Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
On the 31 May we celebrate the Feast of the Visitation, which provides for us the opportunity to pause and reflect on ways we encounter the ‘Living God’ in our daily visitations. Mary gives us a good example of this when she visits her cousin Elizabeth. They have an encounter with each other and the Living God through their own presence and in the new life they both carry.
“Being a disciple means being constantly ready to bring the love of Jesus to others, and this can happen unexpectedly and in any place: on the street, in a city square, during work, on a journey …” Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium.
Icon with Mary greeting Elizabeth. Chapel in Nazareth.
Readings
Zeph 3:14-18: The king of Israel, the Lord is in your midst.
Is 12:2-6: Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Alleluia alleluia! Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, for your firm believing, that the promises of the Lord would be fulfilled. Alleluia!
Luke 1:39-56: Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?
This reading includes The Magnificat in which Mary proclaims the greatness of God and the spirituality of the poor.
Let us Pray
As disciples of Jesus in the spirit of ‘Visitation’ we pray together (choose English or te reo Māori.)
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Awe e Maria, e kī ana koe i te karatia. Kei a koe te Ariki. E whakapaingia ana koe i roto i ngā wāhine, ā, e whakapaingia ana hoki a Hēhu, te hua o tōu kōpū.
E Hāta Maria, e te matua wahine o te Atua, īnoi koe mō mātou, mō te hunga hara, āianei, ā, a te haora o to mātou matenga. Āmene
Ki te ingoa o te Matua, o te Tamaiti, o te Wairua Tapu. Amene.
Image on main slider: Sculpture in the courtyard of the Church of the Visitation, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem.