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The Church honors with a special feast day and a mystery of the Rosary the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
What is the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary?
The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a reference to the biblical event of Mary visiting her cousin, Elizabeth. This event is narrated in the Gospel of Luke.
“[B]ehold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren” ... During those days 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. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord[n] should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed[o] that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
Luke 1:36, 39-45
It is believed by many biblical scholars that Mary visited Elizabeth to help her during the last three months of her pregnancy.
This would make sense, as Elizabeth miraculously conceived a child at an advanced age, and would have needed extra help.
Mary’s visit to Elizabeth was also a journey that wasn’t easy, passing through country that was dangerous to travel.
Mary stayed with Elizabeth for the next three months, possibly even helping with the birth of St. John the Baptist.
The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a beautiful biblical event, one that highlights the charitable heart of Mary for her cousin, Elizabeth.
And today we celebrate...