Today, on the fourth Monday of Advent, Luke's Gospel gives us the beautiful story of the Visitation. Mary travels "in haste" to see her cousin Elizabeth, who tells the Virgin Mother that she is "blessed among women," soon to bear the savior of all mankind. She explains that upon Mary's arrival, the infant in her own womb leapt for joy.
I am particularly drawn to the Visitation this Advent season, as we await our Savior's coming in a time of the pandemic. This joyful mystery has challenged me to ask: where do we look for the signs that God is with us? And how do we respond? He comes to us, yes, when we are filled with love and overflowing with the jubilant emanations of the Holy Spirit. He comes when we attend livestream Mass on Sunday mornings, as my family and I do each week while the early winter sun streams in through our dusty farmhouse windows and washes over our two dogs sleeping softly underfoot. But He also comes when we are in doubt, when we are uncertain and afraid, when we have lost sight of the path that lies ahead. And in these moments too, He asks us not just to acknowledge His presence, but to jump for joy like Elizabeth's baby.
As days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months this past year, I often found myself under the impression that I had fallen out of "real time.” But the Visitation story reminds me that every moment we spend in this life is not only “real,” but also precious. Every moment that we draw breath is an opportunity to look for signs of God’s presence and take up the work that He is asking us all to embrace. From the confines of our own homes and through the relentless silence of quarantine, every moment presents a new opportunity to radiate God’s joy. Every moment can be prayerful, life-giving and swelled with promise. This Advent, I pray that we can open our hearts to our Father's constant presence so that one day, like Mary, we too might hear these words that Elizabeth proclaims: “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled" (Luke 1: 45).
