“God alone excepted, she was superior to all ... to Cherubim and Seraphim,
and the whole angelic host ... Hail full of grace, who satisfies the thirsty
with the sweetness of the eternal fountain. Hail most holy Mother
Immaculate, who didst bring forth Jesus.”
The Akathist Hymn I, Oikos, Alpha (inter 5th–6th Century AD)
Hail! by whom true hap had dawned.
Hail! by whom mishap has waned.
Hail! sinful Adam’s recalling.
Hail! Eve’s tears redeeming.
Hail! height untrodden by thought of men.
Hail! depth unscanned by angel’s ken.
Hail! for the kingly throne thou art.
Hail! for who beareth all that thou bearest?
Hail! O star that bore the Sun.
Hail! the womb of God enfleshed.
Hail! through whom things made are all new made.
Hail! through whom becomes a Babe their Maker.
Hail! through whom the Maker is adorned.
HAIL ! BRIDE UNBRIDED.
St. Germain I of Constantinople, Sermon on the Dormition of the
Blessed Virgin Mary 2 (ante 733AD)
“Let death pass you by, O Mother of God, because you have brought life to
men. Let the tomb pass you by, because you have been made the
foundation stone of inexplicable sublimity. Let dust pass you by; for you
are a new kind of formation, so that you may be mistress over those who
have been corrupted in the very stuff of their potter’s clay.”
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