Most Pure Mother of God, Theotokos, Your honoured Assembly shines with abundant virtues; countless faithful bring their gifts to You, O Lady. With Your mercy, break the bonds of our sins and save our souls.
Troparion of the Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos, Tone 4
One of the oldest feasts honouring the Mother of God is Her Assembly. The Church established this commemoration as early as the fifth century. Saints Epiphanius of Cyprus, Ambrose of Milan, and Blessed Augustine of Hippo all praised Christ, born on earth as God and Man, and honoured His Virgin Mother in their homilies for the Nativity. In 691, the Sixth Ecumenical Council, in its 79th canon, instructed that the Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos be observed on the day after the Nativity of Christ.
Later, taking their cue from the Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Church established several similar feasts. Today, after the Twelve Great Feasts, the Orthodox Church celebrates saints chosen by God who played a special role in events guided by His divine will. For example, on 22 September, after celebrating the Nativity of the Mother of God, we commemorate Her parents Joachim and Anna. Similarly, on 20 January, we celebrate the Assembly of John the Baptist, the Forerunner of Christ; and on 16 February, we honour righteous Simeon the God-receiver, Anna the Prophetess, and several other saints.
"Come," the hymnographer of 8 January exclaims, "let us sing to the Mother of our Saviour, who remained a Virgin even after His birth." We gather in church on the morning of the Feast of the Nativity of Christ to glorify and give thanks to the Mother of Christ; this gathering is called by the Holy Church the Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos.
"The Virgin Mary," writes Venerable Ephraim the Syrian, "is the Daughter of Light, because through Her, both the world and all who dwell in it were bathed in light." She is the second heaven and another world; a spiritual paradise for the New Adam; a holy temple; a bridge joining heaven and earth; a ladder by which God descends to humanity and humanity rises to God. Such praise belongs to Her alone — our Heavenly Queen and Mother — Whose glory surpasses cherubim, seraphim and every angelic host.
Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos. Fresco by Michael Astrapas and Eutychios, 1295. Church of the Theotokos Perivlepta, Ohrid, Macedonia
By the 1200s, the way artists depicted this Assembly had settled into its familiar form. The earliest surviving example is a fresco from 1295 found in the Church of the Theotokos Perivlepta in Ohrid (Macedonia). In Rus', icons portraying this feast date back to at least the fourteenth century: the oldest known image comes from Pskov.
Look closely at this icon, and you will see how perfectly it captures the words sung during the Great Vespers for Christmas Eve — St John of Damascus’s hymn, ‘To the Lord I have cried’. It asks: What shall we offer You, O Christ, who have appeared on earth as one of us? Every creature made by You brings thanks: the angels offer their hymn, the heavens their star, the wise men their gifts; the shepherds marvel at the wonder; the earth offers a cave; the wilderness, a manger. As for us — we give You the Virgin Mother. O God before all ages, have mercy on us.
At the heart of the image sits the Most Holy Theotokos, cradling the Infant God. Around Her throne, in line with the text, angels gather in praise, glorifying both God and His pure Mother. Above them, the Bethlehem star shines brightly in the heavens. Wise Men from the East bow low with their precious gifts, and shepherds stand nearby, filled with wonder. On either side of the throne, symbolic figures represent earth and wilderness, each offering their own humble gift — a cave and a manger. Below this heavenly scene stands an assembly of those who sing hymns honouring Christ's birth and His Mother. Among them we recognise Church Fathers and Orthodox hymn-writers, including Saint John of Damascus himself. Sometimes the scene expands to show those who perform these hymns — singers, deacons, and gathered faithful.
The image, then, shows us the Mother of God as humanity’s own gift to the Almighty. After our fall into sin, what greater offering could we possibly make? A height unscalable, unfathomable not only for humankind but also for the minds of angels. She alone is honoured above the cherubim and glorified beyond comparison above the seraphim.
Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos. Fresco by Dionysius, 1502. Cathedral of the Nativity of the Theotokos, Ferapontov Monastery
No other being created by God could ever match the sacrifice made by the Most Holy Virgin. “Behold the handmaid of the Lord” (Luke 1:38) — these blessed words, spoken at the Annunciation, decided the course of our destiny: through Her, God entered our fallen world to bring us salvation. Every day of Her earthly life and all She suffered became a pledge of Christ’s Pascha to come.
We see just how much God loves us when we remember that ancient story of Abraham. When he raised his hand over his beloved son Isaac, having already surrendered his first-born in his heart, an angel halted that sacrifice. Yet our Heavenly Father spared nothing to save us, freely offering His Son. And standing alongside Him in this sacred, sacrificial offering is the Mother of God: for sinful humanity’s salvation She gives Her own Child. Two sacrifices unite: the Heavenly Father's and the Mother of God's.
Today, therefore, the Orthodox Church honours and praises this purest Mother for Her maternal courage; for Her unmatched example of humility before God; for Her quiet endurance of suffering beyond words; and for Her eternal joy now at rest beside the Lord’s throne.
Alongside the Mother of God on this day, we also remember Saint Joseph the Betrothed, King David — ancestor according to the flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ — and Saint James, the brother of the Lord. James, son of the righteous Joseph from his first marriage, stayed by the side of the Virgin Mary and Christ Child during their flight into Egypt and served them throughout their time in a foreign land.
The flight into Egypt. Detail from the Nativity of Christ Icon, twelfth century. Monastery of Saint Catherine, Sinai
In these holy days, love’s golden threads reach from eternity into our hearts. The Magi's gifts fill the air with fragrance. Angels sing their praise. What might we offer You, Christ? Gold? Frankincense? Myrrh? Two millennia past, in a humble stable, the Magi's gifts gleamed and gave forth their scent before God. What shall we bring Him today, standing here in His holy temple? Perhaps the quiet repentance of our humble, scentless souls?
Through the prayers of Your Most Pure and Blessed Mother, the Ever-Virgin Mary, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy upon us, sinners.
Most Pure Mother of God, honoured Theotokos, Your holy Assembly shines with countless virtues; many on earth bring gifts to You, O Lady; by Your mercy break the chains of our sins and deliver our souls.
Kontakion of the Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos, Tone 6
Prepared by the editorial team of obitel-minsk.ru
Photographs from the internet
Sources:
1. Lives of Saints venerated by the Orthodox Church, with information on feasts of the Lord and the Mother of God and on miracle-working icons. Compiled by Archbishop Philaret (Gumilevsky) of Chernigov and others; illustrated by Academician F. G. Solntsev. St Petersburg: Publisher I. L. Tuzov, 1900. December.
2. Synaxarion: Lives of Saints of the Orthodox Church (6 vols). Translated and adapted from French by Hieromonk Makary Simonopetritsky. Moscow: Sretensky Monastery Publishing House, 2011. Vol. 2 November — December.
3. “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to Your word.” https://azbyka.ru/otechnik/Mitrofan_Znosko_Borovskij/slova-i-propovedi/#0_113 Words and sermons — Bishop Mitrofan (Znosko-Borovsky) — available to read or download.
4. “The Mother of God is the second heaven and second world” / Orthodoxie.ru
5. How to become a member of the Family of the Most Holy Theotokos / Orthodoxie.ru
6. 8 January — Assembly of the Most Holy Theotokos — Church of Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessaloniki - https://dimitri.moseparh.ru/2019/01/08/8-yanvarya-sobor-presvyatoj-bogorodicy/
