Homily Four on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 By St. Luke, Archbishop of Simferopol and All Crimea

(Delivered in 1958)

From statistical data on people who have reached a very advanced age, we learn that they are especially numerous among those living on the high mountains of the Caucasus and Azerbaijan and on other high mountains. And in our time, somewhere in Azerbaijan, there lives an extraordinary old man who has reached one hundred and fifty years, and there are many centenarians there.

How can we explain this extraordinary influence of high mountains on the longevity of people's lives?

Undoubtedly, to a very large extent because the highlanders breathe the purest air all their lives and eat mainly dairy products and the meat of healthy sheep.

Homily Three on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 By St. Luke, Archbishop of Simferopol and All Crimea

(Delivered in 1957)

The life of the Most Holy and Most Pure and Most Blessed Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, who was the Most Pure Temple of the Savior, who was above all Cherubim and Seraphim, could not begin life the way every ordinary person begins: the glorious beginning of Her life should have been marked. Thus the Lord God placed in the hearts of Her holy parents Joachim and Anna a presentiment that the Most Pure Maiden, their only daughter, was prepared by God for some extraordinary path, a path much higher than the usual path of people. And guided by this presentiment, even before the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary, they dedicated Her to God: they made a vow to God that She would serve Him.

Homily Two on the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos (Archpriest Rodion Putyatin)

 

By Archpriest Rodion Putyatin

Angels, having seen the entrance of the Most Pure One, were in awe.

When I remembered the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos, it occurred to me that we were going to the temple of God. How the holy angels must be in awe when they see some Christians entering the temple of God. Ah, listeners, some of us come here sometimes with such anger and bitterness in our souls that we, unworthy ones, cannot help but wonder how they come in like this, stand like that and remain so angry, spiteful. In our temple of God, God is present by His grace, the All-Gracious, Almighty God, and therefore there is so much of everything that is holy, sanctifying, rejoicing, consoling, that, it seems, it would be impossible for an evil and spiteful person not to calm down, not to leave behind their anger and bitterness.

Homily One on the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos (Archpriest Rodion Putyatin)

 By Archpriest Rodion Putyatin

The Church is now celebrating the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos. What does this entry mean? The parents of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Ancestors of God Joachim and Anna, being childless for a long time, prayed to God to give them a child and, if it was God's will, promised to dedicate the child to God to live and serve in the temple.

The fervent prayer of the righteous is not done in vain: God gave Joachim and Anna a daughter, whom they named Mary. She lived at their house for three years; on the fourth, according to the given vow, she was brought by them to the temple. Then the singing priests and Levites met her, and the high priest solemnly blessed her. Thus, she remained to live there until a certain time at the Jerusalem temple. This entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the temple is now celebrated by the Holy Church.

Reflection for the Feast of the Entry of the Mother of God (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 By St. Theophan the Recluse

On the feast of the Entry of the Most Holy Mother of God into the Temple, “Christ is born” is first sung, preparing believers for a worthy meeting of the feast of Christ’s Nativity. Having understood this inspiration, act according to it. Delve deeply into the mystery of the incarnation of the Only-Begotten Son of God, ascend to its beginning in the pre-eternal counsel of God concerning the existence of the world and man in it, see its reflection in the creation of man, meet joyfully the first tidings of it immediately after the fall, trace rationally its gradual revelation in Old Testament prophesies and prefigurations. Understand how and who prepared to receive God incarnate, under the influence of Divine educational institutions and activities within Israel — pass, if you want, across the borders to God’s people and gather there rays of God’s light, shining in the darkness — and ponder to what degree those chosen from among all nations reached the presentiment of the unusual manifestation of God’s providence for people. This will be a mental preparation. But now the fast has begun — collect yourself in order to prepare for Communion, go to confession and take Communion with the Holy Mysteries of Christ: this will be an active and living preparation. If, on account of all this, the Lord grants you to feel the power of His coming in the flesh — then, when the holiday comes, you will celebrate it not out of a joy foreign to you, but one of your own flesh and blood.

 

 

Homily on the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple (St. Philaret of Moscow)

 

 

By St. Philaret of Moscow

 

Hearken, O daughter, and see, and incline thine ear; and forget thine own people and thy father’s house. And the King shall greatly desire thy beauty,¹for He Himself is thy Lord, and thou shalt worship Him. (Ps. 44: 9-10)

 

God is wondrous in His ways, for in order to make blessed the being that comes from Him with a most exalted and incomprehensible blessedness, He from the ages deigned to unite His own nature with the nature of man, in the Person of His Only-Begotten Son—thus through Him to extend this union also to the fullness of the Church, which, according to the law of incarnation, is His body, and in this manner dissolving and as if mutually leveling all divinity with all lowly things, That in the dispensation of the fullness of times (Eph. 1:10), as the apostle says, When all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all (1 Cor. 15:28). This great resolution of the eternal counsel, or, according to the Apostle, this mystery, although it hath been hid from ages and from generations, is now made manifest also to his saints (Col. 1:26); and the Holy Spirit nevertheless revealed even this very revelation, which bears seven seals, to His mystics, and through them to all humankind to the extent of its gradually growing understanding obligating it to match up to and facilitate its fulfillment. Thus did one of the Prophets, who saw mankind in the past days of its infancy and under the guardianship of the law growing to the fullness of its years, when it was obligated to become capable of its task of being betrothed to Divinity and giving birth to a timeless Child, portrays the Son of God as the King approaching the wedding. And taking upon himself the role of the bringer of the bride, or friend of the bridegroom, the Prophet as if impatiently convinces human nature not to further postpone this blessed union by betrayal and insubordination, but to commit itself to it through sincerity and faithfulness. Hearken, O daughter, and see, and incline thine ear; and forget thine own people and thy father’s house. And the King shall greatly desire thy beauty.

 

The Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple and Sacred Nepsis (Archimandrite George Kapsanis)

 

 

By Archimandrite George Kapsanis

Delivered in 1988 in the dining room of Gregoriou Monastery on the Holy Mountain.

Saint Gregory Palamas, who is among other things also a theologian of the Mother of God, in his famous Discourse on the Entrance of the Theotokos, states that our Panagia entered the Holy of Holies, was the first in the world to inaugurate the path of wakefulness (nepsis), the ascension of the mind to God and the union of the human mind with God, namely the hesychastic way of the deification of man. Thus, for those who desire the secret and hesychastic ascent to God and the secret vision and knowledge of God, our Panagia is the model and the way. She is not only a way and a model for those who live in the world, with virginity and modest marriage, for mothers, but she is also a model for the sacred hesychasts.

The Entrance of the Theotokos as a Time of Preparation (Archimandrite Placide Deseille)

 

By Archimandrite Placide Deseille

 

This feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos, which is so close to the beginning of the Christmas forty-day fast, is a wonderful introduction to this period as we prepare to honor the Nativity of the Lord and celebrate it as a new incarnation of Christ in the manger of our hearts. For this will be precisely the grace of Christmas: that Christ may always be born more and more within us, that He always transform us more and more in Him in the depths of our hearts, so that this presence radiates to all of our being and in our whole life.

The Virgin Mary was so wonderfully prepared by God for her role as the Mother of God. Even as a child, she entered the Temple, she who would be the true Ark of the Covenant, the true place of the presence of God among men; she entered the Temple which was made by man, but foreshadowed, announced the final abode of God among men, which was not made by man, which would mark the time of the Gospel and the time in which we live.

Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos Into the Temple (St. Theophylact of Ochrid)

By St. Theophylact of Ochrid

All too often the “remembrance of the righteous, which is accompanied by encomia” is an opportunity to censure the person praising if he falls short of expressing the worth of the person being praised - because the address is not always, nor in all circumstances, equivalent to reality. But how can I speak of the Lady of all the righteous, the Mother of God, of He who is the King of Righteousness, or touch very lightly on even a part of her real worth, since it is my intention to praise her memory?

I think that if there were angelic voices who really were the heralds of certain mysteries, even they would not be able reach the sublime grace of the Mother of God. No human person could ever, in a fitting manner, hymn the praises of her whose holiness surpassed the whole of creation. Shall we then keep silent and dismiss the Mother of God without further ado, who for us is the underlying cause of a life of reason, or shall we speak with whatever strength we possess, blessing her in accordance with the prophecy, and with all of our strength we will revere all the wondrous works she has done? In doing this we will also glorify the great and indescribable things of God, proclaiming His greatness, which of course is beyond comprehension, however at the same time we also who speak of these things as well as those who listen will become sanctified.

Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple: Epistle and Gospel Reading

Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos

Matins Gospel Reading

Gospel According to Luke 1:39-49, 56

English

In those days, Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name." And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.

How the West Came to Celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary

Detail from The Presentation of the Virgin Mary by Titian
(1534-38, Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice).

The Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos was officially celebrated in Constantinople by the ninth century. By the fourteenth century, the Eastern Orthodox Churches were universally celebrating the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple as one of its Twelve Great Feasts on November 21st. In the West, it was only celebrated in the Greek-speaking monasteries of Southern Italy since the ninth century.

On the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Gregory of Nyssa)

 

By St. Gregory of Nyssa

Now, provided we do not digress too far from our subject, it is perhaps not inopportune to adduce Zacharias, who was slain between the temple and the altar, as a witness to the incorruption of the Mother of God. This Zacharias was a priest; and not only was he a priest, but he was also endowed with the gift of prophecy, his power of prophecy being declared expressly in the Book of the Gospel. When the Grace of God was preparing the way for men not to think that birth from a Virgin is incredible, it set the stage for the assent of unbelievers by means of lesser miracles: a child was born of a barren woman advanced in years. This was a prelude to the miracle of the Virgin Birth. For, just as Elizabeth became a mother not by the power of nature—for she had grown old in barrenness—but the birth of her child is ascribed to the Will of God; so also, the incredibility of a virginal parturition gains credibility with reference to the Divine.

Second Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Germanos of Constantinople)

By St. Germanos, Archbishop of Constantinople (715-730)

Behold, again another festival, and a glorious feast of the Mother of the Lord. Behold, the arrival of the blameless bride (cf. 2 Peter 3.14). Behold, the first procession of the queen. Behold, an accurate sign of the glory which will surround her.

Behold, the prelude of the divine grace which will overshadow her. Behold, the brilliant evidence of her exceptional purity. For where entering not many times, but once in the year (cf. Leviticus 16.1), the priest performs the mystical worship, there she is brought by her parents for unceasing residence, to be in the sacred sanctuary of grace.

First Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Germanos of Constantinople)

By St. Germanos, Archbishop of Constantinople (715-730)

1. Every divine festival, whenever it is celebrated, spiritually fills those who are present from a treasury and divinely flowing spring. But even more and beyond other feasts does this recently hymned festival, brilliantly celebrated, attract the soul with holy joy and gives more joy in proportion to the preeminence of the excellent child of God. For the annual observation of this feast is coming, in which one must be pure to participate.

And let us be anointed with the perfume of her roses, as Solomon says in the beautiful verse of his Song: "Who is that who comes up from the wilderness, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all the fragrant powders of the merchants?" (Song of Songs 3.6) - "Come hither from Lebanon, my bride; come hither from Lebanon" (Song of Songs 4.8).

So let us eagerly approach together this mutually beneficial, salvific feast of the Mother of God. And bowing before the unapproachable place [the Holy of Holies] let us watch the child going toward the second veil, Mary the all-holy Mother of God who put an end to unfruitful sterility, and exchanged the mere shadow of the letter of the law (cf Hebrews 1O.1) through the grace of her birth-giving.

A Church Beyond Compare - The Nea Church, or the Basilica of Saint Mary the New in Jerusalem (543-614)

A proposed reconstruction of the Nea Church

The Basilica of Saint Mary the New, also known as the New Church of the Theotokos or simply The Nea, was erected by the Roman Emperor Justinian I (527–565) in Jerusalem, specifically on Mount Zion near the site of where the Temple of Solomon once stood, and it was the largest church of its time that rivaled Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. The church was completed in 543 and consecrated on November 20th of that year. It was severely damaged or destroyed during the Persian conquest of the city in 614, and was further used as a source of building material by the Umayyads a few decades later. Today much of the site is occupied by Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, though recent archaeological excavations have uncovered portions of the Nea that can be viewed along the Cardo.

Forefeast of the Entrance Into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos

The Feast of the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple has only one day of forefeast on November 20th. The hymns for today praise Saint Anna for bringing her three year old daughter, the living temple of God, to the Temple in Jerusalem.

The three Old Testament readings at Great Vespers refer to the Temple. The first lesson (Exodus 40:1-5, 9-10, 16, 34-35) refers to the arrangement of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation (a portable sanctuary which was carried by the Israelites in their wanderings). The second lesson (III Kings/I Kings 7:51; 8:1, 3-7, 9-11) describes the dedication of Solomon’s Temple. The third lesson (Ezekiel 43:27-44:4) speaks of the gate of the sanctuary which faces east. God enters through this gate, which is shut so that no one else can enter by it.

Saints Neophytos, Ignatios, Prokopios and Neilos, Founders of Machairas Monastery

Sts. Neophytos, Ignatios, Prokopios,Neilos (Feast Day - December 13)

The Monastery of the Panagia of Machairas is built on the Troodos mountains beneath the foot of Machairas Hill where Pedaios River runs. This river is the most important on the island of Cyprus. Machairas Monastery is in second position in terms of prestige in Cyprus, after the Monastery of Kykkos.

Tradition says that the icon of the Panagia of Machairas is one of the seventy icons painted by the evangelist Luke. The icon of Panagia of Machairas is miraculous, and is known in Cyprus for producing many miracles. The Panagia of Machairas is especially known for healing wounds. It celebrates its feast day on November 21st, since it is dedicated to the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple.

History of the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple

By John Sanidopoulos

The Feast of the Entrance of our All Holy Lady the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary into the Temple, which is called the Presentation of the Virgin Mary in the West, is believed to not be among the most ancient festivals of the Church. However, indications that the feast was observed in the fourth century are found in the traditions of Palestinian Christians, which say that the Empress Helen (May 21) built a church in honor of the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple, though there is no evidence for this. Gregory of Nyssa, in the fourth century, also mentions the Entrance of the Holy Virgin, along with Jerome, Gregory the Theologian, Epiphanius of Salamis, Proclus, Andrew of Crete, John of Damascus and other Church Fathers, though it is not mentioned in any way as a festival of the Church until the eighth or ninth century, perhaps due to the rise of the influence of monasticism in the liturgical life and in the lives of Christians at this time, since the Entrance presents the Theotokos as a monastic attaining the heights of the spiritual life alone in the temple. Germanos I, Patriarch of Constantinople from 715 to 730, wrote two homilies for the feast. Tarasios (+ 806), the Patriarch of Constantinople, introduced it at Constantinople a century later as an official feast, though it had already been celebrated (this reintroduction may have been due to the first wave of Iconoclasm having passed). George of Nicomedia (9th cent.) wrote three sermons on the subject which address every detail of the feast, including a beautiful homily which addresses rhetorically the temple itself; he also composed hymns for the feast together with Leo Magister. It was celebrated in the monasteries of Southern Italy by the ninth century as well. The first calendar to describe the Feast as the Εἴσοδος τῆς Παναγίας Θεοτόκου (Entry of the All-Holy Theotokos) was in the Menologion of Basil II, an 11th-century menology of the Eastern Roman Emperor Basil II.

Panegyric for the Entrance of our Most Holy Theotokos (St. Tarasios of Constantinople)

By Saint Tarasios, Patriarch of Constantinople

With cheerfulness and astonishment do the lovers of feasts raise up hymns with longing at the present festival of the Entrance of the Ever-Virgin and Theotokos into the Temple. Today heaven and earth have a common feast, together glorifying the Creator, who elected as His habitation the mortal nature of the Maiden child of God.

The Silence of the Panagia

A homily delivered at the celebration of the feast of the Sacred Church of the Entrance of the Theotokos in Levadia during a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, presided over by His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece, on November 21, 2010.

By Metropolitan Hierotheos.of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

Every feast of the Mother of God is a cause of joy for the entire Church, and we celebrate it brilliantly, with hymns and doxologies, with a Divine Liturgy and litany, with words and silence, with pure thoughts and prayer of the heart. And this is because the Panagia is a gift of humanity to God as well as a gift of God to humanity and the entire world. She is "god after God, second place to the Holy Trinity," as we chant in a hymn.

This joy we feel on this day also with the feast of the Entrance of our Panagia into the Holy of Holies, a feast that shows the dedication of the Panagia to the Temple, her deification by grace and her essential preparation for the incarnation of the Son and Word of God. The Holy of Holies proved to be for the Theotokos a place of spiritual regeneration, a blessed and paradisaical place in which Adam and Eve lived after their creation. And the amazing thing is that Adam and Eve with their death-bearing disobedience to the will of God left this blessed place, while the Panagia with her life-bearing obedience, entered this paradisaical place, living in the Holy of Holies, like the first-formed prior to their disobedience.