MANIFESTATION OF HUMILITY AND LESSON OF CHARITY.

May 31, 2021
Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Readings: Zep 3:14-18a; Cant. Isaiah 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6; Rom 12:9-16; Lk 1:39-56.

A Portuguese proverb says, “Visits always give pleasure; if not the arrival, the departure.” And a Bantu proverb adds, “Visitors' footfalls are like medicine; they heal the sick.”

According to the account of St. Luke, in the Gospel of the childhood of Jesus, the Visitation is the joyful meeting between the Blessed Virgin Mary who has received the great news of the Annunciation of the Lord and her cousin Elizabeth, soon to give birth to the great prophet John, the precursor of the Lord. In this joyful encounter, two great lessons for us, followers of the Lord: Humility and Fraternal Charity.

When praying the Holy Rosary, to the second joyful mystery, we associate as fruit the Fraternal Charity. That is actually what flows from today's feast. Mary, after receiving the glorious news that she was to be the Mother of the Lord, received also the sign of the fulfillment of that promise, Elizabeth, her cousin, the barren woman is at her sixth month of pregnancy. Could a normal human being contain those joys and not run to share them? That is exactly what Mary did. And in so doing, not only does she make an act of charity toward her cousin, but she also gives a greater lesson on humility, and the words of Elizabeth point out well that act of humility: “How does it happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”

What we are celebrating here is not only something that took place between the two women, Mary and Elizabeth, but something we should cultivate in our relationship with others. As Christians, but even as mere human beings, what gives sense to our lives are the gestures of humility and the charitable hands we extend to others in their needs. Regrettably, our world has grown ruthless and very egoistic. No one today does easily extend a helping hand to others. We take the pretext of security and many other arguments to not reach out to others. And not only so, but humility has also become a kind of dream for some people. We are filled with so much pride and self-esteem that we cannot lower ourselves to the level of the poorest and neediest of our society.

Mary could have said that she carries the Savior of mankind and therefore not to visit Elizabeth who only carries a simple precursor and prophet. But not, she took the risk to travel the Hills alone to share in her cousin's joy. Could we do the same and humble ourselves serving others?

One beautiful image or lesson that sparks from the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth and that must question each of us Christians is that of the service and sharing in others joys and struggles. Preaching about the Visitation, Pope Francis said, “Reaching out to others is another Christian sign. Persons who describe themselves as Christian and who are unable to reach out to others, to go and meet them, are not totally Christian.” The Christian life is not a life of isolation or seclusion in oneself. It is rather a mission toward others. We are Christians to go at the encounter of others, that is, to get out from our comfort zones and touch and share the flesh and the struggle of others. As Christ-followers, we imitate His Mother, Mary, when we reach out to others for an authentic encounter, allowing the Lord to work through us in them.

At the visitation, the great gift Mary brought to Elizabeth was joy. Every time that we visit people in need, we bring them joy and consolation. We help them to see that they are not alone, forsaken, and outcasts from our societies.

Today, many of our brothers and sisters need the warmth of the visitation. Many people lie in our hospitals or hospices and nursing homes, completely abandoned and desperately dying of this isolation. To them, a simple visit brings life and hope in a better tomorrow.

I remember, a few years ago, a visitation we did with our seminarians in one house for the elderly, the Anawim Center, in Rodriguez. It was an occasion for us to share with this center and its population the fruits of our Lenten privations. But beyond the aspect of “after Lent exercise”, this short hours in this Center gave us to see how much joy a simple visit can bring into the heart of others. Old men and women, narrating with joy their lovely life stories with us, joking, playing, holding our hands, and wishing to keep souvenirs with pictures. I then realized the joy of our boys of the Cottolengo, when visitors come to celebrate with them. At the end of the day, I realized that those who go the most from this visit were not the people we visited, but ourselves. I grew in joy and was enriched with their love. Thus, I came to the conclusion that he who visits others comes back richer than he went. For, every visitation is a mutual enrichment. We give love and we receive back love and joy. With Mary, let us always sing our ‘Magnificat’ to God.