Mother Anna: Faith in the Unseen

Faith in the Unseen

Surrender and Trust

Today, in my morning practice, as I gazed at the full moon and chanted my prayers in Aramaic, the story of Mother Anna’s conception rose gently into my awareness.

Mother Anna and her husband, Joachim, had no children, and this sorrow weighed heavily upon them. Each year, when Joachim brought his offering to the Temple, the priests looked past him with quiet judgment, treating his devotion as though it lacked the favor of God. Wounded by their dismissal, Joachim retreated into the desert to pray, seeking solace beneath the wide and silent sky.

Anna remained in her solitude at their home in Judea​, tending her small garden, grinding herbs, and walking the ancient desert paths alone. It was in this stillness, in the place where longing and surrender meet, that a luminous presence came to her. The message rose within her like a voice made of light:

​She would conceive a child destined to carry great radiance.

That same presence appeared to Joachim in the desert, calling him to return home. Guided by faith, he made the journey back, and the two met at the Golden Gate of Jerusalem​, an encounter filled with the quiet certainty that something holy had already been set in motion.

Soon after, the impossible took root within Anna. She conceived Miryam, who would become the mother of Yeshua and the grandmother of the light that would one day touch Mary Magdalene.

Mother Anna’s story reminds us that what appears barren is often the very ground where the Divine is preparing new life.

And so, in this season of Advent and Hanukkah​, the season of Light​, we must remember that the places within us that feel empty, barren, or without hope may in fact be the soil of our greatest miracles. We must continue to have faith.

Faith is the willingness to believe in the unseen​, to trust that God,​ Alaha Shekhinah, the Divine Feminine Presence, Mother Divine, ​Source, however we may call Divine Presence, is working in ways far beyond what our eyes can yet perceive.

In this very moment, as you read these words, you are being held.
You are being helped.​ Beautiful blessings are already taking shape for each and every one of us.

So let us take a moment to surrender​, to release what we cannot fix through our earthly capacities, and to remember that there is an entire luminous dimension known as the Unseen.

A Prayer to Mother Anna

Mother Anna,
Desert womb of miracles,
Keeper of the hidden light,
We call upon your presence in humility and trust.

You who knew the ache of waiting,
the silence of unanswered longing,
the tender vulnerability of the barren places,
guide us now into the wisdom you carried.

Teach us how to hold space with grace,
to remain open when our hearts feel empty,
to understand that emptiness is not a punishment
but a sacred chamber where the miracle takes form.

Mother Anna,
help us remember that what appears hollow
is often the very ground where destiny is quietly ripening.
Teach us to be patient with the unfolding of our lives,
to trust the slow, faithful work of the unseen,
and to know that the Divine is shaping us
even when we cannot yet see the shape.

May your presence open our inner eyes
to recognize that everything happening in our lives
is a message, a teaching, a gentle nudge
toward greater purpose and understanding.

Help us to listen deeply.
Help us to surrender lovingly.
Help us to welcome the mystery without fear.

Mother Anna,
walk with us as we learn to cradle the not-yet-born,
the dreams still forming in silence,
the blessings preparing to enter our lives.

May we trust, as you trusted,
that all is unfolding as it should,
not in our timing,
but in Divine timing.

And may we feel your hand upon our hearts,
reminding us that we are held,
we are guided,
and the miracle is already unfolding.

Amein.

​Upcoming Events:

Lighting the Second Advent Candle CLICK HERE

Magdalene Christmas Mass. CLICK HERE

The 12 Holy Days of Christmas. CLICK HERE

Magdalene Ministry 2026: Mary Magdalene Priestess and Priest Training. CLICK HERE

Wishing you a blessed Shabbat.

AHAVA,

Ana Otero