The Visitation

Readings for Tuesday May 31, 2011

Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

First Reading: Zephaniah 3:14-18 or Romans 12:9-16
Responsorial Psalm: Isaiah 12:2-3
Gospel: Luke 1:39-56

Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” (Lk 1:39-45)

Just imagine being in Mary's situation. You have just found out that you are the going to be the Mother of God, and so realizing your mission, you immediately set out to go and visit your cousin Elizabeth. I know that if this were me, I would have been doing a lot of thinking on that trip, I would have been thinking about how I would try and explain this to everyone. I would have begun to become fearful about all the things that people might do to me. I might have begun anticipating all the judgement that I was going to face. I don't know what was going through Mary's mind during that trip, but if there were any fears that crept in, we can be assured that they vanished the instant she reached her cousin Elizabeth.

God asks each of us to "cast out into the deep", just like He did with Mary. It can certainly be a scary thing to enter into the unknown, but we must remember that He is always with us and that He can be trusted. There is no need to fear or doubt, but to only trust. It is during these times of uncertainty that we must remember the words of the prophet Zephaniah: "The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst, you have no further misfortune to fear." I know in my own life, there are many times that I worry or become anxious about things, but then I am reminded that there is no need to worry, because the Lord is working, just like He has been all my life.

Today, let us praise the Lord for all He has done in our lives and for all that He has blessed us with. Let us praise the Lord as Mary did in her canticle. Today, let that be our prayer.

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.”