Today, September 9, Afterfeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos, the Church commemorates the Synaxis of Holy and Righteous Ancestors of God Joachim and Anna, and celebrates the memory of Venerable Theophanes, Confessor, and Faster, of Mt. Diabenos.
According to tradition, the commemoration day of the righteous parents of the Virgin Mary was established to be celebrated on the Afterfeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos because they brought the universal joy of salvation with the birth of their daughter.
Righteous Joachim was of the tribe of Judah and was a descendant of King David. She married Anna, the daughter of Matthan the priest, who was of the tribe of Levi, and Mary, who was of the tribe of Judah. After having spent their lives according to the commandments of the Lord, Saint Joachim died eight years later at the age of 92, his daughter went to live in the Temple, and his wife died at the age of 83, 11 months later.
Source: Church of Cyprus
