St. Ann and Joachim
One
Sts. Anne and Joachim are the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grandparents of Jesus. Although there’s no mention of them in Scripture, they appear in multiple written accounts as early as 150 AD. In an ancient document known as the Protoevangelium of James, The Protoevangelium gives the following account: A wealthy and pious couple from Nazareth named Joachim and Hannah (Anne), were childless. When on a feast day Joachim presented himself to offer sacrifice in the temple, a rabi named Ruben refused to admit him as men without children were considered unworthy to enter. Whereupon Joachim, bowed down with grief, did not return home, but went into the mountains to cry out to God in solitude. Hannah learned the reason of his prolonged absence and wept to the Lord to take away from her the curse of childlessness, promising to dedicate her child to the service of God. Their prayers were heard; an angel came to Hannah and said: "Hannah, the Lord has looked upon thy tears; thou shalt conceive and give birth and the fruit of thy womb shall be blessed by all the world." The angel made the same promise to Joachim, who returned to his wife. Hannah gave birth to a daughter whom she called Miriam (Mary). Dear Sts. Anne and Joachim, you model for us what it means to cry out to God in prayer with love and trust. Intercede for us that we may never tire to turn to our Heavenly Father in our every need. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.
Two
Isn’t it interesting that in biblical times getting ‘fixed’ meant being healed in order to have children. Children not only represented joy of new life but also the honor of participating in the life-giving power of God. There are many married couples today who, like and Anne and Joachim, struggle with infertility. They are not alone as the Scriptures show us. It’s easy to see a connection between Anne and Joachim and Hannah and Elkanah in the Old Testament. Both suffered the difficulty of infertility, and both cried out to God for help. When God heard and answered their prayer, they each consecrated their child to God. For Hannah and Elkanah, their son Samuel became the last of the Judges and the first of the prophets, bringing forth the line of Davidic kings as it was Samuel who anointed David. Anne and Joachim consecrated their daughter, Mary, to God, who’s own Immaculate womb brought forth the Son of David, King of the Universe, the true Judge and very Word of God. Hannah from the Old Testament cries out in jubilation, “My heart exults in the Lord, my horn is exalted in my God. I have swallowed up my enemies; I rejoice in my victory. . . . “(1 Samuel 2: 1, 5). We hear Hannah’s word echoes by the Blessed Virgin Mary in her Magnificat, “My soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Lk 1:46). These words reveal the compassion that God bestows upon those parents who struggle with infertility but who persevere trusting the Lord. We know from experience that those prayers are not always answered the way we would like them to be, but nevertheless are answered in God’s own way.
Three
Preserved in the correspondence of Pope St. Leo III is this interesting story on how the relics of St. Anne were recovered in France. Fourteen years after Our Lord’s death, a persecution broke out in Jerusalem against the Christians. Saints Mary Magdalen, Martha, and Lazarus, escaped in a boat, carrying with them the tenderly loved body of Our Lady’s mother to protect these sacred relics from harm. When, by the power of God, their boat survived and finally drifted to the shores of France, the little company of saints buried Saint Anne’s body in a cave, in a place called Apt, in the south of France. The church, which was later built over the spot, fell into decay because of wars and religious persecutions, and as the centuries passed, the place of Saint Anne’s tomb was forgotten.
On Easter Sunday, 792 A.D., the emperor Charlemagne, arrived to consecrate a new Church built on the site of an old chapel, whose contents were long forgotten. At the most solemn part of the ceremonies, a teenaged boy born blind, deaf and dumb startled both his parents and the audience when he broke his usual silence becoming tremendously excited. He rose from his seat, walked up the aisle to the altar steps, and to the bewilderment of the entire church, began striking the first step of the sanctuary again and again with his stick. His embarrassed family tried to lead him out, but he would not budge. He continued frantically to pound the step, straining to communicate something he knew mysteriously that seemed sealed hopelessly within him. Charlemagne responded to the young man, and had some workers remove the step and low and behold, they discovered a subterranean passage, leading down a dark corridor. They made their way in the dim light of candles down through the darkness. At the end of the corridor, they discovered a crypt, upon which, to their profound wonderment, a vigil lamp, alight and burning in a little walled recess, cast a heavenly radiance. As Charlemagne and his afflicted small guide and their companions stood before the lamp, its light went out. And at the same moment, the boy, blind and deaf and dumb from birth, began to cry out, “It is she! It is she!” revealing full restoration of all his senses! When the crypt was finally opened, a casket was found within it. In the casket was a winding sheet, and in the sheet were relics, and upon the relics was an inscription that read, “Here lies the body of Saint Anne, mother of the glorious Virgin Mary.” The winding sheet, it was noted, was of eastern design and texture. One of these holy relics actually made it to N. America, in the Shrine of St. Anne de Beaupre, in Quebec.
Four
By embracing the grandparents of Jesus, the Church underscores the importance of the wisdom and love revealed by our grandparents. Every parent thinks they have the perfect child. Anne and Joachim did, as well as a truly Divine grandchild. Thus, the Church establishes them as the patron saints of grandparents, infertility, women in labor, house-wives, miners (they uncovered the richest treasures), equestrians (perhaps due to their frequent travels to be with Jesus), and the like due to their role in the life of the Holy Family. Can you imagine being the one to prepare supper for these family get togethers when Anne and Joachim visited the Holy Family? And you think cooking for the in-laws is stressful! No wonder Sts. Joachim and Joseph were so quiet! Although we may never experience holiday celebrations quite like this, our call to holiness, hospitality, and deep friendship takes its inspiration from these celebrations. Sts. Anne and Joachim, pray for our growth in invitation and hospitality.
Five
The fact that Anne and Joachim were venerated from the earliest times shows us how much importance our Lord placed on family ties. I close with his prayer for those of us who experience concern for loved ones who have left the fold. Dear Sts. Anne and Joachim, one whom I love has wandered off and become like a lost sheep. Please dear saints, intercede with your grandson the Good Shepherd, ask your daughter the Good Shepherd’s holy Mother, to intercede with Him also. Ask your grandson to once again let my loved one hear the Good Shepherd’s voice and pray the that Good Shepherd of us all seek out my lost sheep, place my lost sheep on his shoulders, and bring my loved one home to His house forever. Amen.