My Beloved the benevolent                        August 2026

Grace and peace, wishing you every goodness and blessings

I congratulate you on the Fast of the Virgin Mary, which begins on Friday, August 7th, and concludes with our celebration of the Feast of the Assumption of the Body of the Virgin Mary into Heaven on Saturday, August 22nd. I wish you all a blessed and acceptable fast through the intercessions of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of Light, the faithful and trusted intercessor before our Lord Jesus Christ.

Fasting is an act of worship, and worship is offered to God alone. Calling it the Fast of the Virgin Mary does not mean that we fast for the Virgin Mary, but rather because the fast concludes with one of her feasts. This fasting period also gives us the opportunity to reflect on the virtues of the Virgin Mary, who is truly the treasure of all virtues. I would like to reflect with you on one lesson we learn from our Mother, the Virgin Mary: “The Silence of Strength and the Strength of Silence.”

Let us reflect together on a difficult situation that the Virgin Mary faced after returning from her visit to Elizabeth. As the signs of her holy pregnancy began to appear, doubt started to enter the heart and mind of the righteous Joseph, whom God had chosen to be the Virgin’s betrothed and protector before a society that could not comprehend how a virgin could conceive. Joseph’s doubts arose because the Virgin Mary had been away from home for about three months. Moreover, the angel who announced the holy conception to the Virgin Mary did not announce it to Joseph, and the Virgin Mary, who had consecrated her life to virginity, had not come together with Joseph as husband and wife.

The Holy Bible says: “After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.” (Matthew 1:18–19) How did the Virgin Mary respond to this situation? She faced the situation with silence.

+ The Virgin’s silence was the silence of strength, not the silence of someone accused who is unable to justify what has been done. The Virgin Mary carried within her the mystery of the Divine Incarnation. She bore within her the incarnate Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. She carried within herself heaven’s testimony to her righteousness and purity. God chose her, because of the depth of her holiness and purity, to be His Mother. The angel of God said to her: “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women.” (Luke 1:28) Then he added: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:30–33)

During Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, the Holy Spirit came upon Elizabeth when she heard Mary’s greeting. She cried out with a loud voice and said: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” (Luke 1:42–45)

The Virgin did not defend herself because she believed that the One whom she carried in her womb would defend her. Therefore, she remained silent with the strength of the innocent, not the weakness of the guilty.

+ The Virgin remained silent with complete trust in God, and the fruit of her silence was divine intervention. God sent His angel to Joseph in a dream, saying: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20–21)

+ His Holiness Pope Shenouda had a famous saying that he would often repeat when facing difficult situations: “We remain silent, and God hears the voice of our silence.”

How much we need to learn from the Virgin Mary! The silence of strength and the strength of silence in a time when there is so much talk on social media and the negative effects it can create.

We ask for the intercession of the Virgin Mary, that the Lord may bless your lives and your offerings to support Santa Verena Charity’s programs.

Metropolitan Serapion