The Divine Word took flesh in the Virgin Mary

When the time of the Purification came, Jesus was brought to the Temple. ... A prophetess, Anna, daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher, was there. She came and began to give glory to God, speaking of this Child to all those who were waiting for Israel's deliverance.

And now the Magi's search for the King of the Jews was successful! Herod and the whole city were greatly troubled: the astrologers’ interpretation suddenly reinforced a rumor that was alarming for the established power.

Specialists were summoned to find out where the Child King—He who is the "Bread of Life" (but that, at the time, no one could guess)—would be born. For their part, the Masoretes (1) knew right away that His birthplace would be in Bethlehem, i.e. the "House-of-Bread" (in Hebrew Beth-Lehem), since the prophet Micah had prophesied (St Matthew would quote Micah’s exact words): "And you, Bethlehem of Judah, are not the least of the villages of Judea; out of you shall arise the ruler of my people Israel, whose origin goes back to the most ancient times, to the days of eternity."

The days of Eternity... this is the eternal origin of He who took flesh in Mary, a fact that we keep evoking each time that we say the Hail Mary...

(1) The Masoretes (Hebrew ba'alei hamassora, "masters of tradition") were the teachers of the Masorah, which faithfully transmitted the ancient text of the Hebrew Bible, with its nuances of pronunciation and vocalization, at a time when the ancient languages of the Bible were not spoken anymore.

Professor Jérôme Lejeune, French geneticist (1926-1994)