In the darkness and chaos of these uncertain times, when the enemy is relentless, and rulers ignore the wisdom of Christian bishops and the cries of the people, the mystery of the Mother of God brings us immeasurable consolation and hope, as this hymn for the feast conveys:
Today, from the seed of David,
the Mother of Life is born,
dispelling the darkness.
She is the re-creation of Adam,
and the recalling of Eve.
She is the source of incorruption
and our release from corruption.
In her we are made divine
and are given life.
Through her we have been deified
and delivered from death.
Below are some of the Hymns for the Nativity of the Theotokos, which convey the mystical depths of this beautiful and beloved feast.
For a selection of articles and suggested reading, go here.
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At 'Lord I Call', Glory... Now and Ever...
Tone 6 (for the Feast, by Patriarch Sergius) Idiomela
Today God, Who rests upon the spiritual thrones,
has prepared for Himself a holy throne on earth.
He, Who in wisdom established the heavens,
has fashioned a living heaven in His love for mankind;
for, from a barren root He has made a life-bearing branch spring up for us,
even His Mother.
O God of wonders and Hope of the hopeless,//
O Lord, glory to You!
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At the Litya, Glory... Now and Ever...
Tone 8 (by Sergius of the Holy City)
Let us strike our spiritual harp on this solemn day of our feast,
for today, from the seed of David,
the Mother of Life is born, dispelling the darkness.
She is the re-creation of Adam, and the recalling of Eve.
She is the source of incorruption and our release from corruption.
In her we are made divine and are given life.
Through her we have been deified and delivered from death.
So let us, the faithful, cry out to her with Gabriel:
“Rejoice, O full of grace, the Lord is with you,//
granting us His great mercy through you!”
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Aposticha, at Glory... Now and Ever...
Tone 8 (by Sergius of the Holy City)
Come, all you faithful, let us run to the Virgin!
For, behold, today she is born, who was foreordained before the womb, as
the Mother of our God,
the treasure of virginity, the rod of Aaron that budded, springing
from the root of Jesse,
the preaching of the Prophets, the offspring of the righteous Joachim and
Anna.
She is born and with her the world is renewed.
She is comes from the womb and the Church is adorned in her majesty.
She is the holy temple, the vessel of the Godhead,
the virgin instrument and bridal chamber of the King,
in which has come to pass the strange mystery of the union of the natures
that came together in Christ.//
As we worship Him, we praise the birth of the all-pure Virgin.
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Tone 4 Troparion (Nativity of the Theotokos)
Your nativity, O Virgin,
has proclaimed joy to the whole universe!
The Sun of righteousness, Christ our God,
has shone from you, O Theotokos.
By annulling the curse,
He bestowed a blessing.//
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Tone 4 Kontakion (Nativity of the Theotokos)
By your nativity, most pure Virgin,
Joachim and Anna are freed from barrenness,
Adam and Eve -- from the corruption of death.
And we, your people, freed from the guilt of sin, celebrate and
sing to you://
“The barren woman gives birth to the Theotokos, the nourisher of
our Life.”