The Entrance of the Mother of God into the Temple
Today we celebrate the feast of the Entrance of the Mother of God into the Temple. The Prologue of Ohrid and the Protoevangelium of James both talk about Mary entering the temple at age three, entered the Holy of Holies, and prayed and worshipped in the temple. The texts talk about Mary running up the steps of the temple to enter, harkening back to David dancing before the Ark of the Covenant. We too can be eager in our prayer, eager to encounter God and be closer to Him.At vespers we sang the Litija: "Today the Theotokos, that Temple that is to contain God, is being escorted with gladness into the Temple of God." The Mother of God was prepared from a young age to be a Temple of the one whom the heavens cannot contain.
Today is also Beth's birthday. God grant her many years!