Mary, the Unwedded Mother?

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Peace and blessings.

I came across the Agni Parthene as well as the Akathist, recently and I was wondering about the line “Rejoice, O Bride Unwedded.” What exactly does this mean?
 
Well, after all Mary was betrothed but not fully married at the time of her virginal conception of Jesus. Betrothal confuses people because we don’t often do it today (though I once knew someone who went through a betrothal ceremony with her fiancé before they got married). My understanding is basically that during a Jewish betrothal period the bride and groom still lived separately and were not physically intimate, and yet they were bound to each other in such a way that infidelity would constitute adultery and a separation would require a divorce.
 
jantoniello said:
Peace and blessings.

I came across the Agni Parthene as well as the Akathist, recently and I was wondering about the line “Rejoice, O Bride Unwedded.” What exactly does this mean?
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Hi.

I found the same prayer on the Fish Eaters Catholic apologist website.

Based on what I have learned in Catechism as well as noting that this prayer has a deeper Orthodox tradition, the phrase “O Bride Unwedded” is nothing of concern. I believe its really a way of saying that Our Blessed Mother never completed a sexual consummation of her marriage. It may be another way of expressing the Blessed Virgin’s perpetual virginity as well as her special motherhood to Christ our Lord and bride to the Holy Spirit.
 
jantoniello said:
I came across the Agni Parthene
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I love St Nektarios…one of my favorites! 🙂
jantoniello said:
I was wondering about the line “Rejoice, O Bride Unwedded.” What exactly does this mean?
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We see that Liturgically, that St Mary is always referred to as mother. She is not referred to as wife. Also, St Joseph is never referred to as husband…but “the betrothed.”

Sometimes you will hear that the betrothal and wedding ceremonies were completed…but since the marriage was not consumated, St Mary remains unwedded (as a testament to her perpetual virginity).

We also have this from the Protoevangelium of James:
  1. And I saw a woman coming down from the hill-country, and she said to me: O man, whither are you going? And I said: I am seeking an Hebrew midwife. And she answered and said unto me: Are you of Israel? And I said to her: Yes. And she said: And who is it that is bringing forth in the cave? And I said: A woman betrothed to me. And she said to me: Is she not your wife? And I said to her: It is Mary that was reared in the temple of the Lord, and I obtained her by lot as my wife. And yet she is not my wife, but has conceived of the Holy Spirit.
 
Mickey said:
I love St Nektarios…one of my favorites! 🙂

We see that Liturgically, that St Mary is always referred to as mother. She is not referred to as wife. Also, St Joseph is never referred to as husband…but “the betrothed.”

Sometimes you will hear that the betrothal and wedding ceremonies were completed…but since the marriage was not consumated, St Mary remains unwedded (as a testament to her perpetual virginity).

We also have this from the Protoevangelium of James:
  1. And I saw a woman coming down from the hill-country, and she said to me: O man, whither are you going? And I said: I am seeking an Hebrew midwife. And she answered and said unto me: Are you of Israel? And I said to her: Yes. And she said: And who is it that is bringing forth in the cave? And I said: A woman betrothed to me. And she said to me: Is she not your wife? And I said to her: It is Mary that was reared in the temple of the Lord, and I obtained her by lot as my wife. And yet she is not my wife, but has conceived of the Holy Spirit.
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Apparently a Jewish betrothal at that time was a year long, so if they were fairly recently betrothed when Jesus was conceived they would likely still have been betrothed when he was born, with a wedding a few months later. On the other hand they might have been betrothed for some time before the Annunciation, or perhaps they could have expedited the wedding (I don’t know if that was legally possible).

I don’t know what the fact that Mary went down to Bethlehem for the enrolement (and to later Egypt) with Joseph might imply, since betrothed couples do not live with each other. In any case, if Mary and Joseph eventually settled down and lived together raising Jesus in Nazareth as we commonly imagine then that would imply they did have a wedding ceremony at some point, even though the marriage was obviously never consummated.

Also remember of course that the Protoevangelium of James is not Scripture. Though it likely does contain some authentic stories it could also be in error on certain points.
 
Bride not-Brided (Невестa неневестная)

This expression from Akafist is quite unusual in Church slavonic also, but is very meaning about Mother of God.

This combination of words - Невеста Неневестная - Brided not Brided - is a translation from Greek to Church Slavonic and English. Bride (Невеста) or in modern Russian fiancee corresponds to greek word Νύμφη - Nimfa- meaning not only a fiancee in the sense of a young girl prepared for entrance into wedding, but also a newly married woman. The word No-Brided (Неневестная) is translated from greek Ανύμφευτε - Animfeute- to mean not having been through wedding. That is this expression means that the Mother of God, being a Bride was still a Virgin. These words calling Mother of God the Bride-UnBrided simply express the teaching of Orthodox Church about the Virgin Mary as Mother and Virgin, Always-Virgin.

At this site can hearing sining of Akafist with some icons and photographia:

happy-school.ru/publ/radujsja_nevesta_nenevestnaja/44-1-0-2495
 
Matthew 1: 20-25 indicates that Joseph completed the wedding ceremony by taking Mary into his house.
20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; …24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus.
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Joe_Kelley said:
Matthew 1: 20-25 indicates that Joseph completed the wedding ceremony by taking Mary into his house.
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There is no information about a wedding ceremony in Sacred Scriptures.

St Joseph is referred to as “the betrothed” because his marriage to the Theotokos was never consummated.
 
Mickey said:
There is no information about a wedding ceremony in Sacred Scriptures.

St Joseph is referred to as “the betrothed” because his marriage to the Theotokos was never consummated.
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They were already betrothed, and then Joseph took Mary as his wife. I can’t think of anything this could mean except
  1. Marriage and consummation
  2. Marriage without consummation
  3. Cohabitation of the betrothed without marriage
We know number 1 didn’t happen, and number 3 would have been scandalous. That leaves number 2.
 
Mickey said:
There is no information about a wedding ceremony in Sacred Scriptures.

St Joseph is referred to as “the betrothed” because his marriage to the Theotokos was never consummated.
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It is my understanding that taking the betrothed to the grooms house was the completion of the wedding ceremony in the Jewish customs of the time - see the parable of the wise and foolish virgins.
 
Aelred_Minor said:
They were already betrothed, and then Joseph took Mary as his wife. I can’t think of anything this could mean except
  1. Marriage and consummation
  2. Marriage without consummation
  3. Cohabitation of the betrothed without marriage
We know number 1 didn’t happen, and number 3 would have been scandalous. That leaves number 2.
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They were betrothed - kiddushin - and then if they did not take to each other, under one roof (chupah) in the first year, it was not complete - nisu’in. In the kiddushin the bride receive the wedding band, in the nish’in the union is elevated to marriage.
 
Mickey said:
I love St Nektarios…one of my favorites! 🙂
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Ditto!
I believe the tradition is that the Mother of God appeared to St Nektarios.and told him to write down this hymn sung by the angels.

One CD I have has the translation “Rejoice, Bride without bridegroom!” which I don’t like as much but maybe that’s because I first learnt it as “Rejoice, thou unwedded Bride!” 🙂
 
Joe_Kelley said:
Matthew 1: 20-25 indicates that Joseph completed the wedding ceremony by taking Mary into his house.
Click to expand...
20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; …24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus.

Yessir!
 
“In His boundless wisdom, God employs the simplest of means. What was the best way to effect the incarnation of the Son of God? To reveal openly the all-holy Virgin’s virginal state would have meant to bring attention to the Lord Jesus prematurely, without proper preparation. A threefold purpose was accomplished by Joseph’s betrothal to the Virgin: quiet obscurity was assured for Christ until the appointed moment, an impenetrable defense was provided for both her and the divine infant. All this was accomplished by the sacred betrothal of St. Joseph to the Virgin-Mother.”
St Jerome
 
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