Papias of Hierapolis (60-163 A.D.)

“Mary the mother of the Lord; (2) Mary the wife of Cleophas or Alphaeus, who was the mother of James the bishop and apostle, and of Simon and Thaddeus, and of one Joseph; (3) Mary Salome, wife of Zebedee, mother of John the evangelist and James; (4) Mary Magdalene. These four are found in the Gospel. James and Judas and Joseph were sons of an aunt (2) of the Lord’s. James also and John were sons of another aunt (3) of the Lord’s. Mary (2), mother of James the Less and Joseph, wife of Alphaeus was the sister of Mary the mother of the Lord, whom John names of Cleophas, either from her father or from the family of the clan, or for some other reason.” -Excerpts from Papias 10

Justin Martyr (100-165 A.D.)

“[Jesus] became man by the Virgin so that the course which was taken by disobedience in the beginning through the agency of the serpent might be also the very course by which it would be put down. Eve, a virgin and undefiled, conceived the word of the serpent and bore disobedience and death. But the Virgin Mary received faith and joy when the angel Gabriel announced to her the glad tidings that the Spirit of the Lord would come upon her and the power of the Most High would overshadow her, for which reason the Holy One being born of her is the Son of God. And she replied ‘Be it done unto me according to your word’ [Luke 1:38]” (Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 100 [A.D. 155])

Hegesippus the Chronicler (110-180 A.D.)

“After James the Just suffered martyrdom for the same reason as the Lord, Simon, his cousin, the son of Clopas, was appointed bishop, whom they all proposed because he was another cousin (Greek = anepsion) of the Lord.” –Hypomnemata (Written 178 A.D.)

The Protoevangelium of James (Written ca 144 A.D.)

“And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by [St. Anne], saying, ‘Anne! Anne! The Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive and shall bring forth, and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world.’ And Anne said, ‘As the Lord my God lives, if I beget either male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God, and it shall minister to him in the holy things all the days of its life.’ . . . And [from the time she was three] Mary was in the temple of the Lord as if she were a dove that dwelt there” (Protoevangelium of James 4, 7 [A.D. 120]).

“And when she was twelve years old there was held a council of priests, saying, ‘Behold, Mary has reached the age of twelve years in the temple of the Lord. What then shall we do with her, lest perchance she defile the sanctuary of the Lord?’ And they said to the high priest, ‘You stand by the altar of the Lord; go in and pray concerning her, and whatever the Lord shall manifest to you, that also will we do.’ . . . [A]nd he prayed concerning her, and behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him saying, ‘Zechariah! Zechariah! Go out and assemble the widowers of the people and let them bring each his rod, and to whomsoever the Lord shall show a sign, his wife shall she be. . . . And Joseph [was chosen]. . . . And the priest said to Joseph, ‘You have been chosen by lot to take into your keeping the Virgin of the Lord.’ But Joseph refused, saying, ‘I have children, and I am an old man, and she is a young girl’” (ibid., 8–9).

“And Annas the scribe came to him [Joseph] . . . and saw that Mary was with child. And he ran away to the priest and said to him, ‘Joseph, whom you did vouch for, has committed a grievous crime.’ And the priest said, ‘How so?’ And he said, ‘He has defiled the virgin whom he received out of the temple of the Lord and has married her by stealth’” (ibid., 15).

“And the priest said, ‘Mary, why have you done this? And why have you brought your soul low and forgotten the Lord your God?’ . . . And she wept bitterly saying, ‘As the Lord my God lives, I am pure before him, and know not man’” (ibid.).

Irenaeus of Lyons (130-202 A.D.)

“Consequently, then, Mary the Virgin is found to be obedient, saying, ‘Behold, O Lord, your handmaid; be it done to me according to your word.’ Eve, however, was disobedient, and, when yet a virgin, she did not obey. Just as she, who was then still a virgin although she had Adam for a husband—for in paradise they were both naked but were not ashamed; for, having been created only a short time, they had no understanding of the procreation of children, and it was necessary that they first come to maturity before beginning to multiply—having become disobedient, was made the cause of death for herself and for the whole human race; so also Mary, betrothed to a man but nevertheless still a virgin, being obedient, was made the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race. . . . Thus, the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. What the virgin Eve had bound in unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed through faith” (Against Heresies 3:22:24 [A.D. 189]).

“The Lord then was manifestly coming to his own things, and was sustaining them by means of that creation that is supported by himself. He was making a recapitulation of that disobedience that had occurred in connection with a tree, through the obedience that was upon a tree [i.e., the cross]. Furthermore, the original deception was to be done away with—the deception by which that virgin Eve (who was already espoused to a man) was unhappily misled. That this was to be overturned was happily announced through means of the truth by the angel to the Virgin Mary (who was also [espoused] to a man). . . . So if Eve disobeyed God, yet Mary was persuaded to be obedient to God. In this way, the Virgin Mary might become the advocate of the virgin Eve. And thus, as the human race fell into bondage to death by means of a virgin, so it is rescued by a virgin. Virginal disobedience has been balanced in the opposite scale by virginal obedience. For in the same way, the sin of the first created man received amendment by the correction of the First-Begotten” (ibid., 5:19:1 [A.D. 189]).

Tertullian of Carthage (155-220 A.D.)

“Why is Christ called Adam by the apostle? Even reason defends this conclusion; that God recovered his image and likeness by the same procedure which the Devil had taken it. It was while Eve was still a virgin that the word of the devil crept in to erect an edifice of death. Likewise through a virgin the Word of God was introduced to set up a structure of life. Thus what had been laid waste in ruin by this sex was by the same sex reestablished in salvation. Eve had believed the serpent; Mary believed Gabriel. That which the one destroyed by believing, the other, by believing, set straight.” –The Flesh of Christ 17:4 [A.D. 210]

Hippolytus of Rome (170-235 A.D.)

“But the pious confession of the believer is that . . . the Creator of all things incorporated with Himself a rational soul and a sensible body from the all-holy Mary, ever-virgin, by an undefiled conception, without conversion, and was made man in nature, but separate from wickedness. . .” –Against Beron and Helix: Fragment VIII

Origen of Alexandria (184-253 A.D.)

“The Book [the Protoevangelium] of James [records] that the brethren of Jesus were sons of Joseph by a former wife, whom he married before Mary. Now those who say so wish to preserve the honor of Mary in virginity to the end, so that body of hers which was appointed to minister to the Word . . . might not know intercourse with a man after the Holy Spirit came into her and the power from on high overshadowed her. And I think it in harmony with reason that Jesus was the first fruit among men of the purity which consists in [perpetual] chastity, and Mary was among women. For it were not pious to ascribe to any other than to her the first fruit of virginity” (Commentary on Matthew 2:17 [A.D. 248]).

“And the Lord spoke to Moses saying, ‘A woman, if she has received seed, and if she shall bear a male child, shall be unclean for seven days.’ The expression ‘if she has received seed’ placed before ‘bear a male child’ would seem superfluous. But I wonder whether the statement was made in this manner, lest Mary, who would bear a male child without receiving seed, should otherwise be thought to be unclean by reason of birth of the Savior… Yet Mary would still be understood to be clean for she was not simply a woman, but a Virgin.” – Homilies on Leviticus 8.2. (Written 244 A.D.)

Gregory Thaumaturgus (213-270 A.D.)

“But we, O my friends, resorting to the garden of the Saviour, let us praise the Holy Virgin; saying along with the angels in the language of Divine grace, ‘Rejoice thou and be glad.’  For from her first shone forth the eternally radiant light, that lighteth us with its goodness… And not only is it meet to marvel at the beauty of the Holy Mother of God, but also at the excellence of her spirit.” –Homily on the Holy Mother of God 12:22 (Written 262 A.D.)

“Let us twine, as with a wreath, the souls with golden blossoms, fain to be crowned with wreaths from unfading gardens; and offering in our hands the fair-fruited flowers of Christ, let us gather them. For the golden temple of the Holy Virgin is meet to be glorified with such a crown.” –Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary (Written 262 A.D.)

“Great is the mystery thou hast learned, O Mary, that which till now was hidden from the angels. Thou hast known what deaf prophets and patriarchs heard not; and thou hast heard that which the choirs of the God-clad were not ever held worthy to hear. David and Isaiah and all the prophets foretold in their preaching about the Lord’s becoming man. But thou alone, O Holy Virgin, received the mystery unknown by them.” –Homily on the Annunciation (Written 262 A.D.)

“Let us chant the melody that has been taught us by the inspired harp of David, and say, ‘Arise, O Lord, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy sanctuary.’ For the Holy Virgin is in truth an ark, wrought with gold both within and without, that has received the whole treasury of the sanctuary.” –Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary (Written 262 A.D.)

“The Holy Virgin herself is both an honorable Temple of God and a shrine made pure, a golden altar of burnt offerings, by reason of her surpassing purity, ‘She is the door which looks eastward’ (Ezekiel 44) and by the comings and goings forth, the whole earth is illuminated… She is the boast of virgins and the joy of mothers; the declaration of archangels, even as it was spoken: ‘Be thou glad and rejoice, the Lord is with thee!’” –Homily on the Annunciation (Written 262 A.D.)

“A bulwark of imperishable life hath the Holy Virgin become unto us… with His handmaid, her that is unspotted, the Lord of glory halloweth all.” –Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary (Written 262 A.D.)

“Holy and wise was the all blessed Virgin; in all ways peerless among nations and unrivaled among women. Not as the first virgin Eve, who being alone in the garden, was led astray by the serpent and so took his advice and brought death into the world and thus has been the suffering of all saints. But in her alone, this holy Virgin Mary, the Stem of Life hath shot up for us. For she alone was spotless in soul and body.” –Homily on the Annunciation (Written 262 A.D.)

“No more doth Eve fear the pangs of childbirth; for by the Holy Virgin her transgressions are blotted out and effaced; forasmuch as in her was God born, to the end that He might make alive him whom He made in His image.” –Homily on the Annunciation (Written 262 A.D.)

“When I remember the disobedience of Eve, I weep. But when I view the fruit of Mary, I am again renewed. Thou didst take on flesh from Mary Virgin in order that Thou mightest renew afresh Adam fashioned by Thy holy hand.” –Homily on the Annunciation (Written 262 A.D.)

“Where death came forth, there has life now prepared its entrance. By a woman came the flood of our ills, now by a woman, comes the spring of our blessings. Hail thou that hast sunk in your womb the death that came of our first mother Eve! Hail thou, bodily temple of God! Hail thou, the equal home of heaven and earth alike!” –Homily on the Annunciation to the Holy Virgin Mary (Written 262 A.D.)

Peter I of Alexandria (Martyred 311 A.D.)

“They came to the church of the most blessed Mother of God and Ever Virgin, Mary, which, as we began to say, was constructed in the western quarter, in a suburb, for a cemetary of the martyrs.” –The Genuine Acts of Peter of Alexandria (Written 305 A.D.)

Methodius of Olympus (Martyred 311 A.D.)

“Hail to you for ever, Virgin Mother of God, our unceasing joy, for to you do I turn again. . . . Hail, you treasure of the love of God. Hail, you fount of the Son’s love for man” (Oration on Simeon and Anna 14 [A.D. 305]).

“Therefore, we pray [ask] you, the most excellent among women, who glories in the confidence of your maternal honors, that you would unceasingly keep us in remembrance. O holy Mother of God, remember us, I say, who make our boast in you, and who in august hymns celebrate the memory, which will ever live, and never fade away” (ibid.).

Ephraim the Syrian (306-373 A.D.)

“Mary and Eve, two people without guilt, two simple people, were identical.
Later, however, one became the cause of our death, the other the cause of our life.” – Op. Syr. II: 37 (Written ca. 360 A.D.)

“Mary gave birth without having relations with a man, as in the beginning Eve was born from Adam without a carnal relationship. Eve brought to the world the murdering Cain; Mary brought forth the Lifegiver. One brougnt into the world him who spilled the blood of his brother, the other, him whose blood was poured out for the sake of his brothers. One brought into the world, him who fled, trembling because of the curse of the earth; the other brought forth him who, having taken the curse upon himself, nailed it to the Cross.” –Harmonization of the Gospels 2:2 (Written 350 A.D.)

“The Church gave us the living Bread, in place of the unleavened bread Egypt had given. Mary gave us refreshing bread, in place of the fatiguing bread that Eve had procured for us.”  –Hymns on the Unleavened Bread 6:6-7 (Written 350 A.D.)

Athanasius of Alexandria (295-373 A.D.)

“Let those, therefore, who deny that the Son is by nature from the Father and proper to his essence deny also that he took true human flesh from the ever-virgin Mary” (Discourses Against the Arians 2:70 [A.D. 360]).

Mary, who gave birth to God, remained a virgin until the end in order that she may be a model to all who came after her.” –De Virginitate, in le Museon 42: 243-44 (Written 350 A.D.)

“For, if she had had other children, the Savior would not have ignored them and entrusted his mother to someone else; nor would she have become someone else’s mother. She would not have abandoned her own to live with another as it is ill becoming to abandon a husband or children. But, since she was a virgin, and His Mother, he gave her as a mother to his disciple, even though she was not John’s mother, because of his great purity and understanding and because of her untouched virginity.” –De Virginitate 42:243-244 (Written ca 350 A.D.)

“As for Eve, she is the mother of the dead, “for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (I Cor 15:22). . . Eve took fruit, ate of it, and gave some to her husband. He ate of it, and he died.
In you, instead, O wise Virgin, dwells the Son of God: he who is the tree of life. Truly he has given us his body, and we have eaten of it. That is how life came to all, and all have come to life by the mercy of God, your beloved Son. That is why your spirit is full of joy in God your Savior!” –Athanasius, Homily of the Papyrus of Turin, ed. T. Lefort, in Le Muséon 71 (1958):216-17

Gaius Marius Victorinus (300-355 A.D.)

“That He might re-create that Adam by means of the week, and bring aid to His entire creation, was accomplished by the nativity of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.. that on the same day on which the dragon seduced Eve, the angel Gabriel brought the glad tidings to the Virgin Mary; that on the same day the Holy Spirit overflowed the Virgin Mary, on which He made light; that on that day He was incarnate in flesh..” –On the Creation of the World (Written 350 d. D.)

Hilary of Poitiers (310-367 A.D.)

“If they [the brethren of the Lord] had been Mary’s sons and not those taken from Joseph’s former marriage, she would never have been given over in the moment of the passion [crucifixion] to the apostle John as his mother, the Lord saying to each, ‘Woman, behold your son,’ and to John, ‘Behold your mother’ [John 19:26–27), as he bequeathed filial love to a disciple as a consolation to the one desolate” (Commentary on Matthew 1:4 [A.D. 354]).

Epiphanius of Salamis (313-403 A.D.)

“We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of all things, both visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God . . . who for us men and for our salvation came down and took flesh, that is, was born perfectly of the holy ever-virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit” (The Man Well-Anchored 120 [A.D. 374]).

“And to holy Mary, [the title] ‘Virgin’ is invariably added, for that holy woman remains undefiled” (Medicine Chest Against All Heresies 78:6 [A.D. 375]).

“‘Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you’ (Lk 1:28). This is she who was prefigured by Eve and who symbolically received the title mother of the living. For Eve was called mother of the living. . . It seems odd that she should receive such a grand title after having sinned. Looking at the matter from the outside, one notices that the entire human race took its origin from Eve. Mary, on the contrary, truly introduced life into the world by giving birth to the Living One, so that Mary has become the Mother of the living.” – Panarion Adversus Haereses 78:17-19 (Written 375 A. D.)

“We must consider another marvelous aspect of the comparison between Eve and Mary. Eve became for men the cause of death, because, through her, death entered the world. Mary, however, was the cause of life, because life has come to us through her… In paradise, Eve, who was still a virgin, fell into the sin of disobedience, once more, through the Virgin, came the obedience of grace…” – Panarion Adversus Haereses 78:17-19 (Written 375 A.D.)

“Notice, I pray you, how precise Scripture is. Of Adam, it is said that he was formed. In the case of Eve, it does not say she was formed, but rather she was built up. ‘He took’-it says-‘one of Adam’s ribs and built it up into a woman’ (Gen. 2:21) to show that the Lord formed Himself a body from Mary, but the Church was built up from His side, when His side was pierced and the mysteries of blood and water poured out for our redemption.” – Panarion Adversus Haereses 78:19 (Written 375 A. D.)

“Whoever honors the Lord also honors the holy vessel; who instead dishonors the holy vessel also dishonors his Master. Mary herself is that holy Virgin, that is, the holy vessel.” – Panarion Adversus Haereses 78:21 (Written 375 A.D.)

Didymus the Blind (313-398 A.D.)

“It helps us to understand the terms ‘first-born’ and ‘only-begotten’ when the Evangelist tells that Mary remained a virgin ‘until she brought forth her first-born son’ [Matt. 1:25]; for neither did Mary, who is to be honored and praised above all others, marry anyone else, nor did she ever become the Mother of anyone else, but even after childbirth she remained always and forever an immaculate virgin” (The Trinity 3:4 [A.D. 386]).

Basil the Great (330-379 A.D.)

“[Matt 1:25] says; ‘he did not know her until she gave birth to a son, her firstborn’. But this could make one suppose that Mary, after having offered in all purity her own service in giving birth to the Lord, by virtue of the intervention of the Holy Spirit, did not subsequently refrain from normal conjugal relations. That would not have affected the teaching of our religion at all, because Mary’s virginity was only necessary until the service of the Incarnation. . . But since lovers of Christ do not allow themselves to hear that the Mother of God (Theotokos) ceased at a given moment to be a virgin, we consider [Tradition’s] testimony to be sufficient.” –On the Holy Generation of Christ 5:31

“An ancient author (Ignatius of Antioch) offered another reason. The marriage with Joseph was planned so that Mary’s virginity might remain hidden from the prince of this world. For the external forms of marriage were adopted by the Virgin, almost as if to distract the Evil One, who has always preyed on virgins, ever since the prophet announced: ‘Behold the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son’ (Is 7:14).” –On the Holy Generation of Christ 3:31

“A Virgin, who was then given to a man in marriage, was found worthy for the service of the Incarnation, so that virginity might be honored and marriage not despised. For virginity was chosen as being apt to sanctification, but with the betrothal, the precepts of marriage were also included.” –On the Holy Generation of Christ 3:31

Gregory of Nazianzus (330-389 A.D.)

“After Christ was born of a chaste and virgin, not bound by carnal chains and like unto God. . . virginity began to sanctify women and drive away the bitter Eve.  It took away the laws of the flesh and through the preaching of the gospel, the letter gave way to the spirit, and grace entered in.  Then virginity shone out clearly before mortals; it appeared in the world freely, as the liberator of a helpless world.  It is as superior to matrimony as the soul is to the body.” –Moral Poems 1:189-208 (Written in 380 A.D.)

“The virgin, Justina. . . Recalling these and other circumstances and imploring the Virgin Mary to bring her assistance, since she too was a virgin and had been in danger, she entrusted herself to the remedy of fasting and sleeping on the ground.” –Sermon 24:9-11 (Written in 380 A.D.)

Gregory of Nyssa (335-395 A.D.)

“Just as in the time of Mary, the Mother of God, Death, who had reigned from Adam until then, found, when he came to her and dashed his forces against the fruit of her virginity as against a rock, that he was himself shattered against her, so too is every soul that passes through this life protected by virginity, the strength of Death is shattered and annulled when Death finds no place to fix its sting.” –Virginity 14:13. (Written 370 A.D.)

“‘How will this happen to me, since I do not know man?’ (Lk 1:34). Mary’s own words confirm certain traditions. For if Joseph had taken her to be his wife, for the purpose of having children, why would she have wondered at the announcement of maternity, since she herself would have accepted becoming a mother according to the law of nature? . . it was necessary to guard the body consecrated to God as an untouched and Holy offering. . . How shall I become a mother without knowing man? For though I consider Joseph my husband, still I do not know man.” –On the Birth of Christ 46

John Chrysostom

“How could the Infinite be contained in a womb? How could the Virgin give birth and continue to be a virgin? Tell me, how did the Spirit fashion that temple? How did he take from His mother, not all of her body, but only a part that he augmented and formed?” –Homily on Matthew 4:3 (Written 390)

“The expression ‘until’ (in Mt 1:25) need not lead you to believe that Joseph knew her subsequently; rather, it is used to inform you that the Virgin was untouched by man until the birth of Jesus. Scripture is accustomed to using the expression ‘until’ without intending thereby to establish a limited period of time. . . The evangelist uses this expression to establish what happened before the birth of Jesus, leaving it up to you to infer what happened afterward. . . He leaves it to you to draw the obvious and necessary conclusion, namely that this righteous man (Joseph), even after Christ’s birth, refrained from approaching her who had become a mother in such a manner.” -Homily on Matthew 5:3 (Written 390)

“If after Jesus’ birth, Joseph had known Mary and lived with her as his wife, why would our Lord, on the Cross, have entrusted her to his disciple, commanding him to take her into his own home, as if she had no one else to take care of her? Why then, you ask, are James and others called the ‘brothers’ of Christ? They are called brothers of Jesus in the same way that Joseph is called Mary’s husband. God wanted to cover this great mystery with many veils, so that the divine birth might remain hidden for a time.” –Homily on Matthew 5:3 (Written 390)

“Therefore he called it ‘Eden’ or ‘virgin soil’, because this virgin soil was a type that prefigured the Virgin. As the first soil produced for us the garden of paradise without any seed, so the Virgin gave birth to Christ for us without receiving any seed of man. . . For in the Hebrew language, ‘Eden’ means ‘virgin soil’.” –Commentary on Psalms 44:7 (Written 390 A.D.)

“Christ conquered the Devil using the same weapons the Devil used against us: a virgin, a tree, and death.  These tokens of our demise have now become tokens of Christ’s victory.  Instead of Eve, there was Mary.  Instead of the tree of knowledge, there was the wood of the cross.  Instead of Adam’s death, there was the death of Christ.” –Homilies on Genesis (Written in 387 A.D.)

Pope Siricius I (334-399 A.D.)

“You had good reason to be horrified at the thought that another birth might issue from the same virginal womb from which Christ was born according to the flesh. For the Lord Jesus would never have chosen to be born of a virgin if he had ever judged that she would be so incontinent as to contaminate with the seed of human intercourse the birthplace of the Lord’s body, that court of the eternal king” (Letter to Bishop Anysius [A.D. 392]).

Amphilochius of Iconium (340-394 A.D.)

“It is enough, O Virgin, to be called the Mother. It suffices to be the nurse of Him who nurtures the world. It is a great thing to have held within your flesh the One who upholds all things.” –On the Hypapante 8 (Written 390)

“What a grand and most wise strategy against the devil! The world, which had once fallen under the power of sin because of a virgin, is now restored to freedom because of a Virgin. Through the virginal birth, a great multitude of invisible demons has been cast down into Tartarus.” –On Christmas 4 (written 390)

Theodore of Mopsuestia (350-418 A.D.)

“Eve also was made of Adam, and her birth is different from all others since she received her existence from a rib only, without marital intercourse. She had an identical nature with Adam because she received the beginning of her existence from him. . . In this way we should also think about Christ our Lord. It was a novel thing to have been fashioned from a woman without marital intercourse, by the power of the Holy Spirit, but He is associated with the human nature by the fact that He is from the nature of Mary.” –Commentary on the Nicene Creed, 6: 14-15 (Written 405 A.D.) trans. by Alphonse Mingana

Ambrose of Milan (340-397 A.D.)

“Imitate her [Mary], holy mothers, who in her only dearly beloved Son set forth so great an example of material virtue; for neither have you sweeter children [than Jesus], nor did the Virgin seek the consolation of being able to bear another son” (Letters 63:111 [A.D. 388]).

“Mary’s life should be for you a pictorial image of virginity. Her life is like a mirror reflecting the face of chastity and the form of virtue. Therein you may find a model for your own life . . . showing what to improve, what to imitate, what to hold fast to.” -The Virgins 2:2:6 [A.D. 377]

“Who is this gate (Ezech 44:1), if not Mary? Is it not closed because she is a virgin? Mary is the gate through which Christ entered the world, when He was brought forth in the virginal birth and the manner of His birth did not break the seals of virginity.” -The Consecration of a Virgin and the Perpetual Virginity of Mary 8:52 (Written 392 A.D.)

“The first thing which kindles ardor in learning is the greatness of the teacher. What is greater than the Mother of God? What more glorious than she whom Glory Itself chose? What more chaste than she who bore a body without contact with another body? For why should I speak of her other virtues? She was a virgin not only in body but also in mind. . .” -The Virgins., 2:2:7

Rufinus of Aquileia (344-411 A.D.)

“The Prophet Ezekiel too had predicted the miraculous manner of that birth, calling Mary figuratively the Gate of the Lord, the gate, namely, through which the Lord entered the world. For he says, The gate which looks towards the East shall be closed, and shall not be opened, and no one shall pass through it, because the Lord God of Israel shall pass through it, and it shall be closed. What could be said with such evident reference to the inviolate preservation of the Virgin’s condition? That Gate of Virginity was closed; through it the Lord God of Israel entered; through it He came forth from the Virgin’s womb into this world; and the Virgin-state being preserved inviolate, the gate of the Virgin remained closed forever.” -Commentary on the Apostles’ Creed 9 (Written ca 407-409).

Jerome of Stridon (347-420 A.D.)

“[Helvidius] produces Tertullian as a witness [to his view] and quotes Victorinus, bishop of Petavium. Of Tertullian, I say no more than that he did not belong to the Church. But as regards Victorinus, I assert what has already been proven from the gospel—that he [Victorinus] spoke of the brethren of the Lord not as being sons of Mary but brethren in the sense I have explained, that is to say, brethren in point of kinship, not by nature. [By discussing such things we] are . . . following the tiny streams of opinion. Might I not array against you the whole series of ancient writers? Ignatius, Polycarp, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and many other apostolic and eloquent men, who against [the heretics] Ebion, Theodotus of Byzantium, and Valentinus, held these same views and wrote volumes replete with wisdom. If you had ever read what they wrote, you would be a wiser man” (Against Helvidius: The Perpetual Virginity of Mary 19 [A.D. 383]).

“We believe that God was born of a virgin, because we read it. We do not believe that Mary was married after she brought forth her Son, because we do not read it. . . . You [Helvidius] say that Mary did not remain a virgin. As for myself, I claim that Joseph himself was a virgin, through Mary, so that a virgin Son might be born of a virginal wedlock” (ibid., 21).

“Holy Mary, blessed Mary, Mother and Virgin, virgin before giving birth and virgin after giving birth! I marvel that a virgin is born of a virgin and that after the virgin’s birth, his mother remained a virgin.” –Homilia in Joannem 1:1-14

“Simply attribute to the power of God the fact that He was born of the Virgin, and that this Virgin remained a virgin even after giving birth.” –Homilia in Joannem 1:1-14

“Isaiah tells of the mystery of our faith and hope: Isaiah 7:14 Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. I know that the Jews are accustomed to meet us with the objection that in Hebrew the word Almah does not mean a virgin, but a young woman. And, to speak truth, a virgin is properly called Bethulah, but a young woman, or a girl, is not Almah, but Naarah! What then is the meaning of Almah? A hidden virgin, that is, not merely virgin, but a virgin and something more, because not every virgin is hidden, shut off from the occasional sight of men. Then again, Rebecca, on account of her extreme purity, and because she was a type of the Church which she represented in her own virginity, is described in Genesis as Almah, not Bethulah. . .” –Adversus Jiovinianum 1:32 (written in 393 A.D.)

“The heretics refused to acknowledge the mystery, which was prefigured by the Eastern door of the Temple Ezekiel 44:2, which closed again when once the High Priest (Christ) had gone through it.” –Against the Pelagians 2:4 (written in 417 A.D.)

“Tell me how Jesus entered through closed doors. . . and I will explain how Saint Mary can be both Mother and Virgin. A Mother before she married, she remained a Virgin after bearing her Son. Therefore, as I started to say, the Virgin Christ and the Virgin Mary have dedicated in themselves the principles of virginity for both sexes. The Apostles were either virgins or remained continent after their marriages. Those persons chosen to be bishops, presbyters, or deacons are either virgins or widowers; or certainly, having once received the priesthood, they remain from then on chaste.” –Letter to Pammachius 48:21 (Written in 392 A.D.)

“Observe the cleverness of the ancient foe. He ferociously preyed upon the substance of the just man Job. . . He left him with nothing but his tongue and his wife, so that one tempted him while the other blasphemed. The devil remembered the old trick by which he had once ensnared Adam through the woman. . . thinking that he could always trap men by using a woman. But he did not consider that, if a man was ruined by a woman once, now the whole world has been saved through a woman. You are thinking of Eve, but consider Mary; the former drove us out of paradise; the latter leads us back to heaven.” –Tractatus de Psalmo 96:1

Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A.D.)

“In being born of a Virgin who chose to remain a Virgin even before she knew who was to be born of her, Christ wanted to approve virginity rather than to impose it. And he wanted virginity to be of free choice even in that woman in whom he took upon himself the form of a slave” (Holy Virginity 4:4 [A.D. 401]).

“It was not the visible sun, but its invisible Creator who consecrated this day for us, when the Virgin Mother, fertile of womb and integral in her virginity, brought him forth, made visible for us, by whom, when he was invisible, she too was created. A Virgin conceiving, a Virgin bearing, a Virgin pregnant, a Virgin bringing forth, a Virgin perpetual. Why do you wonder at this, O man?” (Sermons 186:1 [A.D. 411]).

“Heretics called Antidicomarites are those who contradict the perpetual virginity of Mary and affirm that after Christ was born she was joined as one with her husband” (Heresies 56 [A.D. 428]).

“Now human gender is either male or female. And if, in becoming a man, he had not been born of a woman, exactly as it had to happen, women would have lost the hope of being saved, recalling their first sin, when the first man was ensnared by the woman, and they would have believed themselves to be absolutely without hope in Christ. Christ, then, came into the world as a man, choosing the male sex on purpose, but, being born of a woman, he came to console the feminine sex, as if, addressing himself to them, he had said: ‘So that you may know that none of God’s creatures is wicked, but rather have been perverted by a guilty pleasure, when, in the beginning, he made man, he made them male and female: I do not condemn the creatures I myself have fashioned. Behold, I am born a man; I am born of a woman. Thus I do not condemn the creatures I have made but their sins, which I did not make.’ Both the sexes should recognize their own dignity, and both should confess their sins and hope to be saved. Through woman, poison was poured upon man, in order to deceive him, but salvation was poured out upon man from a woman, that he might be reborn in grace. The woman, having become Mother of Christ, will repair the sin she committed in deceiving the man.” –Sermon 51:3

Leporius (ca. 426 A.D.)

“We confess, therefore, that our Lord and God, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, born of the Father before the ages, and in times most recent, made man of the Holy Spirit and the ever-virgin Mary” (Document of Amendment 3 [A.D. 426]).

Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 A.D.)

“[T]he Word himself, coming into the Blessed Virgin herself, assumed for himself his own temple from the substance of the Virgin and came forth from her a man in all that could be externally discerned, while interiorly he was true God. Therefore he kept his Mother a virgin even after her childbearing” (Against Those Who Do Not Wish to Confess That the Holy Virgin is the Mother of God 4 [A.D. 430]).

Theodotus of Ancyra (Died ca. 446 A.D.)

“If iron, once joined to fire, immediately expels the impurities extraneous to its nature and swiftly acquires a likeness to the powerful flame that heats it, so that it becomes untouchable and capable of setting any material on fire, how much more, in a superior way, did the Virgin burn when the divine fire (the Holy Spirit) rushed in? She was purified from earthly impurities, and from whatever might be against her nature, and was restored to her original beauty, so as to become inaccessible, untouchable, and irreconcilable to carnal things.” –Homily 4:6

“A person who has had water poured upon his head is made wet in every part of his body, from head to toe; just so, we believe that the divine Virgin Mother was also entirely anointed with the holiness of the Holy Spirit, who descended upon her. And so, in this way, she received the living God, the Word, into her virginal and fragrant bridal chamber.” –Homily 4:6

“Consider that the Virgin, by means of her body, brings to light the Word, not of course conferring by this birth the principle of divinity (God forbid!), but so that he might make himself known to men, as God-made-man. Therefore God, the Word, made a birth proper to himself; he chose the Virgin as his Mother and came forth from a womb adorned with virginity.“ –Homily 2:8

“Innocent virgin, spotless, without defect, untouched, unstained, holy in body and in soul, like a lily-flower sprung among thorns, unschooled in the wickedness of Eve, unclouded by womanly vanity. Even before the Nativity, she was consecrated to the Creator. Holy apprentice, guest in the Temple, disciple of the law, anointed by the Holy Spirit, clothed with divine grace as with a cloak, divinely wise in your mind; united to God in your heart. Praiseworthy in your speech, even more praiseworthy in your action. Good in the eyes of men, better in the sight of God.” -Homily 6:11

Caelius Sedulius (Died ca. 450 A.D.)

“The synagogue withdrew, eclipsed by his face. Christ unites himself to the Church in fairest love. This illuminates the conspicuous greatness of Mary, who, while always conserving the glorious name of Mother, remains a Virgin ever. The Lord showed himself to her eyes first, when he revealed himself openly in the light, so that the good Mother, who was once the way of his arrival, by spreading the news of the great miracles, became the sign of his return as well.” – Carmen Paschale 5: 357-364

“Because of one man, all his descendants perished; And all are saved because of one man. Because of one woman, the deadly door opened; And life returned, because of one woman.” -Elegia 5-8

“We are the blind offspring of the children of pitiful Eve, bringing with us the shadows born of an age-old error. But when God deigned to assume the mortal form of a human nature, then came forth from the Virgin a world of salvation.” –Carmen Paschale 4:265-269

“As the tender rose springs up among prickly thorns but does not offend in any way, since its beauty obscures its thorny branches. So holy Mary, the new virgin descending from the branch of Eve, Makes pure the old virgin’s offense. Just so the old nature languished, corrupted under the sentence of death. Once Christ was born, man could be born anew and cast off his old nature’s stain.” –Carmen Paschale 2:28-34

Peter Chrysologus (380-450 A.D.)

“Where are they who think that the Virgin’s conceiving and the Virgin’s giving birth are just like those of other women? Theirs is of the earth, hers is of heaven. Hers is by divine power, theirs by human weakness. Theirs is in the passions of the flesh, hers in the tranquillity of the Divine Spirit and in a human body at rest. Blood was quiet, flesh was still, her members slept, and the Virgin’s womb was entirely unmoved in that heavenly visit, while the Author of flesh was clothing Himself in a garment of flesh
and becoming a Heavenly Man, who would not only restore the earth to man, but would even give him heaven. A Virgin conceived, a Virgin bore, and a Virgin she remains.” –Sermon 117 (Written in 432 A.D.)

“She conceives as a virgin, she gives birth as a virgin, and she remains a virgin. Therefore, her flesh knows the power of the miracle but does not know pain. In giving birth, it gains in integrity and knows nothing of physical suffering.” –Sermon 117:3 (Written in 432 A.D.)

“When someone conceives as a virgin, gives birth as a virgin, and remains a virgin, this is not normal; it is a sign. It is not the work of logic but of divine power. Nature’s maker did it, not nature. It is not common but unique. It is divine, not human. Therefore let hapless Philosophy cease trying to explain it.” –Sermon 148:1 (Written 432 A.D.)

“His holy soul was inflamed, struck by the newness of the affair. His bride was pregnant but a virgin; she was full of promise but not empty of chastity; she was troubled by the conception that had taken place, yet she felt sure of her own integrity. She was clothed in her maternal role but not despoiled of the honor of virginity. What should her husband do in such a situation? Accuse her of a crime? But he himself was the witness of her innocence. Reveal her sin? But he himself was the guardian of her good reputation. Charge her with adultery? But he himself was the assertor of her virginity.” –Sermon 145:1 (Written 432 A.D.)

Pope Leo I the Great (400-461 A.D.)

“It is true that the birth of the Lord according to the flesh had certain peculiarities by which it transcended the beginnings of the human condition, whether that He alone was conceived and born without concupiscence from an inviolate Virgin, or that He came from His Mother’s womb in such a way that her fruitfulness bore Him, and her virginity yet remained; but nevertheless His flesh was not of a nature different from ours.” –Letter to Julian, Bishop of Kios 35:3 (Written 449 A.D.)

“For we would have been unable to overcome the author of sin and death had Christ not assumed our nature and made it his own. Sin cannot defile him, nor can death hold him. For he was conceived by the Holy Spirit within the womb of a Virgin Mother, who gave birth to him without losing her virginity, just as she had remained a virgin in conceiving him.” –Letter 28: 2

“He was engendered by a new kind of birth, conceived by a Virgin, born of a Virgin, without a father’s carnal concupiscence, without injuring his Mother’s integrity. Indeed, such a birth was appropriate for the future Savior of men, who, while sharing the nature of human substance, did not know the contamination of human flesh. The Author of God taking flesh is God himself, as the archangel witnesses to the Blessed Virgin Mary: ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; hence, the holy offspring born of you will be called Son of God’ (Lk 1:35). In his origin unlike us; in his [human] nature like us- our common human customs are of no help here. It was decided by God’s almighty power that Mary should conceive as a virgin, give birth as a virgin, and remain a virgin. Do not think about the condition of his Mother, but consider the decision of the Son, who wanted in this way to be born a man and so brought it about. If you seek the truth about his nature, then recognize the matter as human; if you want to find the secret of his origin, then acknowledge the divine power. For our Lord Jesus Christ came to take away our infection, not to be infected by it; he did not come to succumb to our vices but to heal them. He came to heal the malady of our corruption and all the wounds of our scarred souls. For this reason he had to be born in a new manner, since he was bringing the new grace of spotless integrity to our human bodies. He had to keep his Mother’s original virginity intact, and it was necessary that the power of the holy Spirit should safeguard the defense of her modesty, which he was pleased to call the dwelling place of holiness. For he had decided to raise up what was fallen and restore what was broken apart and to strengthen purity for overcoming the seductons of the flesh, so that virginity, which in others cannot be preserved after childbirth, might be imitated even by others, in rebirth.” –Leo the Great, Sermo 22, 2; PL 4, 195-96

Gennadius of Massilia (Died 496 A.D.)

“Helvidius, a disciple of Auxentius and imitator of Symmachus, wrote, indeed, with zeal for religion but not according to knowledge, a book, polished neither in language nor in reasoning, a work in which he so attempted to twist the meaning of the Holy Scriptures to his own perversity, as to venture to assert on their testimony that Joseph and Mary, after the nativity of our Lord, had children who were called brothers of the Lord. In reply to his perverseness Jerome, published a book against him, well filled with scripture proofs.”-‘Illustrious Men’ by Gennadius, Chapter 33. Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 3.Philip Schaff.  Christian Literature Publishing Co, 1892

Severus of Antioch (459-538 A.D.)

“If you want to know how it happened, your investigations remain blocked by the seal of virginity, which this birth in no wise violated. And that which is sealed is absolutely untouchable; it remains secret, and one cannot speak about it at all. Someone then, struck by this prodigy, will cry out, like Jacob, ‘How awesome is this place! This is the gate of heaven!’ (Gen 28:17).” -Homily 67, Patrologia Graeca (PG) Volume 89

“When he wanted to make it plain by deeds and to teach in a clear way that matrimony is also pure and that it does not distance us from God in any way, our Lord and God Jesus Christ, the same who was born of a Virgin according to the flesh and who safeguarded the virginity of her from whom he was born, even after his birth, and who also blessed the world with the way of virginity, took part in the wedding banquet at Cana in Galilee, in the presence of his Virgin Mother and of his disciples.” – Homily 199, Patrologia Graeca (PG) Volume 89

Fulgentius of Ruspe (467-527 A.D.)

“For God, not restraining His mercies in anger (8), was made Man to this end, that whatever He had created sound in man, this same creation God might make sound again, assuming it wholly into Himself. [12] This was certainly a wonderful Person, having the natures of God and of man, but truly conceived and born according to the flesh, inasmuch as the Virgin, in an indescribable manner, conceived and bore the God of heaven, and remained inviolate, Virgin and Mother,-she, of course, is truly designated by the angel ‘full of grace’ and ‘blessed among women’,  because she neither had nor desired any commerce of man but, while retaining a virginity both of mind and of body, she received from Him whom she was about to conceive and bear the gift of uncorrupted fruitfulness and of fruitful integrity.” –Letter Of Fulgence And Fourteen Other African Bishops Exiled In Sardinia, to Various Of Their Brethren 2240 [17, 11]

Romanos the Melodist (Died ca 560 A.D.)

“Adam, sick through debauchery, through gluttony, was led down to deepest Hell, and there he weeps for the suffering of his soul; and Eve, who once taught him disobedience, grieves with him and languishes with him, that together they may learn to heed the Healer’s word. Now, do you see? Do you understand what I have said? Cry out again, mother: ‘If you forgive Adam, forgive also Eve, my son, my God.’” –Mary at the Cross.  Written 520 A.D., trans. Constantino A. Trypanis, (Penguin Book of Greek Vesse, Penguin Books (tel, 1971)

Pope Gregory I “the Great” (540-604 A.D.)

“Consider it carefully, please, and tell me, if you can: How was the Red Sea divided by a staff [of Moses]; how did the hardness of the rock, at the blow of the staff, gush forth a wave of water; how did the dry staff of Aaron flower; how did the Virgin, Aaron’s descendant, conceive and remain a virgin, even in giving birth?” –Homilies on Ezekiel IA [2, 8, 9]

“The most blessed and ever Virgin Mary, Mother of God, can be called by this name, “mountain”. Yes, she was a mountain, who by the dignity of her election has completely surpassed the height of every elect creature. Is Mary not the lofty mountain? For God, to achieve the conception of the eternal Word, raised the summit of her merits above the choirs of angels, up to the threshold of the Godhead. Isaiah said in a prophecy, ‘In the last days, the mountain of the LORD’s house will be made the highest mountain’ (Is 2:2). And this mountain has been made the highest mountain, because Mary’s height has shined out above all the saints. For, just as a mountain implies height, so the house signifies a dwelling place. Therefore she is called mountain and house, because she, illuminated by incomparable merits, prepared a holy womb for God’s Only-begotten to dwell in. On the other hand, Mary would not have become a mountain raised above the peaks of the mountains had not the divine fecundity raised her above the angels. Further, she would not have become the Lord’s house had not the divinity of the Word assumed humanity and come to dwell in her womb.
Mary is justly called mountain rich in fruits, because the best fruit was born from her, namely, a new man.” –In I Regum 1:5

Isidore of Seville (560-636 A.D.)

“Mary, which means Lady or Light-giver, illustrious descendant of David, rod of Jesse, closed garden, sealed fountain, Mother of the Lord, temple of God, sanctuary of the Holy Spirit, holy Virgin, pregnant Virgin, Virgin before giving birth, Virgin after giving birth.” –De ortu et obitu Patrum III (On the Origin and Death of the Fathers)

“‘I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and hers’ (Gen 3:15). The seed of the devil is a perverse suggestion; the seed of the woman is the fruit of a good work, by which the perverse suggestion of the devil is resisted. She will tread upon his head, because from the beginning she expels his perverse suggestions from her mind. He will strike at her heel, because until the end he will try to deceive her mind, which he was unable to deceive with his first suggestion. Some have understood the following expression in reference to the Virgin, from whom the Lord was born: ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman’, since it was promised that the Savior was going to be born from her, in order to defeat the enemy and to destroy death, of which the enemy was the author. For they also understand the following as a reference to the fruit of Mary’s womb; namely, Christ: ‘She will tread upon your head, and you will strike at her heel.’ This means: You will attack him to kill him, but he (Christ), after you have been defeated, will rise again and tread upon your head, which is death.” –Quaestiones in Genesim S, 5-7

Modestus of Jerusalem (Died 630 A.D.)

“So as soon she had completed the course of this temporal life, in a way far beyond the ordinary, she arrived at the true joy which lies at the heart of things, for she bore that joy in our nature in a way beyond our telling. This is that joy which is God by nature, begotten of God before the ages, the joy that has appeared on earth at the end of the ages from her, and which fills heaven and earth with its divine gladness, having finally banished the sadness of Eve.” –Encomium on the Dormition of Our Most Holy Lady, Mary, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin, chap 5

“The bright spiritual dawn of the sun of justice, then, has gone to dwell and to shine in his brilliance; she is called there by the one who rose from her, and who gives light to all things. Through her, that overwhelming radiance pours the rays of his sunshine upon us, in mercy and compassion, rekindling the souls of the faithful to imitate, as far as they can, his divine kindness and goodness. For Christ our God, who put on living and intelligent flesh, which he took from the ever-virgin and the Holy Spirit, has called her to himself and invested her with an incorruptibility touching all her corporeal frame; he has glorified her beyond all measure of glory, so that she, his holy Mother, might share his inheritance, as the Psalmist says: “The queen stands at your right hand, wrapped in a golden robe woven with jewels” (Ps 44:9 [LXX]). That precious, holy vessel, most sacred of all things, she who became Mother of God, has taken up her “pearl of great price” (Mt 13:46); she is glorified with the splendor of his supernatural beauty, to whom “silver and gold belong” (Hag 2:9) and through whom “kings have their royal power” (Prov 8:15) he who has shone forth from heaven in her, and who received a body from her virgin womb, while she was still being tossed in the great sea of this life; he who came forth [from her], to give himself as the world’s ransom from slavery.” –Encomium on the Dormition of Our Most Holy Lady, Mary, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin, chap 5

“O most blessed dormition of the glorious Mother of God, of her who always remained a virgin, even after giving birth, and who did not experience corruption in that life-sheltering body of hers, even in the tomb! She is preserved [from it] by Christ the Savior, who came forth from her and who is mighty to do all things.” –Encomium on the Dormition of Our Most Holy Lady, Mary, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin, chap 7

Theoteknos of Livias (550-650 A.D.)

“For if he has blessed his saints with the whole kingdom of heaven, if he opened Paradise to a thief with a single word, how much more [would he have been eager to welcome] the one who made him a home in her womb—the one whom he had created, whom he had formed, from whom he became flesh, as [he willed]. His purpose was that the power of the Prince of Evil should be destroyed through her by whom he had deceived us, and that through her all women should find freedom from the curse that bound them.” –Encomium, Section 1

“She has found what Eve had lost; she has found what Adam was deprived of, because of his disobedience. She has entered, saying, ‘Breathe on my garden’ (Cant 4:10). God the Word has entered, has dwelt in her, and Paradise is opened.” –Encomium, Section 7

“For she is ark and vase and throne and heaven. She was judged worthy to be entrusted with ineffable mysteries; she was judged worthy to reveal things hidden and sealed in the Book of Daniel, and through her ‘all of us, with faces unveiled, will gaze on the glory of the Lord’ (2 Cor 3:18).” –Encomium, Section 7

“Wisdom cries out in the streets, and moves with assurance in the open squares… The Lord Jesus Christ, our God, the incomprehensible Wisdom, the ever-flowing spring, was made flesh of the Virgin, and when her womb bore its fruit, her virginity was not destroyed.” –Encomium, Section 9

“The ever-virgin Mother of God. While she lived on earth, she watched over us all, and was a kind of universal providence for her subjects. Now that she has been taken up into heaven, she is an unassailable fortification for the human race, and intercedes for us with God the Son.” –Encomium, Section 10

Sophronius of Jerusalem (560-638 A.D.)

“Truly, you are blessed among women. For you have changed Eve’s curse into a blessing; and Adam, who hitherto lay under a curse, has been blessed because of you.” –Oratio 2, in Sanctissimae Deparae Annuntiatione (Sermon on the Annunciation of the Most Holy Mother of God), in Patrologia Graeca, Vol. 87, cols. 1235–1250.

Maximus the Confessor (580-662 A.D.)

“The Logos purifies human nature from the law of sin by not permitting His incarnation for our sake to be preceded by sensual pleasure. For His conception took place miraculously without seed, and His birth supranaturally without the loss of His Mother’s virginity. That is to say, when God was born from His Mother, through His birth He tightened the bonds of her virginity in a manner surpassing nature; and in those that are willing He frees the whole of human nature from the oppressive rule of the law which dominates it, in so far as they imitate His self-chosen death by mortifying the earthly aspects of themselves (cf. Col. 3:5).” -On the Lord’s Prayer.  The Philokalia: The Complete Text, edited by G.E.H. Palmer, P.N. Gregory, and K. Ware. Published by Faber and Faber, 1995

“[T]he truth of his humanity has been revealed to all, and carried to the ends of the world (Rom. 10:18) by the mighty voice of the holy Fathers preaching it. For everywhere, and by all, under their guidance —for they were teachers, who were sound judges in divine matters—it has been confessed and believed in an orthodox manner that the only begotten Son, one of the holy and consubstantial Trinity, being perfect God by nature, has become a perfect human being in accordance with his will, assuming in truth flesh, consubstantial with us and endowed with a rational soul and mind, from the holy Mother of God and ever-Virgin, and united it properly and inseparably to himself in accordance with the hypostasis, being one with it right from the beginning.” -Opuscule 7.  Louth, Andrew. Maximus the Confessor. The Early Church Fathers Series. London: Routledge, 1996.

“Hear this, all you nations, and take heed, all you inhabitants of the earth (cf. Isa 34.1)! Come all believers and gather all lovers of God, kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all judges of the earth, boys and girls, the old with the young, every tongue and every soul, let us hymn, praise, and glorify the all-holy, immaculate, and most blessed Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary, the throne of the king more exalted than the cherubim and seraphim, the mother of Christ our God.” –The Life of the Virgin: Maximus the Confessor, Chapter 1, translation by Stephen J. Shoemaker

John of Thessalonica (wrote ca 610-649 A.D.)

“A fitting hymn of honor, praise and glory is always due, from every creature under heaven, to that remarkable, all-glorious and truly great mistress of all the world, the ever-virgin Mother of our savior and God Jesus Christ. She is truly the God-bearer, and through her all creation has received, by God’s saving plan, the great gift of the presence in the flesh of the only Son and Word of God the Father.” –Homily on the Dormition of Our Lady, Mother of God & Ever-Virgin Mary, chap 1. ON THE DORMITION OF MARY: Early Patristic Homilies.  From the “Popular Patristics Series Volume 18”.  Brian E Daley S.J. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, NY

“Since, then, it is very necessary for the good of this Christ-loving metropolis, in order that it lack no blessing, that the world’s benefactress and lady, the ever-virgin Mary, Mother of God, receive our sincere praise as we celebrate with spiritual joy the memory of her entry into divine rest, we have ourselves spent no small effort preparing to set before your devout ears-to awaken and to build up your souls-not everything we have found written, in different ways in different books, about that event, but only what truly happened, what is remembered as having taken place, and what is witnessed until today by the existence of actual sites.” –Homily on the Dormition of Our Lady, Mother of God & Ever-Virgin Mary, chap 2. ON THE DORMITION OF MARY: Early Patristic Homilies.  From the “Popular Patristics Series Volume 18”.  Brian E Daley S.J. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, NY

“The Apostles, however, lifted up the precious body of our most glorious lady, Mary, the Mother of God and evervirgin, and placed it in a new tomb, in the place the Savior had showed them. They remained in that place, awake in unity of spirit, for three days. And after the third day, they opened the sarcophagus to venerate the precious tabernacle of her who deserves all praise, but found only her grave-garments; for she had been taken away by Christ, the God who became flesh from her, to the place of her eternal, living inheritance.” –Homily on the Dormition of Our Lady, Mother of God & Ever-Virgin Mary, chap 14. ON THE DORMITION OF MARY: Early Patristic Homilies.  From the “Popular Patristics Series Volume 18”.  Brian E Daley S.J. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, NY

Germanus I of Constantinople (634-733 A.D.)

“May the Ever-Virgin – radiant with divine light and full of grace – Mediatrix first through her supernatural birth and now because of the intercession of her maternal assistance -be crowned with never-ending blessings. . . we should make our way honestly, seeking balance and fittingness in all things, as sons of light.” -Homily for the Liberation of Constantinople 23 (Written in 717 A.D.)

John of Damascus (675-749 A.D.)

“And just as He that was conceived kept her that conceived a Virgin still, He that was born kept her virginity intact, only passing through her and keeping her closed. The conception was through the sense of hearing; but the birth was through the usual channel by which children come, even if some do prattle of His birth being through the side of the Mother of God. Certainly it was not impossible for Him to come by this gate without injuring its seal in any way, Thus the Ever-Virgin remains after birth a Virgin still, never having consorted with man until death.” –The Source of Knowledge 13, 4,14 (Written in 743 A.D.)

Theodore the Studite (759-826 A.D.)

“Long ago, death took charge of the world through our ancestor Eve; but now it has engaged in combat with her blessed daughter and been beaten away, conquered by the very source from whom it had received its power. Let the race of women rejoice, then, for it has received glory in place of shame! Let Eve be glad, for she is under a curse no more, having produced in Mary a child of blessing.” -Encomium on the Dormition of’ Our Holy Lady, the Mother of God (Written 747 A.D.) Patrologia Graeca: The Greek Fathers of the Church Vol 99. Edited Jacques-Paul Migne. 1857–1866

“See, now: the mother giving birth is also still an incorrupt virgin, because God was the cause of her conceiving! So in your life- giving sleep, since you are different from all the rest, you alone have rightly found incorruption for both [body and soul].” – Encomium on the Dormition of’ Our Holy Lady, the Mother of God (Written 747 A.D.) Patrologia Graeca: The Greek Fathers of the Church Vol 99. Edited Jacques-Paul Migne. 1857–1866

return to top ⇑