Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
On
that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem: Fear not, O Zion, be not discouraged! The
LORD, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; He will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love, He will sing joyfully because of you, as one sings at festivals.
(Zephania 3:16-18)
Mary
said, “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 forever.” (Luke
1:46-49)
Piety
“Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:42, 45)
Study
One
of my favorite prayers, I am constantly stirred as I pray “(God) has looked
with favor on his lowly servant” and “the Almighty has done great things for
me.” Mary speaks humbly and powerfully as herself, yet also her words speak to
the whole of Israel, and directly to me as Mother. Mary’s words are personal
yet universal. Mary proclaims the grandeur and mercy of God to the human
condition for each individual and all nations simultaneously.
Sr. Elizabeth Johnson wrote, “The Magnificat is a revolutionary song of salvation whose political, economic, and social dimensions cannot be blunted. People in need in every society hear a blessing in this canticle. The battered woman, the single parent without resources, those without food on the table or without even a table, the homeless family, the young abandoned to their own devices, the old who are discarded: all are encompassed in the hope Mary proclaims. …. Doesn’t God love everyone? Indeed yes, but in an unjust world, the form this universal love takes differs according to circumstance. This song makes clear that divine love is particularly on the side of those whose dignity must be recovered. The divine intent is to build up a community marked by human dignity and mutual regard.”[i]
Action
Today
let Mary’s words be in your mind, on your lips, and in your eyes as you look at
the greatness of the Lord around you.
Give thanks for the great things God has done for you. Pass it on.
[i] Elizabeth Johnson, Mary, Mary, quite contrary, 2011, https://uscatholic.org/articles/201101/mary-mary-quite-contrary/
Illustration:
Visitation, Bro. Mickey McGrath, Mural at the Eastern Deanery AIDS
Relief Center in Nairobi, Kenya. https://www.kolbetimes.com/br-mickey-mcgrath/
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