Family and Lineage
By tradition Anna was a daughter of Matthan (Matthan the priest), of the tribe of Levi and the family of Aaron the High Priest. One account relates that Matthan had three daughters, Mary, Zoia, and Anna; Anna's sisters are said to have married in Bethlehem and to have borne Salome and Elizabeth, the latter being the mother of John the Forerunner. A related tradition names Anna's sister Sobe as the mother of Elizabeth.
Anna married the righteous Joachim, who is reckoned a descendant of the house of King David, and the couple made their home in Nazareth. According to John of Damascus, Anna married only once.
Barrenness and the Birth of the Theotokos
Tradition holds that Anna and Joachim lived many years together while remaining childless, a condition regarded in their society as a mark of divine disfavour. The couple were known for their charity, dividing their income into portions for themselves, for the poor, and for the Temple in Jerusalem.
By one account the High Priest rebuked Joachim and rejected his offering on account of his childlessness, telling him he was not worthy to offer sacrifice with childless hands. Joachim withdrew in sorrow to a high mountain or to the wilderness to fast and pray, while Anna prayed alone, believing herself responsible for their grief.
An angel of the Lord then appeared separately to each of them, announcing that their prayer had been heard and that Anna would bear a daughter through whom the nations of the earth would be blessed. The angel directed them to meet at the city gate; when they saw one another they embraced, and this meeting at the gate became the traditional subject of the icon of their feast. In due time Anna conceived and gave birth to the Virgin Mary, who at the age of three was presented to the Temple.
Later Life and Repose
By tradition Anna was widowed when Joachim reposed, and accounts place her death peacefully in Jerusalem. One tradition relates that after being widowed she moved from Nazareth to Jerusalem and lived near the Temple, acquiring property at the gates of Gethsemane and in the valley of Josaphat, where she prepared a family tomb and was eventually buried alongside Joachim.
She is said to have reposed before the Annunciation to the Most Holy Theotokos. Sources report her age at death as 79 years.
Veneration
The veneration of Saint Anna in the Eastern Church is attested from at least the sixth century. During the reign of Emperor Justinian I (527-565) a church in her honour was built in Constantinople, at a place called Deutera.
Emperor Justinian II (reigned 685-695 and 705-711) is said to have restored her church after Saint Anna appeared to his pregnant wife, and at this time her body and her maphorion (veil) were reportedly transferred to Constantinople.
Relics & Shrines
According to tradition, relics of Saint Anna were brought from the Holy Land to Constantinople in 710 and kept in the Church of Saint Sophia, where they are recorded as late as 1333. During the Crusades relics associated with her were distributed to churches in the West, including Apt, Ghent, and Chartres.
Her relics are reported to be preserved in numerous locations, including monasteries on Mount Athos, sites elsewhere in Greece, and churches in Rome. In Western tradition, Pope Julius II is said to have decreed that relics of Saint Anne be kept at Düren after they had been removed from Mainz.
Theological Note
The feast of December 9 commemorates the conception of the Most Holy Theotokos by Saint Anna, that is, the moment of Mary's conception rather than her birth. Orthodox theology maintains that Mary was fully human, subject to mortality and temptation though kept sinless, so as to preserve the genuine human nature of Christ that is essential to the work of salvation.
