Commemorative rites and holy masses will be celebrated Tuesday, July 26, at the Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Anne in Taguig City, in solemn observance of the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (San Joaquin and Santa Ana), venerated as the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the grandparents of Jesus Christ.
Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara will lead the Pontifical Mass at 9:30 a.m. Holy masses will also be offered at 5 a.m., 6:30 a.m., 8 a.m., 3 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and at 6 p.m.
A mass baptism will be held at 11 a.m. A fluvial procession will be held at 1 p.m. with the blessing of fishers and their fishing vessels.
Novena masses were held from July 17 to 25.
This year marks the 435th anniversary of St. Anne’s installation as the city’s patron saint.
Commemorative masses will also be celebrated in Bugasong, Antique; Liliw, Laguna; Malinao, Albay; and in Nakar, Quezon.
Many devotees mark the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne as a special day for grandparents. This year, the Catholic Church observed the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly on Sunday, July 24. Pope Francis highlighted the important role of grandparents and the elderly in the family and society during the celebration.
According to St. John Damascene, an early Church Father and a Doctor of the Church, “Sts. Joachim and Anne faithfully performed their duties, practiced their faith, and established an atmosphere for the coming of the Messiah. They nurtured, taught, and brought up Mary to be a worthy Mother of God. Mary followed their example of parenting as she brought up Jesus.”
St. Anne is also considered the patron saint and protector of Christian mothers and of women in labor.