"If the Son of God had wanted merely to appear, He would certainly have assumed any kind of body, even one better than ours. Instead, it was our own kind of body that He took, and not just in any way. He took it from a pure unstained Virgin, who had not known man. This... Continue Reading →
Church built from Jesus’ side by Epiphanius of Salamis.
"Notice, I pray you, how precise Scripture is. Of Adam, it is said that he was formed, while, in the case of Eve, it does not say that she was formed but rather that she was built up. "He took" -it says- "one of his ribs and built it up into a woman" (Gen 2:21)... Continue Reading →
The second mother blessed by St. Ephrem the Syrian
"Just as their very bodies have sinned and died, and as the earth, their mother is cursed (cf. Gen 3:17-19), so because of this body which is the incorruptible church, his earth is blessed from the beginning. This earth is Mary's body, the temple in which a seed has been deposited. Observe the angel who... Continue Reading →
In Love with the Beauty of the Virgin by St. Ephrem the Syrian
"Only you [Jesus] and your Motherare more beautiful than everything. For on you, O Lord, there is no mark;neither is there any stain in your Mother." Ephrem the Syrian, Carmina Nisibena 27, 8; CSCO 219, 76. "The eye becomes pure when it is united with the Light of the sun,and receives strength from its vigourand... Continue Reading →
Mary Ever-Virgin Mother of God by St. Athanasius of Alexandria
"For, if she had had other children, the saviour would not have ignored them and entrusted His Mother to someone else; nor would she have become someone else's mother. She would not have [abandoned her own] to live with others, knowing well that it ill becomes [a woman] to abandon her husband or her children.... Continue Reading →
Christ became man for our sake by St. Athanasius of Alexandria.
"Christ, being God, became man for our sake and was born of Mary, Mother of God, to free us from the devil's power."
St. Mary appears to Gregory The Wonderworker by St. Gregory of Nyssa
"When [Gregory] was passing a sleepless night because of these worries, someone appeared to him in human form, aged in appearance, clothed in garments denoting a sacred dignity, with a face characterized by a sense of grace and virtues. Gregory, looking frightened, rose from his bed and asked him who he was and why he... Continue Reading →
On Birth from a Woman by St. Cyprian of Carthage
"It is written in the prophet Isaiah "And the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying. "Ask for a sign from the Lord your God ... Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive in her womb and bear a Son, and shall call His name Emmanuel. He shall eat... Continue Reading →
Mother of God by Clement of Alexandria
"It appears that even today many hold that Mary, after the birth of Her Son, was found to be in the state of a woman who has given birth, while in fact, she was not so. For some say that, after giving birth, she was examined by a midwife, who found her to be a... Continue Reading →
Why did God choose an “engaged” virgin? by Origen
"I ask myself why God, after having decided that the Lord was to be born of a virgin, did not choose a young woman without a fiance, but instead chose [Mary], who was already engaged. If I am not mistaken, the reason is this: the Lord had to be born of a virgin who was... Continue Reading →