Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint of the day for May 31st

The story of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

This is a fairly late holiday, which dates back only to the 13th or 14th century. It was widely established throughout the Church to pray for unity. The current date of the celebration was set in 1969, in order to follow the Annunciation of the Lord and precede the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist.

Like most of Mary's feasts, it is closely linked to Jesus and his saving work. The most visible actors in the visit drama (see Luke 1: 39-45) are Mary and Elizabeth. However, Jesus and John the Baptist steal the show in a hidden way. Jesus makes John jump with joy, the joy of messianic salvation. Elizabeth, in turn, is full of the Holy Spirit and addresses words of praise to Mary, words that echo over the centuries.

It is useful to remember that we do not have a journalistic account of this meeting. Rather Luke, speaking for the Church, offers a representation of the scene of a praying poet. Elizabeth's praise of Mary as "the mother of my Lord" can be seen as the first devotion of the Church for Mary. As with all authentic devotion to Mary, the words of Elizabeth (the Church) first praise God for what God has done to Mary. Only in the second place does he praise Mary for trusting in the words of God.

Then comes the Magnificat (Luke 1: 46-55). Here, Mary herself - like the Church - traces all her greatness to God.

Reflection

One of the invocations in Mary's litany is "Ark of the Covenant". Like the Ark of the Covenant of the past, Mary brings the presence of God into the lives of other people. While David danced before the Ark, John the Baptist leaps for joy. While the Ark helped unite the 12 tribes of Israel by being located in the capital of David, so Mary has the power to unite all Christians in her son. Sometimes, devotion to Mary may have caused some division, but we can hope that authentic devotion will lead everyone to Christ and, therefore, to each other.