at prayer

St. Anne
St Anne
Feast Day 26 July; Moscari. Mallorca

The mother of Mary and grandmother of Jesus. Reputedly childless into old age, she and her husband Joachim were visited by an angel and told she would bear a child. There are sufficient similarities with the story of Samuel whose mother had also been childless to make this version doubtful.

Theologians either believe Anne was married only once or that she was married three times. In the latter case each marriage supposedly produced one daughter, Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary of Clopas and Mary Salomae. In their turn, Mary of Clopas was said to be the mother of James the Lesser, Simon and Judas, and of Joseph the Just, and Mary Salomae mother of the Apostles John and James the Greater. This was refuted by the Vatican in 1677.

However, John 19:25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene, would appear to support those who believe there were three marriages -even with the sisters all having the same name!

In addition, there was a belief that Mary was also born as the result of a virgin birth, being conceived through the Holy Spirit. However, the Church rejected this in 1677, teaching that Mary was conceived in a normal fashion but miraculously free from original sin so that she was able to bear Jesus. This is known as the Immaculate Conception.

Logically had Mary also been the result of a virgin birth then her mother would have had to be too, and her mother and so on….