The Maronite Season of the Glorious Birth of the Lord
Partager
The Maronite liturgical year begins not in December, but on the first Sunday of November (Nov. 2. 2025 this year). While many Western Christians are just beginning to think about Advent, the Maronite Church is already stepping into a sacred rhythm that leads to the manger. This time is called the Season of the Glorious Birth of the Lord, and it opens with two profound Sundays: the Consecration and the Renewal of the Church.
It is a season of announcements, not of silence. Each Sunday unveils a divine message to Zechariah, to Mary, to Joseph, until the great announcement of the angels in Bethlehem. Through these weeks, the Church walks with the Gospel itself, contemplating each step that prepared the coming of the Savior.
The Year Begins with the Church
Before contemplating the Incarnation, the Maronite calendar first celebrates the mystery of the Church herself.
The Sunday of the Consecration of the Church reminds us that salvation unfolds within the Body of Christ. The Church is not simply an institution; she is the Bride for whom the Bridegroom gave His life. This first Sunday renews her consecration and ours. The faithful are called to rediscover their baptismal vocation and to reenter the liturgical year as living temples of the Spirit.
The following Sunday, the Renewal of the Church, continues the same movement inward. The Gospel of the Good Shepherd calls every believer to hear the Lord’s voice again and follow Him with a renewed heart. In Syriac, the hymn of that day proclaims:
ܩܕܝܫܬܐ ܥܕܬܟ ܡܪܢ — Qaddishta ‘idtak Moran — “Holy is Your Church, O Lord.”
It is the cry of a person who know that holiness begins with listening.
The Season of the Announcements
After these two Sundays, the liturgical year enters into the rhythm of the Gospel. Each Sunday becomes a living chapter of salvation history.
1. The Announcement to Zechariah
(Luke 1:5-25)
The old priest receives the promise of a son. His silence becomes a lesson for all of us: faith grows in quiet expectation. The old covenant, represented by Zechariah’s priesthood, is giving way to something entirely new.
2. The Announcement to Mary
(Luke 1:26-38)
The angel’s greeting : “Rejoice, full of grace” resounds through heaven and earth. In that instant, the eternal Word becomes flesh. Mary’s yes is not passive submission, but perfect freedom. Her faith opens creation itself to God.
3. The Visitation
(Luke 1:39-45)
Mary, carrying the Word, goes out in haste to serve. The unborn John leaps with joy, recognizing his Lord. The Visitation is the first evangelization: Christ hidden in the womb already sanctifies those who receive Him with faith.
4. The Birth of John the Baptist
(Luke 1:57-66)
The joy of Elizabeth fills the Church. The barren womb brings forth the Prophet, and Zechariah’s tongue is loosed in praise. It is the Sunday of gratitude and humility for every birth of grace begins with thanksgiving.
5. The Revelation to Joseph
(Matthew 1:18-25)
Joseph’s silence is stronger than many sermons. In his dreams, God entrusts to him both the Virgin and the Child. His obedience teaches us to believe even when reason trembles. In his protection of Mary and Jesus, the Church sees the model of every father and every guardian of faith.
6. The Genealogy of Jesus
(Matthew 1:1-17)
This Sunday gathers the whole human story. The long list of names proclaims that the Word entered our frail humanity without shame. Kings, sinners, foreigners. All stand in His family tree. It is the history of mercy.
The Feast of the Glorious Birth
At Christmas, the Church exults in the mystery that has been unfolding since the first Sunday of November. The Child of Bethlehem is born in a humble manger, silent and radiant. The Syriac Fathers called Him “the Child of glory who filled the cave with light.”
Bethlehem, Beit Lahm (the “House of Bread”), offers to the world the Bread of Life. The Gloria that resounds on that night has been present since the beginning of this season. In the Maronite tradition, we never stopped singing it. The Church has been rejoicing since the first announcement.
After Christmas: the Cross already present in the cradle
The days following the Nativity are not romanticized. The Maronite Church reads the Gospel of the Flight into Egypt and the Massacre of the Innocents. The Child who came to bring peace already carries the weight of human cruelty. The Holy Family becomes a family of refugees. Here, the Church remembers all who flee war and persecution, and every innocent life threatened by injustice.
Then comes the Finding of Jesus in the Temple, the bridge from His hidden childhood to His public mission. When Mary and Joseph find Him after three days, He says, “Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s business?” It is the moment when divine wisdom begins to speak openly. Mary keeps these words in her heart, as every believer should.
A different rhythm from the Latin Advent
For Latin Catholics, Advent is four weeks of waiting and interior preparation, marked by purple vestments and the omission of the Gloria. It carries a quiet tone of penance and watchfulness, especially focused on the Lord’s Second Coming.
The Maronite tradition begins earlier and follows a different path. Its color is white, the symbol of joy and revelation. The readings move chronologically through the Gospel story of the First Coming. Rather than an atmosphere of silence and restraint, the faithful live a season of continuous proclamation: God is coming; the light is near; salvation has begun.
If Advent is a vigil in the night, the Season of the Glorious Birth is a sunrise, a light that grows steadily, week after week, until it fills the world.
The Maronite year begins with the cry of the angel: “Rejoice!”
And it ends with the song of the angels in Bethlehem: “Glory to God in the highest.”
Between these two proclamations lies the whole mystery of salvation: the Word who became flesh, the light that the darkness could not overcome.
ܫܘܒܚܐ ܠܐܠܗܐ ܒܡܪܘܡܐ ܘܥܠ ܐܪܥܐ ܫܠܡܐ — Shubho l-Alaha ba mromeh wa-‘al ar‘a shlomo — “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace.”