RBWords

     A poignant scene like the one that is celebrated on this feast invites different levels of meaning.  Pregnant women around the world can identify with the situation of the two women, Mary and Elizabeth, who have found themselves unexpectedly pregnant.  The feelings could be mixed!  

     On another level, the parallel comparisons of Jesus and John the Baptist, which began with the two "annunciations" of the conceptions of each are continued here, with Elizabeth speaking of "the mother of my Lord" and the baby leaping for joy.  John is great, but Jesus is greater.

     On a third level, there is the discipleship of Mary who "believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."  There may be other windows of understanding that I haven't found, but the scene is rich with meaning.  If nothing else, the composition of the canticle of Mary, the "Magnificat," is something for which we can be always grateful to the evangelist, Luke.  It is a verbal tapestry of the plan of salvation!  Enjoy the feast of the feast!  AMEN