“Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." -Luke 1:42
1ST READING
Read
the Song of Songs and allow your imagination free reign with its
imagery and I am sure you will grow in your understanding and experience
of God’s love. He is a lover beyond anything we can imagine. Forget
about the how-to-books and place your lives in the presence of God.
Allow Him to show you the true meaning of love in all its fullness.
Song of Songs 2:8-14 (or Zephaniah 3:14-18)
8 Hark! my lover — here he comes springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills. 9 My
lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. Here he stands behind our
wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattices. 10 My lover speaks; he says to me, “Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one, and come! 11 For see, the winter is past, the rains are over and gone. 12 The flowers appear on the earth, the time of pruning the vines has come, and the song of the dove is heard in our land. 13 The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines, in bloom, give forth fragrance. Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one, and come! 14 O
my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the secret recesses of the cliff,
let me see you, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and
you are lovely.”
P S A L M
Psalm 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21
R: Exult, you just, in the Lord! Sing to him a new song.
2 Give thanks to the Lord on the harp; with the ten-stringed lyre chant his praises. 3 Sing to him a new song; pluck the strings skillfully, with shouts of gladness. (R) 11 But the plan of the Lord stands forever; the design of his heart, through all generations. 12 Blessed the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he has chosen for his own inheritance. (R) 20 Our soul waits for the Lord, who is our help and our shield, 21 for in him our hearts rejoice; in his holy name we trust. (R)
GOSPEL
Mary
places the perceived needs of her cousin, Elizabeth, before her own.
There are times when we have to care for our own needs, but this should
never mean that we neglect the needs of others. We should always seek to
place others before ourselves, for if we do this, all our needs will be
addressed — mainly through the generosity of others. There is more
grace involved in sharing what we have with others, as this results in
more happiness and gratitude.
Luke 1:39-45
39 Mary set out in those days and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43 And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.REFLECTION
WALKING TABERNACLES
We
are familiar with the Gospel today — the second joyful mystery of the
Visitation, celebrated on May 31 every year. We can easily imagine the
joyous encounter between these two women, one barren having now
conceived, the other a virgin having conceived. We have an amazing God!
The response of Mary’s kinswoman, Elizabeth, has been made into a prayer
of the Rosary — Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
To bear a child is a gift of God. Joy and delight are expressed when
one has been found pregnant. It is a great achievement that is widely
celebrated and a great gift — the gift of children. In these days of
Advent, our hearts are also pregnant with hope and expectation as we
await the coming of the Lord in our midst. Actually, at every Eucharist
we encounter this joyous hope when receiving Jesus in Holy Communion. Our hearts can overflow together with the joyous praise of Mary and Elizabeth in meeting the Christ within. In a wonderful way, Elizabeth prophesies of the beautiful fulfillment of God’s promises — He has come to visit His people.
The story should remind us of the great respect due to every person we
encounter. As a spiritual director once said to me, “We are walking tabernacles.” How true and awesome this is! Just as we genuflect upon entering
our churches in reverence to the reserved Blessed Sacrament in the
tabernacle, so, too, must we respect the human person who has Jesus
dwelling within him. May we come to a deeper awareness of Christ’s gift
in this time of Advent and Christmas. St. Paul reminds us that our
bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. We must flee from all immorality and that which can distract us from this truth. Fr. Brian Steele, MGL
"Lord, thank You for visiting us. May we be found worthy of Your presence dwelling within. Amen."
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