Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Gospels do not name the parents of the Virgin Mary. Their names come from a 2nd-century writing, the Protoevangelium of James, which tells that Joachim, a rich and pious man, and his wife Anne had long been childless. When the priest turned away his offering for that reason, Joachim went into the wilderness to fast and pray for forty days, while Anne prayed at home; an angel appeared to each of them, promising a child. When Mary was born, they dedicated her to God, and at three years old brought her to the Temple.

Devotion to Anne spread in the East from the 6th century, when a church was built in her honor at Constantinople, and later in the West. Their joint memorial dates from 1969.