In the Second Joyful Mystery, we contemplate the visit of the Blessed Virgin Mary to her cousin, Saint Elizabeth.
From the Gospel of Luke (1:39-42, 45):
In those days, Mary set out and with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! (...) Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’
Commentary by Saint Ambrose
“Blessed are you who have believed," says Elizabeth. But you too are blessed because you have heard and believed: every soul that believes and does the will of God conceives and brings forth the Word of God, recognizing His works.
Meditation 1
If in the Annunciation, Mary is in prayer, in the Visitation, Mary is in action; if in the Annunciation, Mary listens to the word of God, in the Visitation, she puts that word into practice, as her Son often suggests; if in the Annunciation, Mary loves God above all things, in the Visitation, she loves her neighbor as herself.
If in the Annunciation, Mary has a personal experience with God as a disciple, in the Visitation, as she sings her Magnificat and bears witness to her experience of God, she acts as a missionary, sharing and testifying to all that God has worked in her.
In these two Joyful Mysteries, we find the path of the entire Christian life. For this reason, Mary is for us a model of both disciple and missionary. All the virtues that a Christian should cultivate are concentrated in her. Mary is, therefore, not only the Mother of Jesus and our Mother but also an example of how to follow Christ.
Meditation 2
"Blessed are you because you believed," were the words of Elizabeth to Mary. These words remind us that faith is a choice, a commitment, a decision we make freely after exhausting our reason. Faith is a leap into the unknown, and only after we take this leap will we know if we were right. Mary found happiness in her faith in the Word of God spoken by the angel. We too will be happy if we believe and unhappy if we do not.
Mary traveled from Nazareth to Ein Kerem, covering about 150 km to help her cousin. However, Elizabeth recognizes something more in her than just her cousin Mary, as she was already pregnant with the Son of God. In response to Elizabeth's words, Mary, through her Magnificat, demonstrates what it means to be a missionary. It is not exactly about preaching doctrines; doctrine comes second.
Like Mary in the Magnificat, the missionary must testify to the great works that God has done in their life. Just as history is divided into before and after Christ, our lives change when we encounter Christ, as happened with Paul.
In the Magnificat, Mary recounts the great things the Almighty has done in her life. In the same way, Jesus’ project is not just individual but also social, calling us to make this world the Kingdom of God.
The missionary, as Mary describes in her Magnificat, is the one who helps to bring down the mighty from their thrones and lift up the humble; the one who faces the injustices of this world, striving to establish the Kingdom of God here in a more just, peaceful, and fraternal society.
Prayer
Lord our God,
just as Mary rose in haste
to serve and bring Your presence to Elizabeth's house,
we too, moved by Your Spirit,
wish to respond promptly to Your call.
Make us faithful disciples
who listen to Your Word with open hearts,
and generous missionaries
who put it into practice through service and love for others.
May we, like Mary,
recognize and bear witness
to the great wonders You work in our lives,
and announce with joy Your Kingdom of justice, peace, and brotherhood.
Lord, help us tear down the barriers that separate us from others,
exalt the humble, and combat the injustices
that prevent Your peace from reigning in the world.
May our faith be firm and trusting in You, as Mary's was,
and may we find true happiness
in believing in Your promises.
As Mary sang her Magnificat,
we praise and bless You,
for You are faithful and merciful,
and in You, we place all our trust.
Amen.
Fr. Jorge Amaro, IMC