Reflection for Saturday of the 3rd week in Advent - 20 December 2019 - by Seminarian Andre

     In the Office of Readings from the Liturgy of the Hours for today, we are given a beautiful commentary written by the bishop Saint Ambrose on the account of Mary’s visitation with Elizabeth from Luke’s Gospel. First, a little context: When Gabriel appeared to Mary announcing that she would have a son, Gabriel also told her that Elizabeth, Mary’s cousin, is already pregnant despite being thought to be barren from her age. The angel tells her this as a sign of the truth in the message. St. Ambrose writes that Mary’s encounter with God’s message immediately compels her to action. He adds that her immediate trip to Elizabeth is not caused by doubt. She was not going to fact-check the angel, but rather out of faith to assist her relative.

      Ambrose then looks at the meeting between the cousins. While Mary greets Elizabeth, the child in Elizabeth’s womb greets the savior within Mary. So attuned to grace is the child John. Ambrose writes of the meeting, “She is aware of Mary’s presence, but he is aware of the Lord’s: a woman aware of a woman’s presence, the forerunner aware of the pledge of our salvation. The women speak of the grace they have received while the children are active in secret, unfolding the mystery of love with the help of their mothers, who prophesy by the spirit of their sons. The child leaps in the womb; the mother is filled with the Holy Spirit, he fills his mother with the same Spirit. John leaps for joy, and the spirit of Mary rejoices in her turn. When John leaps for joy Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, but we know that though Mary’s spirit rejoices she does not need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Her son, who is beyond our understanding, is active in his mother in a way beyond our understanding.”

      Ambrose concludes by drawing a comparison between Mary by whose “yes” to God allowed for the birth of Christ, and everyone whose little “yeses” continue to allow Christ to be actively present in the world today. May we as this Advent season draws to a close strive to more perfectly be images of Christ in the world. “Let Mary’s soul be in each of you to proclaim the greatness of the Lord. Let her spirit be in each to rejoice in the Lord. Christ has only one mother in the flesh, but we all bring forth Christ in faith.”