Reflection for December 22
Mary Billingsley, The Visitation Shrine
“When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb.”
When Mary entered the house of Zechariah and Elizabeth, she greeted them, which is still something we do today when we visit someone. But what was her greeting? Such a greeting would have been “Shalom.” The word “Shalom” generally means “peace,” but it is a word with many layers of meaning. Peace, prosperity, wholeness – these are all infused in such a greeting. This was Mary’s greeting to Elizabeth, but this was the life’s teaching of her son, Jesus Christ.
He is the Prince of Peace for the world. He is born, of Mary, for all of us. The Word made flesh. “Shalom” made flesh, visible and tangible for all of us to meet and know and follow. At that moment, the greeting was not merely a customary phrase of tradition or obligation, or even an exclamation of happiness at seeing a relative. In Mary’s greeting, the words from her mouth were a glimpse of the True Word that she brought with her, in her. The word spoken proclaiming the Word to come.
And notice the response. John leaped within the womb, and it was this reaction, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, which helped Elizabeth realize the Word present to her. This was not simply her young relative coming for a surprise visit, this was the Mother of Christ. Elizabeth, who was in the midst of experiencing her own amazing miracle, is now in awe of her young niece who is the Mother of Our Lord, the Mother of the Messiah that they have yearned for. For those who experience the presence of Jesus in their lives, the only response is Joy and Blessing – as Elizabeth (and John) did with Mary and her Son.
May we all be witnesses to the presence of Jesus in our lives and respond with the same joy and amazement as Elizabeth did when she met Mary, and may that joy in our hearts be a witness for others to see the presence of Jesus among us.
Peter DePaola, Jr.