The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, celebrated on September 8, is Mary’s birthday. The Church keeps the birthdays of only three persons in her calendar: Jesus at Christmas, John the Baptist on June 24, and the Virgin Mary on September 8, because each was born holy. Mary’s birth was the dawn before the sunrise of Christ. Below is the meaning of the feast, what tradition tells about her birth and her parents, the prayer of the day, and ways to celebrate.
Why celebrate Mary’s birthday?
Mary was conceived without original sin (the Immaculate Conception, December 8, exactly nine months before this feast) and was holy from her birth. Her birth was the first step in the coming of the Savior: she would become the Mother of God. The Church applies to her the words of the Song of Songs:
Who is she that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the sun, terrible as an army set in array?
As the morning star announces the sun, Mary’s birth announced the coming of Christ, the “Sun of justice.”
Joachim and Anne
The Gospels do not tell of Mary’s birth. An ancient Christian writing from the second century, the Protoevangelium of James, gives her parents’ names as Joachim and Anne and says they were an elderly, childless couple whose prayers were answered. The Church honors them together on July 26 as the grandparents of Jesus. See the St. Anne prayer.
Tradition places Mary’s birth in Jerusalem, near the Pool of Bethesda, where the Church of St. Anne now stands, or in Nazareth.
The history of the feast
The feast began in the East, probably in Jerusalem, in the fifth or sixth century, connected with the dedication of the church at the traditional site of Mary’s birth. It came to Rome in the seventh century, and Pope St. Sergius I added a procession on this day. The date of September 8 also determined the date of the Immaculate Conception, nine months earlier.
The prayer of the feast
From a 1916 daily missal, which used the prayer of the Visitation with the name of this feast:
We beseech thee, O Lord, to bestow on thy servants the gift of heavenly grace, that this devotional feast of the Nativity may be the means of confirming peace in all to whom the childbirth of the Blessed Virgin is the beginning of salvation. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God world without end. Amen.
A birthday prayer to Mary (written for this page):
Happy birthday, Mary, Mother of God and our Mother!
On the day of your birth the world began to hope again.
Thank you for saying yes to God, and for giving us Jesus.
Watch over every mother and every newborn child,
and keep our families close to your Son. Amen.
How to celebrate
- Go to Mass and pray a Rosary in Mary’s honor.
- Bake a birthday cake for Mary with children, a lovely family tradition, and sing to her.
- Bring flowers to a statue or image of Mary.
- Give thanks for your own birth and for your mother.
- In Italy, Malta and the Philippines, the feast is celebrated with processions and festivals.
Frequently asked questions
When is the birthday of the Virgin Mary?
The Church celebrates it on September 8 (in 2027, a Wednesday).
Is the Nativity of Mary a holy day of obligation?
No. It is a feast, not a holy day of obligation.
Who were Mary’s parents?
Tradition names them St. Joachim and St. Anne.
More Marian feasts
- Presentation of Mary (November 21)
- Marian feast days
- Immaculate Conception
- The Annunciation
- Assumption of Mary
- St. Anne prayer
- Litany of Loreto
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Canticle of Canticles 6:9, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- Collect: The Mass Every Day of the Year (1916), public domain (archive.org).
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1911), “Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
- The birthday prayer was written for this page.