Rejoice, Mary, the chaire of the Annunciation and the Akathist.
“Rejoice,” the meaning of the chaire in Luke 1:28
When the archangel Gabriel enters Mary’s house in Nazareth, the first word he pronounces is Chaire (χαῖρε), translated into Latin as Ave and into English as “Rejoice” or “Hail.” This Greek word is not a neutral greeting: in the Hellenistic world, chaire was the greeting addressed to kings and to persons of distinction, and it carried the connotation of “exult” or “rejoice.” Exegetes such as René Laurentin and Ignace de la Potterie have stressed that the archangel does not simply say “hello.” He addresses to Mary a proclamation of messianic joy, that joy which the prophets (Zephaniah 3:14-17; Zechariah 9:9) announced to the daughter of Zion at the moment of the coming of the Messiah.
Rejoice, Mary and the tradition of the daughter of Zion
The Old Testament context of the “Chaire” is fundamental. In Zephaniah 3:14, God invites the daughter of Zion: “Exult, daughter of Zion, shout cries of joy, Israel! Rejoice and be glad with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem!” In Zechariah 9:9: “Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion, shout cries of joy, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you.” These texts of messianic joy are the background of Gabriel’s “Chaire”: Mary is the “daughter of Zion” who receives the promised joy, because the King-Messiah is to be born of her. The joy of the Annunciation is not only individual, it is cosmic and eschatological.
The Akathist Hymn, “Rejoice” in 24 stanzas
The richest poetic elaboration of the “Rejoice, Mary” is the Akathist Hymn (Ακάθιστος Ύμνος, “Hymn sung standing”), the great Marian liturgical poem of the Orthodox tradition, composed probably in the sixth century (attributed to Romanos the Melodist or to Sergius I of Constantinople). The Akathist is structured in 24 alternating stanzas, kondakia and oikoi, following the letters of the Greek alphabet. Each oikos (long stanza) develops a multiple series of “Chaire” (Rejoice): “Rejoice, you through whom joy shone forth. Rejoice, you through whom the curse was extinguished…”. The Akathist is sung in the Eastern churches on the fifth Friday of Lent and has become one of the most influential Marian texts of Christianity.
Deepen your studies: explore Archangel Gabriel, Kecharitômênē, Ave Maria, Mariology, and the Postgraduate Program in Mariology.
Postgraduate Program in Mariology
Would you like to deepen your formation in Mariology? Discover the Postgraduate Program in Mariology of Locus Mariologicus – an academic formation that unites theological rigor, spiritual life, and the living tradition of the Church.
Would you like to study Mariology seriously?
This article is born of the works in the library of Locus Mariologicus. The Postgraduate Program in Mariology brings you to the same source, with academic guidance: Scripture, the Fathers of the Church, and the Magisterium, from the first dogma to contemporary questions.
Responses