Visitation Ein Karem

NINTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME Monday, May 31

FEAST OF THE VISITATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

For the Night Office this morning we had a choice from or five weighty Patristic Readings.
The Venerable Bede writes with a simplicity and warmth.
Even if he travelled beyond his own country he has been classified among the Fathers of the Holy Land. His words are touching with a sense of closeness and intimacy with the geographical place.

Luke 1:39-56

Reading A sermon by St Bede the Venerable Mary proclaims the greatness of the Lord working in her soul My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour. With these words Mary first acknowledges the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal favours, bestowed unceasingly on the human race. When a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God’s greatness. His observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that he has God’s power and greatness always at heart. His spirit rejoices in God his saviour and delights in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation. These words are often for all God’s creations, but especially for the Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her saviour, for she knew that he who was the source of eternal salvation would be born in time in her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord. For the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Mary attributes nothing to her own merits. She refers all her greatness to the gift of the one whose essence is power and whose nature is greatness, for he fills with greatness and strength the small and the weak who believe in him. She did well to add: and holy is his name, to warn those who heard, and indeed all who would receive his words, that they must believe and call upon his name. For they too could share in everlasting holiness and true salvation according to the words of the prophet: and it will come to pass, that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. This is the name she spoke of earlier: and my spirit rejoices in God my saviour. Therefore it is an excellent and fruitful custom of holy Church that we should sing Mary’s hymn at the time of evening prayer. By meditating upon the incarnation, our devotion is kindled, and by remembering the example of God’s Mother, we are encouraged to lead a life of virtue. Such virtues are best achieved in the evening. We are weary after the day’s work and worn out by our distractions. The time for rest is near, and our minds are ready for contemplation.

Ein Karem Village Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth (courtesy of www.goisrael.com) Nestled in the terraced hills southwest of Jerusalem is the village of Ein Karem, where picturesque lanes lead you to the traditional spot where Elizabeth “felt life” when she met her kinswoman Mary, and where John the Baptist was born and raised. Luke 1:39 tells us that after the annunciation, Mary hurried to “a town in the hill country of Judah” to visit Elizabeth, who was also pregnant. Centuries ago, Christians began to mark Elizabeth’s hometown at Ein Karem, whose name means “spring of the vineyard.” Though just a short drive from Jerusalem’s modern neighborhoods, once you arrive you can leave the everyday world behind and step back in time. You’ll still find the spring, where no doubt Elizabeth drew water for her household. If you arrive in the waning of winter you’ll see the almond trees rejoicing in their pink and white blossoms; in summer the grapevines on their terraces still bear fruit. As you watch children at play in the little village park, it’s easy to imagine John as a young boy clambering across these very slopes. Ein Karem was less than a day’s walk from the Temple in Jerusalemto which Zechariah, John’s father, would be called to his duties as a priest. It was while serving at the altar of incense in the Temple that Zechariah saw the angel Gabriel, who informed him that his aged wife Elizabeth would give birth after years of barrenness. The shock must have caused Zechariah to forget his manners at angelic meetings! He immediately questioned the angel’s words, and so was struck voiceless until the naming ceremony at his son’s circumcision. In the cool, restful interiors of Ein Karem’s churches you can see where ancient Christians marked the site of Mary’s visit to Elizabeth, and where Mary uttered her great praise poem that begins with the words “My soul glorifies the Lord...” (Luke 1:46). Keep your Bibles open to Luke’s Gospel here, because in the gardens, quiet corners and courtyards you can also pause over the story of Elizabeth’s naming of John (Luke 1:59-60) and Zechariah’s own poem of praise and prophecy (Luke 1:67-79). Many tradtitions surround John’s early years. One tells of his miraculous survival of the murder of the innocents by King Herod. John was only a few months older than Jesus and thus, when the order came from Herod to kill all the boys “in Bethlehem and the vicinity” (Matt. 2:16), John, too, was in mortal danger. It is said that Elizabeth managed to conceal her son in a cave (still shown to visitors) and though the soldiers came close, they unknowingly passed over his hiding place.