Entrance of the Theotokos According to Tradition, the Virgin
Mary was taken —presented—by her parents Joachim and Anna into
the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem as a young girl, where she lived
and served as a Temple virgin until her betrothal to St. Joseph.
One of the earliest sources of this tradition is the non-
canonical Protoevangelion of James, also called the Infancy
Gospel of James. Mary was solemnly received by the temple
community which was headed by the priest Zacharias, the father
of John the Baptist. She was led to the holy place to become
herself the "holy of holies" of God, the living sanctuary and
temple of the Divine child who was to be born in her. The Church
also sees this feast as a feast which marks the end of the
physical temple in Jerusalem as the dwelling place of God.
Celebration of the feast On the eve of the feast, Vespers is
served and contains Old Testament readings that are interpreted
as symbols of the Mother of God, for she becomes the living
temple of God. In each reading we hear, "f