How Does the Orthodox Church Explain the Continued Virginity of Mary After Giving Birth to Jesus Christ?
Concerning the birth of Jesus Christ, the Prophet lsaias spoke thus, “Before she that travailed brought forth, before the travail-pain came on, she escaped it and brought forth a male” [Isaiah 66:7]. Saint John of Damascus adds to this saying that “After the normal nine-month gestational period, Christ was born at the beginning of the tenth, in accordance with the law of gestation. It was a birth that surpassed the established order of birthgiving, as it was without pain; for, where pleasure had not preceded, pain did not follow. And just as at His conception He had kept her who conceived Him virgin, so also at His birth did He maintain her virginity intact, because He alone passed through her and kept her shut.” Saint Ambrose in his Synodal Letter 44 writes: “Why is it hard to believe that Mary gave birth in a way contrary to the law of natural birth and remained a virgin, when contrary to the law of nature the sea looked at Him and fled, and the waters of the Jordan returned to their
