The Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary 	September 8
Mother of our Lord
In the early church, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was always held in the greatest respect, though the chief emphasis lay on her relationship to Eve: just as Eve was involved in the fall, so Mary was involved in our salvation.
In the fourth and fifth centuries, debates about the person of Christ had an effect on the position of Mary in Christian devotion as well. A clear affirmation of Christ’s full humanity was accompanied by enhanced respect for Mary as “Mother of God”. It was in this context that a number of feasts of Mary grew up, including the celebration of her birth. The feast was widely observed in the church, and was retained in the Book of Common Prayer at the Reformation.
There is no known reason why 8 September should have been chosen for the feast. Nothing reliable is known about the birth of Mary or about her parents. Various second and third century documents, written with the pious intention of providing additional details about the birth and early years of Jesus, also contain information about Mary, though none of it is historically reliable. It is from these that most of the stories and traditions about Mary are supplied.
For Liturgical Use
The Church has honoured Mary, the mother of Jesus, from the beginning. Then the debates of the fourth century about the full humanity of Christ led to an enhanced celebration of Mary, including her birth, even though nothing reliable is known about her birth or family. The feast of Mary’s birth was widely observed in the church, and was retained in the Book of Common Prayer.
Sentence
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.	Matthew 5:8 
Collects
Eternal God,
you called the blessed Virgin Mary 
to be the mother of our Saviour;
grant that we, after her example,
may humbly accept the tasks you give us 
and faithfully bring them to completion;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

God of wonders, 
all glory to you,
that we should honour the birthday
of Mary, a humble Jewish maiden,
and that she should be called your mother.
Psalms	127	131
Readings
Ruth 4:13-16		The gift of a child
James 1:17-18 		Birth from the word of truth
Luke 8:19-21		Jesus’ mother
Post Communion Sentence
By your great mercy, O God, you have given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.	1 Peter 1:3 (adapted)