“…Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit; and 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 fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord’” (Lk. 1:41–45). “Elizabeth’s most winning quality is her lack of jealousy. She is a woman—a kinswoman and elder of Mary, the wife of a priest and the mother of a God-sent child. Yet she feels herself the handmaid of her kinswoman” (5). In our community and beyond, others will have talents and spiritual gifts we do not have. We are to thank God for these gifts, encourage use of them for His glory, and realize that they also benefit us. God’s gifts to Mary were not for herself only, but for all mankind; His gifts to us are, in a lesser way, the same: “God’s gifts are not for selfishness but for service” (6).
We hear Elizabeth praise Mary and, in turn, Our Lady praise and thank God. This is how it is when we honor Mary and how it should be when anyone praises us. The Magnificat, the only song of Mary we have, will be part of our thanksgiving after Holy Communion. This practice is a recommendation of St. Louis de Monfort. “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior… He who is mighty has done great things for me…” (Luke 1:46–49). She praises Him for His goodness to her and to her people; it is a form of prayer to recall the marvels God has wrought. (And that will be the purpose of our convent archives!)
“And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation… He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity forever” (Luke 1:50–55). Mary sees how God’s gifts to her manifest His mercy to her people. “In her, God fulfills His promises with a superabundance of fidelity and generosity…: the holy mystery of the Incarnation of the Word” (7).
Mary proclaims His mercy, given to her people, to her preveniently, and to us still today. “The Blessed Virgin is more than just the culmination of Israel; she is also the beginning of the Church, the Church’s model in faith and charity and union with Christ (8). Thus, according to St. Irenaeus, ‘in her exultation she prophetically declared in the name of the Church, “My soul magnifies the Lord…”’” (9). We who receive His mercy abundantly as members of the New Israel must also proclaim that mercy and show mercy in our deeds. Mary’s Visitation is an errand of mercy, and so must our deeds be—to bring spiritual and temporal assistance to families, and to help them serve others: “We will strive in many ways to assist parents in living the Faith and passing it on to their children. Our service to families can help them have time and energy to be more active in their parishes and in performing works of mercy. When special needs arise in families, our prayers and helpful presence will lighten their burdens” (10).
When Our Lady arrives, Zechariah is mute because of his unbelief. Mary doesn’t come to us because we’re holy; she comes because of her motherly care, in service, in our need. Unlike Mary, we can be mindful that we ourselves, not just those we serve, are sinners. We will often learn from the good example of those we serve.
Our Lady, during these three months, offers what has been termed “hands-on love.” The Mother of God “was not content to be the handmaid of the Lord. She became the handmaid of God’s handmaid [Elizabeth]—as the Vicar of Christ calls himself humbly the servant of God’s servants” (11). With “practical” love, we are to see what needs to be done and offer assistance. Even as she goes about the housework, Mary is ever aware of her preborn Lord’s presence within her. “Our Lady was constantly united to God; her work was an overflowing of prayer and proceeded from it (12). She did her simple household tasks for love of God. Like her, we will strive to do ‘little things with great love,’ as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta said. ‘Pick up a pin for the love of God and save a soul,’ St. Thérèse said" (13).
Remembering Our Lady’s love makes us think of her Immaculate Heart, and one cannot think of her heart apart from her Son’s Sacred Heart. It is after the Incarnation that she hastens into the hill country, carrying Our Lord to that blessed home; and, since the heart of a preborn child begins to beat on about day 22, it seems that it is during her time serving in Elizabeth’s home that the Heart of the Redeemer of mankind begins to beat. All the while they are there, as Mary serves the family, Our Lord is growing within her, beneath her heart. Their hearts are ever united, and so may ours be with theirs. As we seek to follow Mary’s example in service to families, through her may the Holy Spirit form Jesus spiritually in us—and in those we serve.
1. Pope John Paul II, 15 August 1980 Angelus Message, L’Osservatore Romano, English Edition, 25 August 1980, p. 19.
2. de Monfort, St. Louis Marie, True Devotion to Mary (No. 19), in God Alone (Bay Shore, NY: Monfort Publications, 1987), p. 295.
3. Cf. Miller, Rev. Frederick L., “The Visitation and True Devotion to Mary,” Soul Magazine, May–June 1990.
4. de Monfort, op. cit. (No. 24), p. 296.
5. McNabb, Vincent, O.P., Mary of Nazareth (New York: P.J. Kenedy & Sons, c. 1939), p. 59.
6. Ibid., p. 61.
7. Pope John Paul II, 6 November 1996 General Audience Catechesis, L’Osservatore Romano, English Edition.
8. Cf. Lumen Gentium 63 and 68, etc.
9. Saward, John, Redeemer in the Womb (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1993), p. 37.
10. Basic plan of the proposed community, apostolate section.
11. McNabb, op. cit., p. 58.
12. Cf. Dorcy, Sr. Mary Jean, O.P., Our Lady's Feasts (New York: Sheed and Ward, 1945), p. 31.
13. Basic plan of the proposed community, loc. cit. |
