Minor Festival -- St. Mary, Mother of our Lord (August 15)

St. Mary, Mother of Our Lord

Lutheran worship is liturgical.  While that often refers to an order of worship, it can also refer to the calendar of the Church Year.   The Church Year includes major festivals, such as Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost, etc...  On Sunday, August 15, we will celebrate a minor festival, the Festival of St. Mary, Mother of Our Lord.

Just as we do not worship any of the saints or any person, so we do not worship Mary.  However, we concur with Mary when she sang, “From this day all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me...” (Luke 1:48,49).  Mary was the servant whom the Lord chose and through whom he would bring the Savior into the world.  Mary is rightfully called the “mother of God” since firstborn son is true God.  Even though God chose Mary for this unique role in salvation history, she herself recognized her need for the Savior whom she bore, singing, “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Luke 1:46,47).