January 23, 2022

The Three Nativity of the Liturgical Calendar

Jude Missa

In the Catholic Liturgical Calendar, we will see the dates of the feast of a saint and important seasons such as Lent and Advent. The feast date of a Saint is the date when he or she departed from this world and entered the Kingdom of God in Heaven. But some feast dates are not the dates of their deaths, such as the feast date of the married couple Saint Zelie and Saint Louis Martin. Saint Therese of Lisieux’ feast day was put on October 3 even though she died on September 30, because the date was already the feast day of Saint Jerome, until it was moved to December 1 on 1970. But there are three unique occasions or feasts that are celebrated in the Catholic Church, these are the nativity or birthday of three persons, the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist.

1. The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas, December 25)

The Feast of the Nativity or Birth of our Lord is one of the most important feasts in the Catholic Church. It’s the only feast where the whole world celebrates it. Why is this feast being a very important one? Because it’s the birth date of our savior, and also our God, One of the Three Persons in the Holy Trinity.

2. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (September 8)

The Catholic Church is also celebrating the Birth of the Mother of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Why does the church celebrate the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary? She’s not only the Mother of Christ, but also the Queen of Heaven and Earth and also our mother. Just like her Son, she was also conceived without sin. She is the Immaculate Conception. This makes her special which is a valid reason to celebrate the date of her birth.

3. The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist (June 24)

The Church also celebrates the birth of Saint John the Baptist, the cousin of our Lord. Why does the church celebrate his birthday? Because Saint John was born a saint. How does it happen? Most Saints are previous sinners, why was Saint John was born a Saint? When Saint Gabriel the Archangel appeared to Saint Zechariah, the archangel told him that his wife will bear a son and shall be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s wound. Then, when the Blessed Virgin Mary visit Saint Elizabeth who’s also pregnant, Saint John leaped for joy inside his mother’s womb when he felt the presence of our Lord inside the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. At this moment, Saint John was filled with the Holy Spirit and freed from the original sin. In short, he was baptized while he was already inside his mother’s womb.
The difference between Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint John that Baptist is that he was born without sin as he was baptized inside Saint Elizabeth’s wound, while the Blessed Virgin was conceived without sin, it means that she was preserved from original sin from the first moment of her existence.

Source:
Aleteia.org
CatholicLife.com

The Three Nativity of the Liturgical Calendar

Jude Missa

1. The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas, December 25)

2. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (September 8)

3. The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist (June 24)

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