughter.
On his last visit, St. Joachim was particularly feeble, and seeing this, Mary undertook, discreetly and maternally, to prepare him to cross the threshold of eternity.
It is said that, on this occasion, he saw a beautiful halo shining on his daughter’s forehead and a legion of Angels standing guard around her. At this moment some aspect of Our Lady’s vocation was revealed to him.17
Shortly thereafter, advised by the Archangel St. Gabriel of the proximity of St. Joachim’ passing, Our Lady hastened to Nazareth. She assisted him at this most important moment, caressing him, kissing his hands and forehead, and speaking to him of the joys of Heaven.
About a year after St. Joachim’s death, St. Anne perceived that her own departure for eternity was near. So she decided to go to the Temple to have what would perhaps be her last conversation with her most holy Daughter. At a certain point during her visit, she mystically saw herself holding Our Lady, and the latter, in turn, carrying the Child Jesus, as many artists over the centuries would depict them. Then they said goodbye to each other: Mary knelt to receive the blessing of her mother, who embraced her tenderly and kissed her virginal forehead.
St. Anne then returned to Nazareth. After some time had elapsed, sensing that her end was imminent, she asked that Our Lady be notified. But when Mary arrived in Nazareth, She found her mother’s body already lifeless. She accompanied the funeral rites with much serenity and only shed a few tears when the tomb was closed.
A mission that continues in eternity
The mission of protecting the Treasure of the Most High is prolonged in Heaven: both are eager to intercede with their Daughter for the Church
Shortly after St. Anne’s death, Our Lady’s marriage to St. Joseph and the Incarnation of the Word took place. If St. Anne and St. Joachim had lived a few more years, they would have beheld God made Man with their own eyes. However, we can see that this was not intended for them. Their mission on this earth – to bring forth and protect the Treasure of the Most High, Mary – had already been fulfilled and so the Lord called them to Himself.
However, in some way this mission continues in Heaven, and in a very special manner. It is evident that both of them are eager to intercede with their Daughter for each one of us and, above all, for the Holy Church.
If it is true that the tree is known by its fruit (cf. Mt 7:16-20), what can we say about the blessed tree from which the Blessed Virgin was born?18 For our part, we should always take shelter under its shade because, through the intercession of this holy couple, our supplications to Our Lady will never fail to be answered. ◊
Notes
1 ST. JOHN DAMASCENE. Homélie sur la nativité, n.2: SC 80, 49.
2 Cf. ALASTRUEY, Gregorio. Tratado de la Virgen Santísima. 2.ed. Madrid: BAC, 1947, p.16.
3 Idem, ibidem.
4 BUTLER, Alban. Vidas de los Santos. Ciudad de México: John W. Clute, 1965, v.III, p.192.
5 CLÁ DIAS, EP, João Scognamiglio. Mary Most Holy: The Paradise of God Revealed to Men. Houston: Heralds of the Gospel, 2022, v.II, p.59; cf. ALASTRUEY, op. cit., p.11-14.
6 Cf. PROTOEVANGELIUM OF ST. JAMES. I, 1. In: SANTOS OTERO, Aurelio de (Ed.). Los evangelios apócrifos. Madrid: BAC, 2006, p.130.
7 Cf. GÜEL, Dolores. Santa Ana. In: ECHEVERRÍA, Lamberto de; LLORCA, SJ, Bernardino; REPETTO BETES, José Luis (Org.). Año Cristiano. Madrid: BAC, 2005, v.VII, p.787.
8 Cf. PROTOEVANGELIUM OF ST. JAMES, op. cit., I, 2, p.131.
9 Cf. CLÁ DIAS, op. cit., p.63.
10 ST. JOHN DAMASCENE, op. cit., n.2, 49.
11 CLÁ DIAS, op. cit., p.65.
12 Idem, p.66.
13 Cf. ALASTRUEY, op. cit., p.25; CLÁ DIAS, op. cit., p.77.
14 CLÁ DIAS, op. cit., p.81.
15 CADOUDAL, Georges. Sainte Anne. In: VIES DES SAINTS. 2.ed. Paris: Garnier Frères, 1854, v.III, p.116; cf. PROTOEVANGELIUM OF ST. JAMES, op. cit., VI, 2, p.140.
16 CLÁ DIAS, op. cit., p.132.
17 Cf. CADOUDAL, op. cit., p.116.
18 Cf. ST. JOHN DAMASCENE, op. cit., n.5, 57.
