As we celebrate the feast of the Visitation of The Blessed Virgin Mary. We remember the joyous occasion in which our Blessed mother visited Elisabeth carrying our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in her womb. Marked for all time by the most exquisite prayer of the Magnificat by the lowly handmaid of the Lord our God our Blessed mother; her canticle which is today sung daily at vespers. Her actions spoke volumes of her love, dedication, faithfulness, obedience, sacrifice, all for the glory of God.
Even today when Mary our Mother visits us and as she graces us with her presence, she continues to magnify the Lord our God drawing all of us closer to Him through her endearing love for us. For she carries with her the joy, peace and love our Lord Jesus Christ with her for all time. Amen
O Blessed Mother, pray for us…..
First reading
Zephaniah 3:14-18 ·
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst
Shout for joy, daughter of Zion,
Israel, shout aloud!
Rejoice, exult with all your heart,
daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has repealed your sentence;
he has driven your enemies away.
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst;
you have no more evil to fear.
When that day comes, word will come to Jerusalem:
Zion, have no fear,
do not let your hands fall limp.
The Lord your God is in your midst,
a victorious warrior.
He will exult with joy over you,
he will renew you by his love;
he will dance with shouts of joy for you
as on a day of festival.
Gospel
Luke 1:39-56
The Almighty has done great things for me
Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’
And Mary said:
‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour;
because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.
He has shown the power of his arm,
he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.
He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy
– according to the promise he made to our ancestors –
of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.
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