An icon of the Theotokos, a title describing Mary as
the Mother of God. Photo: OSV News by Nick Crettier
/ courtesy the Basilica of the National Shrine of the
Immaculate Conception. When Pope St Paul VI reformed the Church’s calendar, he restored the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, to January 1 — the ancient day on which the Church honoured her motherhood. Placing this feast on the eighth day of Christmas highlights that we cannot properly celebrate Jesus’ birth without also giving thanks for the…
