Holy Eucharist for St. Mary, Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ
Thursday, August 15, 2024, 12:00 PM
Join us to commemorate this feast day with a simple Holy Eucharist in the church at 12:00 p.m. All are welcome.
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Mary, a young Galilean woman, played a unique role in the history of salvation. Responding to God's call, she became the mother of the Incarnate Word of God, Jesus Christ.
Mary is mentioned repeatedly in the New Testament, even outside the familiar Annunciation and Christmas stories. It is at her insistence that Jesus performs his first miracle, turning water into wine at a wedding in the town of Cana (John 2). Early in Jesus' ministry, she and his brothers try to restrain him, fearing he has gone out of his mind (Mark 3). John's gospel depicts her as standing near the cross during Jesus' execution (John 19:25-27). She is numbered among the early group of disciples in Acts 1:14.
Traditions about the rest of Mary's life vary. There is a Tomb of the Virgin Mary in Jerusalem which Eastern Christians believe to be her burial place. Other traditions suggest she accompanied the apostle John to Ephesus. The Roman Catholic church teaches that Mary did not die a natural death but was assumed bodily into heaven. (In the Eastern variant of this teaching, Mary died a natural death, but her body was later taken up into heaven.)
The Episcopal Church has no official teaching about the end of Mary's life, nor about other traditions such as the Immaculate Conception (the idea that Mary was conceived without original sin). Rather, Episcopalians honor Mary as a great saint and a mother and sister in the faith. She can be seen as a kind of "first among equals" of the saints, the only human being ever to receive the title Theotokos, or God-bearer.
Image: wall painting, Church of St. Mary of Zion, Axum, Ethiopia
Tags: Worship Services