Beautiful Egypt 310 – “Feasts of St. Virgin Mary” – 21/8/2019

It is very sweet that Egyptians share their religious feasts as their hearts would rejoice together!

Very recently we congratulated our Muslim brothers for Eid Al-Adha. Today we congratulate Coptic people of Egypt for the feast of St. Virgin Mary that they will celebrate tomorrow, August 22nd (Massry 16th). We are praying to God for Egypt to be blessed with all good things and peace.

In the previous article we followed talking about St. Virgin Mary “Pride of mankind”, and about some of her titles. For instance: The queen on the right side of the king, our mother of God, the ladder of Jacob, the good dove, and the swift cloud.

Moreover we discussed the virtue of modesty in her life as well as her silence; she kept all these things and pondered them in her heart no matter what!

Although she witnessed grave incidents and yet she remained quiet and meditated on. The Bible said: “But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart”.

As a matter of fact Virgin Mary learnt, since her childhood when she was vowed to the temple, to occupy herself with prayers, meditation, praises to God in addition to reading the Holy Books that affected her life greatly. So she set a good example for the modest spirit who realized the mighty of God and his glory. Furthermore she glorified Him with all her deeds besides many other virtues that her life was filled with; as we mentioned before in previous articles.

That’s why the Coptic Church places Virgin Mary in the highest ranks; she is precedent to angels, prophets, Apostles, all martyrs and saints. Moreover it scheduled a lot of feasts for her.

The feasts of Virgin Mary

The Coptic Church celebrates many feasts of the Virgin as follows;

• The Annunciation with her birth

On Massry 7th (13/8) when the angel of God announced her birth to her father Joachim. He and her mother Hanna rejoiced and vowed her to the lord. She lived ever after at the temple since her childhood.

• Her Birthday

The church celebrates it on the first of Bashans (5/9).

• The Feast of her entrance into the temple

On the third day of Kiahk (12/12) whereas she entered the temple to pray and lived at the house specialized for virgins.

• The Feast of her coming to Egypt

This is an exclusive day to Egypt only when the Holy Family escaped. Virgin Mary carried baby Jesus Christ and was accompanied by Joseph the Carpenter and Salome her cousin on Bashans 24th (the first of June).

• The Feast of her Departure

On Tuba 21st (29/1) when she was surrounded by the Apostles except for saint Thomas who was preaching in India at that time. During which we remember a miracle that occurred to a Jewish man who tried to touch the coffin of Virgin Mary to assault her holy body, but at once his arms were separated from his body. He was in a state of remorse and he cried. After a lot of prayers his hands returned back as it was.

• Her Monthly Feast

It is celebrated on the 21st of each Coptic month to commemorate her departure monthly which was on Tuba 21st.

• The Feast of the disciples’ vision of her after the ascension of her body

It is the feast that we will celebrate tomorrow which occur on Massry 16th (22/8), preceded by the Fasting of Virgin Mary which lasts for 15 days.

• The Feast of her miracle (iron dissolve)

On Baouna 21st (28/6), we remember the miracle of St. Virgin Mary with Metias the Apostle and those with him; as she dissolved the iron that they were chained by.

Metias the Apostle went to a city called Bertus in Galatia where a lot of people believed in God. Moreover that made all pagans furious; so they told the governor who ordered to arrest him. Saint Metias prayed to God to save him. When Virgin Mary heard about what happened to Metias, she went to him where she saw him in the locked prison cuffed with iron chains. So she prayed to God in order to dissolve the iron as water and God heard her prayers. Thus the iron of the chains, the doors, the locks and all the iron in the city had dissolved!!

The whole city was disrupted. Also the governor searched for the main reason behind that.  He was told that a strange lady came searching for Metias. As she stood in front of the doors of prison and prayed; both the doors and the locks began to melt down instantly.

The governor brought Virgin Mary and spoke with her. Instantly he believed in God and pleaded her to return back the iron to its normal state. Virgin Mary prayed to God and God heard her prayers. That’s how she saved Saint Metias the Apostle.

• The Feast of her Apparition in Zeitoun

Her apparition was on Baramhat 24th (2/4/1968), whereas these consequent apparitions lasted for months. Then her apparition was repeated in some churches over the years later on. Many happy peaceful returns…

Stories about Beautiful Egypt never end!

General Bishop

Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center