By Brea Cannon
Liturgical Rhythm of Life
The Catholic liturgical calendar celebrates only three very special nativities — Jesus, John the Baptist and Mary. In September, we celebrate one of those — The Blessed Virgin Mary’s birthday.
Mark your calendar — The nativity of Mary is celebrated on Sept. 8. Her nativity is a cause for great joy as it is considered the" dawn of our salvation" as Pope Paul VI wrote in the document, Marialis Cultus. In our home, we like to throw Mary a little birthday party. It is always simple; my girls and I collect and arrange fresh cut flowers from our garden, we enjoy some type of treat and of course we sing “Happy Birthday” to Mary.
As we think about Mary’s birth and her role in ushering in the Savior, it is a great time to also think about God’s love and plan for each of His children.
“Man’s life comes from God; it is his gift, his image and imprint, a sharing in his breath of life. God therefore is the sole Lord of this life: man cannot do with it as he wills,” shared John Paul II in "Evangelium Vitae."
Birthdays are so important! In our culture today, the gift and sanctity of life are deeply undervalued. Life is often not given the respect it deserves — for the creator and author of all life has and will never create a life that is not made in His image and given a purpose in His kingdom.
A family friend shared with me a family birthday tradition from when his children were young. Each birthday, in addition to the family dinner and celebration, the birthday child (with the help of the father) bought and gave a rose to the mother in honor of her “yes” to life and her sacrifice as a mother. What a meaningful tradition! It is a small and simple tradition but one that recalls the beauty and gift that is every life and every birthday.
In addition to the traditional cake and ice cream, I love to celebrate the feast day or saint memorial that a loved one’s birthday falls on each year. It fosters a special relationship with the saints.
One of my daughter’s has a birthday on April 27 — the feast of St. Zita. St. Zita was a poor but holy servant for a family in Lucca, Italy. Legend has it, one day the other servants in the house saw Zita out serving the poor when she was supposed to be baking bread. The servants hurried to tell the family they worked for, when the family went into the kitchen, they found angels baking the bread for Zita. On my daughter’s birthday, we celebrate her with both cake and homemade bread to honor her life and the holy life of St. Zita.
A birthday is also a time to call upon God to bless and protect life. The "Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers" book, a resource created by the Committee of Liturgy of the United States Conference of Bishops (USCCB), states, “It is always appropriate to give thanks to God, but especially so on the occasion of a birthday. The birthday celebration provides the opportunity for acknowledging and giving thanks to God as the author and giver of life.”
From The Household Blessings and Prayers book, the following can be prayed on a birthday:
God of all creation,
We offer you grateful praise for the gift of life.
Hear the prayers of N., your servant
Who recalls today the gift of his/her birth
And rejoices in your gifts of life and love, family and friends.
Bless him/her with your presence and surround him/her with your love that he/she may enjoy many happy years, all of them pleasing to you.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. R/. Amen
From birthdays to feast days, living with the Church’s liturgical calendar means every day provides opportunities for celebration. A birthday, in a special way, is a celebration of God’s great love and design for each of his children. However young or old, never let a birthday pass without recalling the gift and importance of life.
If your family has any special liturgical traditions that you would like to share, you can send them to me at [email protected].