PARENTS ARE THE FIRST EDUCATORS AND CATECHISTS UNTO THEIR CHILDREN (HOMILY FOR THE MEMORIAL OF SAINTS JOACHIM AND ANNE
HOMILY FOR THE MEMORIAL OF SAINTS JOACHIM AND ANNE Jeremiah 14:17-22; Matthew 13:36-43 Dearest brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate Saint Joachim and Saint Anne, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the maternal grandparents of our Lord Jesus Christ and the parents-in-law of St. Joseph. The celebration of today takes us through the memory lane of those who introduced Jesus and Mary to us. Hence, the subtle misconception of the origin of the Blessed Virgin Mary is perfectly clarified. She had parents in the persons of Joachim and Anne. Although the sacred scripture makes no mention of the names of the parents of our lady, credence is given to an old tradition that goes back to the 2nd century which holds that Joachim was Mary's father and Anne was her mother. Tradition has it that Joachim and Anne lived in Nazareth. They belong to the tribe of Judah and the royal family of David. Right from the early times of the church, Joachim and Anne had been celebrated a...