Joachim

Saint Joachim
Saints Joachim and Anne, parents of the Virgin Mary
Father of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Confessor
Born	1st century BC
Died	unknown, Sepphoris or Jerusalem
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church Orthodox Churches Anglican Communion Islam
Canonized	Pre-Congregation
Feast	July 26; March 20 (General Roman Calendar, 1584-1738); Sunday after the Octave of the Assumption (General Roman Calendar, 1738-1913); August 16 (General Roman Calendar, 1913-1969)
Attributes	Lamb, doves, with Saint Anne or Mary
Patronage	Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, fathers, grandparents, Fasnia (Tenerife)

Saint Joachim ("he whom YHWH has set up", Hebrew: יְהוֹיָקִים Yəhôyāqîm, Greek Ἰωακείμ Iōākeím) was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and therefore is ascribed the title of "forebearer of God", in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of SS. Joachim and Anne appears in the apocryphal Gospel of James.

The canonical Gospel accounts in the New Testament do not explicitly name either of Mary's parents, but some argue that the genealogy in Luke 3 is that of Mary rather than Joseph, thereby naming her father as Eli (Heli).^[1] Later traditions, however, specify that this Eli was a first cousin of Mary's father Joachim.^[2]

In the Gospel of James, Joachim is described as a rich and pious man of the house of David who regularly gave to the poor and to the temple (synagogue) at Sepphoris.^[3] However, as his wife was barren, the high priest rejected Joachim and his sacrifice, as his wife's childlessness was interpreted as a sign of divine displeasure. Joachim consequently withdrew to the desert where he fasted and did penance for forty days. Angels then appeared to both Joachim and Anne to promise them a child. Joachim later returned to Jerusalem and embraced Anne at the city gate. The cycle of legends concerning SS. Joachim and Anne were included in the Golden Legend and remained popular in Christian art until the Council of Trent restricted the depiction of apocryphal events. Traditional depictions (vestibular statuary, etc) of St. Joachim show him bearing a shovel.

No liturgical celebration of Saint Joachim was included in the Tridentine Calendar. It was added to the General Roman Calendar in 1584, for celebration on March 20, the day after the feast day of Saint Joseph. In 1738 it was transferred to the Sunday after the Octave of the Assumption. As part of his effort to allow the liturgy of Sundays to be celebrated, Pope Pius X transferred it to August 16, the day after the feast day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so that St. Joachim may be remembered in the celebration of her triumph.^[4] It was then celebrated as a Double of the 2nd Class, a rank that was changed in 1960 to that of 2nd Class Feast. In 1969 it was joined to that of Saint Anne, for celebration on July 26.^[5]

In Islam

The House of Imran (Arabic: آل عمران, Sūratu Āli-'Imrān, "The chapter the House of Imran Imran ") is the 3rd chapter of the Qur'an with two hundred verses. Imran is Arabic for the biblical Amram in the bible is also regarded as the ancestor of Mary. This chapter is named after the family Imran (Joachim) which includes; Imran (ِArabic: عمران , Joachim), Hanna (Arabic: حنـّا , St. Ann), Maryam (Arabic: مريم , Mary) and Jesus (Arabic: عيسى , Jesus). The chapter is believed to have been revealed in Medina and is either the second or third in Medinan revelation. Almost all of it also belongs to the 3rd year of the Hijra. In this chapter the miraculous birth of Mary, St. John the Baptist and Jesus was mentioned. In this chapter its mentioned God had chosen Adam, Noah, the family of Abraham and the family of Imran over Alamin (creation).

References

External links

• Saint Joachim
• Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Joachim