On the day after celebrating the Birth of Mary, we remember her parents.

Be glad, O barren one;
Be glad, O aged Anna.
You will conceive and give birth
To a wondrous child, a chosen one –

As once did the aged Sarah,
And the mother of Samson,
And the mother of Samuel,
And the mother of John –

Yet you will be more glorious than all,
For you will give birth from the womb
To the wonderful Virgin, the only
Wonderful Mother of the Most-high King.

Be glad, O Joachim,
Father of the unprecedented mother,
Of whom the Creator desires
To be clothed with glory.

The Law loses its power
When God wills, and where He wills.
Who can gainsay God?
Can there be any dispute with God?

Not by disputation, but by love
Does God change His laws.
Before love, all laws
Are as if nonexistent.

When men hunger, the Lord
Makes the dry field fertile;
And because of the spiritual hunger of the world,
He makes the barren one fertile.

For the salvation of men, the Lord
Arranges all for the best.
That is why all the Church of the saints
Cries out to Him: Glory! Glory!

— St Nikolai Velimirovic

Taken from the Prologue of Ohrid (“HYMN OF PRAISE: Saints Joachim and Anna” – September 9th).

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