NOTE: According to the traditional liturgical calendar, today is the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. We will therefore hear the Gospel account of her wonderful encounter with Saint Elizabeth.
Luke 1:39-47
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechari′ah and greeted Elizabeth.And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spiritand she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
Two holy women met. One of them, Elizabeth, had been blessed with a child late in life, despite being considered barren. God made this possible, and her only child was John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ’s coming.
“With God nothing will be impossible” (Luke 1:37), the Archangel Gabriel had said to the Virgin Mary, referring to Elizabeth, when he announced to her that she was to become the mother of the Messiah.
And so these two chosen women met. One carries in her womb the one of whom Jesus will say, “among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist.” (Matthew 11:11) The other carries the one who came to redeem humanity. Both women are aware of the mystery of love into which God has drawn them. They know they have been chosen.
As soon as Mary entered Elizabeth’s house and greeted her, Elizabeth’s child leaped for joy within her. Elizabeth herself was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to proclaim, in the Holy Spirit, what He inspired her to say: the great deeds of the Lord, of which she is a witness. Before her stands the one who said “yes” to God’s will on behalf of all humanity, the one who silences Eve’s “no,” the one who becomes the mother of all believers.
Her own son, whom she conceived miraculously, is called to prepare the way for the Son of Mary. That was his mission, and she was privileged to serve it as his mother.
Now he leaps for joy within her as he hears the voice of the mother of his Lord. Later, he will testify: “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.’” (John 1:15)
When we look at Saint Elizabeth, we see that her entire attention is focused on Mary. She is deeply moved and understands the Virgin’s coming as a great grace: “Why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”
And it is true, not only for her, but for all of us! Who are we that the Son of God should come to us on earth? There is only one answer to that question. It is the ineffable love of our heavenly Father who seeks us out in his Son to lead us home to him.
Elizabeth recognizes this and utters the immortal words we so often repeat in the Holy Rosary: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”
Indeed, it is so. Saint Elizabeth sings a hymn of praise to the Mother of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit: “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
Elizabeth, you invite us to join you in praising Mary. For her loving faith will always be our model and our source of joy in fulfilling our Father’s will. You understood this, and we want to understand it more deeply. Saying “yes” to the Father’s will is true life. Then everything can unfold and be touched by true life.
You also said “yes” to your Son, and you sensed the immense significance of Mary’s “yes” to conceiving her Son. Everything takes a back seat, just as your son later said of Jesus: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30) So you, too, step into the background, and everything within you praises the greatness of the Lord as you behold the Mother of your Lord!
And Mary?
She bursts into a song of joy to God, and from her lips come the words that the entire Catholic world prays. These words have been sung for centuries as the Magnificat in the Office of Vespers: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:46–47)
Tomorrow we will reflect on the Magnificat together with her to praise the Lord.