Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
“Among you is the Great and Holy One of Israel,” Isaiah 12.
The occasion of the visitation of the Blessed Mother to her beloved cousin Elizabeth, reveals some of the greatest encounters between God and man in the history of mankind. And, in the spirit of humble service and love, Mary’s visit to her dear cousin excellently demonstrates, to the benefit of all, one who has joyfully and willingly and completely accepted the role of Ancilla Domini – the handmaid of the Lord. For, by her Fiat, Mary not only became the Ark of the Covenant, the Seat of Wisdom, the House of Gold, but also the Spiritual Vessel, the very first Apostle of the glad tidings of heaven. She was the Chariot of the King of kings.
The Evangelist, St. Luke tells us that, “Mary set out and travelled to the hill country in haste,” Luke 1:39. “How beautiful upon the mountains, are the feet of the one bringing glad tidings, announcing peace and salvation to Zion,” Isaiah 52:7. And being a spiritual vessel herself, in full possession of the source of all things, Mary was impelled by this uncontainable joy not only to go and share this Gaudium Magnum with her cousin, but also to rejoice with Elizabeth, for, in her old age, God had remembered her as well and bestowed upon her the great joy of motherhood, the joy of bringing forth and nurturing life; the vocation of a woman.
From the moment she was formed in her mother’s womb, Mary was filled with such grace no words could begin to describe. It is a grace so complete, that it cheered her spirit into a shout for joy; a joy that gave birth to the most beautiful song of all;
“Magnificat anima mea Dominum, et exultavit spiritus meus, in Deo Salvatore meo…”
Thus, Elizabeth impelled by the Holy Spirit said of her cousin, “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.” What an interaction between two loving cousins! Mary is a shining example of faith. She believed.
At this magnificent display of an amazing encounter between God and man, there is yet another invisible exchange going on between two baby cousins. There is the leaping of an infant. At only twenty-four weeks in his mother’s womb, John the Baptist cannot contain his joy at the presence of the Great and the Holy One of Israel. What a beautiful exchange this must have been; the first meeting of the bridegroom and his friend. How can this be; an infant leaping for joy in the womb? Could it be that the voice of Mary’s greeting to Elizabeth was also the voice of Jesus, so that when Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice, also John the Baptist, in the womb, heard that same voice? Great and beautiful things happen when God mixes with man. And we can have a great encounter with God without breaking silence.
The late archbishop Fulton Sheen once said, “it is only when we believe in the invisible can we then do the impossible.” And one time our Lord said to his disciples, “if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there’, and it will move. And nothing will be impossible for you.” Belief in the invisible! God is the Great Silence, invisibly present. And we must enter into this Great Silence, we must see beyond the physical and enter into the invisible, with the eyes of faith. Mary believed in the invisible and she did the impossible. We too have believed, we have faith, and we can do the impossible. And if we wish to carry Jesus to people, like Mary, we must have faith in the One who is invisibly present among us, the Great and the Holy One of Israel. This is a great mystery. At Mass we are confronted with this Great Mystery in its full splendor, majesty and beauty which imposes a certain silence on us, in order to draw us into itself, into a great admiration that overwhelms our hearts with extraordinary joy. This is what Mary brought to her dear cousin, Elizabeth. And this is what we bring to the people we meet.
We pray, as we always do, meditating on the second joyful mystery of the Rosary, that in imitating Mary, we may be so consumed by the same love and zeal for the salvation of souls.
Amen
Homily given by Fr Wasswa on the Feast of the Visitation of our Lady, 2023
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