The Feast of the Immaculate Conception celebrates belief in the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is universally celebrated on December 8, nine months before the feast of the Nativity of Mary, which is celebrated on September 8.
It is the patronal feast day of Spain, Korea, Portugal, Nicaragua, Brazil, the Philippines and the United States of America. It is celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church as well as a few other closely related Christian churches.
The feast is often celebrated with Holy Mass, parades, fireworks, processions, ethnic foods, and cultural festivities in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary and is generally considered a "family day", especially in many Catholic countries.
Read more about Feast Of The Immaculate Conception: History, Cultural Impact, Anglican Communion, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism
Famous quotes containing the words immaculate conception, feast of, feast, immaculate and/or conception:
“I know that there are many persons to whom it seems derogatory to link a body of philosophic ideas to the social life and culture of their epoch. They seem to accept a dogma of immaculate conception of philosophical systems.”
—John Dewey (1859–1952)
“This day is called the Feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day and comes safe home
Will stand a-tiptoe when this day is named
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“O proud death,
What feast is toward in thine eternal cell,
That thou so many princes at a shot
So bloodily hast struck?”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“I know that there are many persons to whom it seems derogatory to link a body of philosophic ideas to the social life and culture of their epoch. They seem to accept a dogma of immaculate conception of philosophical systems.”
—John Dewey (1859–1952)
“As in private life one differentiates between what a man thinks and says of himself and what he really is and does, so in historical struggles one must still more distinguish the language and the imaginary aspirations of parties from their real organism and their real interests, their conception of themselves from their reality.”
—Karl Marx (1818–1883)