Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.
I have to suppose that Saint Luke finds enormous and joyful irony in his story of Mary's visit to her kinswoman Elizabeth. Neither a young woman nor an old woman can represent women at their most powerful; and -- at their most powerful -- women had little real influence in first century Palestine. A very capable woman who happens to be the mother or husband of an influential man might have made a difference if she played her hand well, provided not too many people noticed.
But a maiden and a barren old woman, the wife of an aging priest?
They're nobody except in God's eyes and in God's plan. These women greet one another with great joy because they know something procurators, kings and emperors cannot imagine and would not believe if they heard of it.
The great work of Saint Luke will end with the same touch of irony, when Saint Paul arrives in Rome, a prisoner in chains. The captive Cleopatra was greeted with more aplomb than God's emissary Paul!
But the Good News which was first announced to Mary and Elizabeth had to be announced to the whole world, beginning in Jerusalem and heading for Rome.
There was a time when the Church had great worldly influence. During the reign of Pope Innocent II, the papacy and episcopacy had enormous political, economic, social and academic power. Many Catholics still long for that lost past. But the wise Innocent II clearly saw the corruption of the Church and that it might soon collapse. That was why he welcomed Franciscans, Dominicans and several other mendicant communities to carry their message throughout the world despite the opposition of bishops and clergy. These men and women, disavowing ownership, had to remind Christians that their King reigns from a tree; his throne is a cross.
In this twenty-first century, the widespread acceptance of contraceptives, abortion, divorce, and gay marriage reminds the Church of our limited influence. We might wish for a return to the past when Catholics and Protestants could feud over whether Jesus had brothers and sisters and how many "books" are in the Bible. That nostalgia ignores the racism that spawned midnight lynchings and the systematic annihilation of Native Americans.
Responding to the present moment, we rejoice with Mary and Elizabeth that the Lord and his prophetic Spirit move among us. We are here; we're not going away. We matter, and we make a difference.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.