Posted on 05/30/2019 8:55:02 PM PDT by Salvation
May 31 2019
Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Reading 1 Zep 3:14-18a
Shout for joy, O daughter Zion! Sing joyfully, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! The LORD has removed the judgment against you, he has turned away your enemies; The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst, you have no further misfortune to fear. On that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem: Fear not, O Zion, be not discouraged! The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; He will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love, He will sing joyfully because of you, as one sings at festivals.
Or Rom 12:9-16
Brothers and sisters: Let love be sincere; hate what is evil, hold on to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; anticipate one another in showing honor. Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality. Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Have the same regard for one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly; do not be wise in your own estimation.
Responsorial Psalm Isaiah 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6 R.(6) Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
God indeed is my savior; I am confident and unafraid. My strength and my courage is the LORD, and he has been my savior. With joy you will draw water at the fountain of salvation.
R. Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Give thanks to the LORD, acclaim his name; among the nations make known his deeds, proclaim how exalted is his name.
R. Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Sing praise to the LORD for his glorious achievement; let this be known throughout all the earth. Shout with exultation, O city of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel!
R. Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
Alleluia See Lk 1:45
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled. R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 1:39-56
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 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 that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."
And Mary said:
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever."
Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.
KEYWORDS: blessedvirginmary; catholic; jn1; prayer; visitation;
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https://www.universalis.com/20190531/mass.htm
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
Zephaniah 3:14-18 ©
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst
Shout for joy, daughter of Zion,
Israel, shout aloud!
Rejoice, exult with all your heart,
daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has repealed your sentence;
he has driven your enemies away.
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst;
you have no more evil to fear.
When that day comes, word will come to Jerusalem:
Zion, have no fear,
do not let your hands fall limp.
The Lord your God is in your midst,
a victorious warrior.
He will exult with joy over you,
he will renew you by his love;
he will dance with shouts of joy for you
as on a day of festival.
Responsorial Psalm
Isaiah 12 ©
The rejoicing of a redeemed people
Great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Truly, God is my salvation,
I trust, I shall not fear.
For the Lord is my strength, my song,
he became my saviour.
With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.
Great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name!
Make his mighty deeds known to the peoples!
Declare the greatness of his name.
Great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Sing a psalm to the Lord
for he has done glorious deeds;
make them known to all the earth!
People of Zion, sing and shout for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Gospel
Luke 1:39-56 ©
The Almighty has done great things for me
Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariahs house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Marys greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.
And Mary said:
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour;
because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.
He has shown the power of his arm,
he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.
He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy
according to the promise he made to our ancestors
of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.
FYI the Orthodox Church does not celebrate this Feast as such; however, the Gospel lesson is read nearly every day August 1 - 14 during the Paraklesis (Supplication) Services to the Theotokos.
And, of course, the Magnificat portion is used nearly every day during Orthros (Matins)
Luke | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Luke 1 |
|||
39. | And Mary rising up in those days, went into the hill country with haste into a city of Juda. | Exsurgens autem Maria in diebus illis, abiit in montana cum festinatione, in civitatem Juda : | αναστασα δε μαριαμ εν ταις ημεραις ταυταις επορευθη εις την ορεινην μετα σπουδης εις πολιν ιουδα |
40. | And she entered into the house of Zachary, and saluted Elizabeth. | et intravit in domum Zachariæ, et salutavit Elisabeth. | και εισηλθεν εις τον οικον ζαχαριου και ησπασατο την ελισαβετ |
41. | And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: | Et factum est, ut audivit salutationem Mariæ Elisabeth, exsultavit infans in utero ejus : et repleta est Spiritu Sancto Elisabeth : | και εγενετο ως ηκουσεν η ελισαβετ τον ασπασμον της μαριας εσκιρτησεν το βρεφος εν τη κοιλια αυτης και επλησθη πνευματος αγιου η ελισαβετ |
42. | And she cried out with a loud voice, and said: Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. | et exclamavit voce magna, et dixit : Benedicta tu inter mulieres, et benedictus fructus ventris tui. | και ανεφωνησεν φωνη μεγαλη και ειπεν ευλογημενη συ εν γυναιξιν και ευλογημενος ο καρπος της κοιλιας σου |
43. | And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? | Et unde hoc mihi, ut veniat mater Domini mei ad me ? | και ποθεν μοι τουτο ινα ελθη η μητηρ του κυριου μου προς με |
44. | For behold as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. | Ecce enim ut facta est vox salutationis tuæ in auribus meis, exsultavit in gaudio infans in utero meo. | ιδου γαρ ως εγενετο η φωνη του ασπασμου σου εις τα ωτα μου εσκιρτησεν το βρεφος εν αγαλλιασει εν τη κοιλια μου |
45. | And blessed art thou that hast believed, because those things shall be accomplished that were spoken to thee by the Lord. | Et beata, quæ credidisti, quoniam perficientur ea, quæ dicta sunt tibi a Domino. | και μακαρια η πιστευσασα οτι εσται τελειωσις τοις λελαλημενοις αυτη παρα κυριου |
46. | And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord. | Et ait Maria : Magnificat anima mea Dominum : | και ειπεν μαριαμ μεγαλυνει η ψυχη μου τον κυριον |
47. | And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. | et exsultavit spiritus meus in Deo salutari meo. | και ηγαλλιασεν το πνευμα μου επι τω θεω τω σωτηρι μου |
48. | Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. | Quia respexit humilitatem ancillæ suæ : ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes, | οτι επεβλεψεν επι την ταπεινωσιν της δουλης αυτου ιδου γαρ απο του νυν μακαριουσιν με πασαι αι γενεαι |
49. | Because he that is mighty, hath done great things to me; and holy is his name. | quia fecit mihi magna qui potens est : et sanctum nomen ejus, | οτι εποιησεν μοι μεγαλεια ο δυνατος και αγιον το ονομα αυτου |
50. | And his mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear him. | et misericordia ejus a progenie in progenies timentibus eum. | και το ελεος αυτου εις γενεας γενεων τοις φοβουμενοις αυτον |
51. | He hath shewed might in his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. | Fecit potentiam in brachio suo : dispersit superbos mente cordis sui. | εποιησεν κρατος εν βραχιονι αυτου διεσκορπισεν υπερηφανους διανοια καρδιας αυτων |
52. | He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. | Deposuit potentes de sede, et exaltavit humiles. | καθειλεν δυναστας απο θρονων και υψωσεν ταπεινους |
53. | He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. | Esurientes implevit bonis : et divites dimisit inanes. | πεινωντας ενεπλησεν αγαθων και πλουτουντας εξαπεστειλεν κενους |
54. | He hath received Israel his servant, being mindful of his mercy: | Suscepit Israël puerum suum, recordatus misericordiæ suæ : | αντελαβετο ισραηλ παιδος αυτου μνησθηναι ελεους |
55. | As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever. | sicut locutus est ad patres nostros, Abraham et semini ejus in sæcula. | καθως ελαλησεν προς τους πατερας ημων τω αβρααμ και τω σπερματι αυτου εις τον αιωνα |
56. | And Mary abode with her about three months; and she returned to her own house. | Mansit autem Maria cum illa quasi mensibus tribus : et reversa est in domum suam. | εμεινεν δε μαριαμ συν αυτη ωσει μηνας τρεις και υπεστρεψεν εις τον οικον αυτης |
Pray for Pope Francis.
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-St. Augustine
The Regina Caeli (English)
Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
For he, whom you did merit to bear, alleluia.
Has risen as he said, alleluia.
Pray for us to God, alleluia.
V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia.
R. For the Lord is truly risen, alleluia.
Let us pray:
O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant we beseech thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, his Mother, we may obtain the joys of everlasting life. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Feast Day: May 31
http://www.catholicculture.org/
Easter: May 31st
Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
MASS READINGS
May 31, 2019 (Readings on USCCB website)
COLLECT PRAYER
Almighty ever-living God, who, while the Blessed Virgin Mary was carrying your Son in her womb, inspired her to visit Elizabeth, grant us, we pray, that, faithful to the promptings of the Spirit, we may magnify your greatness with the Virgin Mary at all times. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
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Visitation Is Prelude to Jesus’ Mission | Pope John Paul II
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Old Calendar: Corpus Christi; Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary; St. Petronilla, virgin
The feast of the Visitation recalls to us the following great truths and events: The visit of the Blessed Virgin Mary to her cousin Elizabeth shortly after the Annunciation; the cleansing of John the Baptist from original sin in the womb of his mother at the words of Our Lady’s greeting; Elizabeth’s proclaiming of Maryunder the inspiration of the Holy Ghostas Mother of God and “blessed among women”; Mary’s singing of the sublime hymn, Magnificat (”My soul doth magnify the Lord”) which has become a part of the daily official prayer of the Church. The Visitation is frequently depicted in art, and was the central mystery of St. Francis de Sales’ devotions.
The Mass of today salutes her who in her womb bore the King of heaven and earth, the Creator of the world, the Son of the Eternal Father, the Sun of Justice. It narrates the cleansing of John from original sin in his mother’s womb. Hearing herself addressed by the most lofty title of “Mother of the Lord” and realizing what grace her visit had conferred on John, Mary broke out in that sublime canticle of praise proclaiming prophetically that henceforth she would be venerated down through the centuries:
“My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. Because he that is mighty, hath done great things to me, and holy is His name” (Lk. 1:46).
Excerpted from the Cathedral Daily Missal
This feast is of medieval origin, it was kept by the Franciscan Order before 1263, and soon its observance spread throughout the entire Church. Previously it was celebrated on July 2. Now it is celebrated between the solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord and the birth of St. John the Baptist, in conformity with the Gospel accounts. Some places appropriately observe a celebration of the reality and sanctity of human life in the womb. The liturgical color is white.
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of Corpus Christi. This feast in the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite is celebrated on Sunday, June 7. Please see this special section on Corpus Christi.
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Petronilla. The feast of the Queenship of Mary is now celebrated in the Ordinary Rite on August 22.
Aurelia Petronilla was guided in the Faith by St. Peter, the first pope. She died three days after refusing to marry a pagan nobleman, Flaccus. There is no historic proof that she was martyred, but an early fresco clearly represents her as a martyr. Her feast is no longer on the calendar.
The Visitation
And Mary rising up in those days went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda. [Lk. 1:39]
How lyrical that is, the opening sentence of St. Luke’s description of the Visitation. We can feel the rush of warmth and kindness, the sudden urgency of love that sent that girl hurrying over the hills. “Those days” in which she rose on that impulse were the days in which Christ was being formed in her, the impulse was his impulse.
Many women, if they were expecting a child, would refuse to hurry over the hills on a visit of pure kindness. They would say they had a duty to themselves and to their unborn child which came before anything or anyone else.
The Mother of God considered no such thing. Elizabeth was going to have a child, too, and although Mary’s own child was God, she could not forget Elizabeth’s needalmost incredible to us, but characteristic of her.
She greeted her cousin Elizabeth, and at the sound of her voice, John quickened in his mother’s womb and leapt for joy.
I am come, said Christ, that they may have life and may have it more abundantly. [Jn. 10, 10] Even before He was born His presence gave life.
With what piercing shoots of joy does this story of Christ unfold! First the conception of a child in a child’s heart, and then this first salutation, an infant leaping for joy in his mother’s womb, knowing the hidden Christ and leaping into life.
How did Elizabeth herself know what had happened to Our Lady? What made her realize that this little cousin who was so familiar to her was the mother of her God?
She knew it by the child within herself, by the quickening into life which was a leap of joy.
If we practice this contemplation taught and shown to us by Our Lady, we will find that our experience is like hers.
If Christ is growing in us, if we are at peace, recollected, because we know that however insignificant our life seems to be, from it He is forming Himself; if we go with eager wills, “in haste,” to wherever our circumstances compel us, because we believe that He desires to be in that place, we shall find that we are driven more and more to act on the impulse of His love.
And the answer we shall get from others to those impulses will be an awakening into life, or the leap into joy of the already wakened life within them.
Excerpted from The Reed of God, Caryll Houselander
Patronage: St. Elizabeth: Expectant mothers.
Symbols: St. Elizabeth or Elisabeth: Pregnant woman saluting the Virgin; Elderly woman holding St. John Baptist; huge rock with a doorway in it; in company with St. Zachary.
St. Zacharias or Zachary: Priest’s robes; thurible; altar; angel; lighted taper; Phyrgian helmet.
Things to Do:
Read Luke 1:39-47, the story of the Visitation. Read and meditate on the words of the Magnificat and the Hail Mary, two prayers from this feast. For those with children, depending on the ages, assign memorization for these prayers. Also discuss the meaning of the text as a family.
This feast reminds us to be charitable to our neighbors. Try to assist some mother (expectant or otherwise), visit the elderly or sick, make a dinner for someone, etc.
St. Petronilla
It is probable that Aurelia Petronilla was of the imperial family of the Flavii. The early traditions of the Church speak of her as being the spiritual daughter of the Prince of the Apostles; and though she did not, like Domitilla, lay down her life for the faith, she did offer to Jesus that next richest gift, her virginity. The same venerable authorities tell us also that a Roman Patrician, by name Flaccus, having asked her in marriage, she requested three days for consideration, during which she confidently besought the aid of her divine Spouse. Flaccus presented himself on the third day, but found the palace in mourning, and her family busy in preparing the funeral obsequies of the young virgin, who had taken her flight to heaven, as a dove that is startled by an intruder’s approach.
In the eighth century, the holy Pope Paul I had the body of Petronilla taken from the cemetery of Domitilla, on the Ardeatine Way. Her relics were found in a marble sarcophagus, the lid of which was adorned, at each corner, with a dolphin. The Pope had them enshrined in a little church, which he built near the south side of the Vatican Basilica. This church was destroyed in the sixteenth century, in consequence of the alterations needed for the building of the new Basilica of St Peter; and the relics of St Petronilla were translated to one of its altars on the west side. It was but just that she should await her glorious resurrection under the shadow of the great Apostle who had initiated her in the faith, and prepared her for her eternal nuptials with the Lamb.
Thy triumph, O Petronilla, is one of our Easter joys. We lovingly venerate thy blessed memory. Thou didst disdain the pleasures and honors of the world, and thy virginal name is one of the first on the list of the Church of Rome, which was thy mother. Aid her now by thy prayers. Protect those who seek thine intercession, and teach us how to celebrate, with holy enthusiasm, the solemnities that are soon to gladden us.
Excerpted from The Liturgical Year, Abbot Gueranger O.S.B.
Patron: against fever; dauphins of France; mountain travellers; treaties between Popes and Frankish emperors.
Symbols: Keys; broom and closed book; crown of roses; dolphin.
Often portrayed as: Being healed by Saint Peter; early Christian maiden with a broom; holding a set of keys; lying dead but incorrupt in her coffin with flowers in her hair; receiving the newly dead into heaven; spurning a marriage proposal, with a ring being offered by a king; standing with Saint Peter; woman with a dolphin.
http://wau.org/meditations/current/
Meditation: Luke 1:39-56
The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Feast)
How does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? (Luke 1:43)
Eighty miles. That was a long way for the newly pregnant Mary to travel so that she could visit her cousin Elizabethespecially when you consider that she either walked the whole way or rode a donkey. But what a gift that visit was for Elizabeth! Not only was she overjoyed to see Mary, but she also rejoiced in the knowledge that her Lord had come to her (Luke 1:43).
Just as Mary did for Elizabeth, Mary did for all of humankind: she brought Christ to us. Its a gift that can bring us great joy, as it did for Elizabeth. Its also why since ancient times, Mary has been given such a place of honor in the Church.
In the mystery of the Annunciation and the Visitation, wrote St. Teresa of Calcutta, Mary is the very model of the life we should lead. First of all, she welcomed Jesus in her existence; then, she shared what she had received.
How can we follow Marys example and share Christ with the people around us? The first step is to welcome him into our lives every day in prayer and, in a special way, in the Eucharist. According to Mother Teresa, Every time we receive Holy Communion, Jesus the Word becomes flesh in our life. In other words, we become tabernacles of Christ, bearing him in our hearts just as Mary bore him in her womb.
And thats how we share him. The grace of Christ alive in us can transform every act of love, service, mercy, or generosity into an opportunity for people to encounter Jesus himself. Its not that we are trying extra hard to act like Jesus; as it happened with Mary, the changes that Jesus makes in our lives cant help but touch the people around us.
When you visit an ailing neighbor, call an estranged family member, or pause to warmly greet a harried cashier at the grocery store, you are doing much more than offering a kind gesture. You are letting Christ, who lives in you, actually work through you.
So where does Jesus want you to take him today?
Lord, thank you for the example of our Blessed Mother, Mary. Help me to become an even more effective bearer of your life.
Zephaniah 3:14-18
(Psalm) Isaiah 12:2-6
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