![]() Elizabeth says: Blessed are you because you have believed. Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit after conceiving John, while Mary is filled with the Holy Spirit before conceiving the Lord. ![]() Her son, who is beyond our understanding, is active in his mother in a way beyond our understanding. When John leaps for joy Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, but we know that though Mary’s spirit rejoices she does not need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. John leaps for you, and the spirit of Mary rejoices in her turn. The child leaps in the womb the mother is filled with the Holy Spirit, he fills his mother with the same Spirit. The women speak of the grace they have received while the children are active in secret, unfolding the mystery of love with the help of their mothers, who prophesy by the spirit of their sons. She is aware of Mary’s presence, but he is aware of the Lord’s: a woman aware of a woman’s presence, the forerunner aware of the pledge of our salvation. She hears with the ears of the body, but he leaps for joy at the meaning of the mystery. Elizabeth is the first to hear Mary’s voice, but John is the first to be aware of grace. Notice the contrast and the choice of words. Quickly, too, the blessings of her coming and the Lord’s presence are made clear: as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting the child leapt in her womb, and she was filled with the Holy Spirit. ![]() She goes eager in purpose, dutiful in conscience, hastening for joy.įilled with God, where would she hasten but to the heights? The Holy Spirit does not proceed by slow, laborious efforts. She does not disbelieve God’s word she feels no uncertainty over the message or doubt about the sign. When she hears this Mary sets out for the hill country. He told her of the motherhood of an old and barren woman to show that God is able to do all that he wills. When the angel revealed his message to the Virgin Mary he gave her a sign to win her trust. Amen.Mary Visits Elizabeth Feast of the Visitationįrom a Commentary on the Gospel of St. We pray that we will honor his birthday as a time of celebration with our families. Heavenly Father, we are thankful for this time of joyful celebration of our Savior's birth. As we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, it is certainly appropriate that we celebrate it with our families just as Mary did with Elizabeth. So, at the very beginning of the Christmas story was an event that was shared with family and it is a time that has meaning to us as families today. "You are a blessed woman because you have believed that the Lord would do what he said." Elizabeth was also expecting a baby and the Bible tells us that when she heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.Įlizabeth gave a glad cry and said to Mary, "God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed." That is amazing! Before Mary even said a word about having a child, Elizabeth knew it and she knew that the child was going to be a very special child! "Why am I so blessed that the mother of my Lord would visit me?" Elizabeth said. Can you imagine how Mary, a teenager engaged to marry a young carpenter, must have felt to hear news like that? After she recovered from the shock, the Bible tells us that Mary hurried to the home of a relative, Elizabeth, to tell her the news. Our Gospel reading today tells what happened after God sent the angel Gabriel to tell Mary that she was going to have a baby and that she would name him Jesus. ![]() In my mind, one of the very best things about Christmas is celebrating the birth of Jesus with family. We had so much fun visiting, eating, and playing games. It was often the only time during the year when I got to see some of my aunts, uncles, and cousins. We almost always went to my Grandmother's house and had a big family get-together. Are you getting excited? I am! What are some of the things that you look forward to at Christmas - besides opening presents of course? What are some of the family traditions your family has? (Give the children time to share.) The thing I remember most about the Christmases of my childhood is our family get-together. Today is the last Sunday before Christmas.
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