On occasion, the Liturgical year offers convergence that
provides for a fresh look at a particular celebration. This year, the Solemnity of The Most Holy
Trinity falls on May 31, which is usually when we remember the Visitation of
the Blessed Virgin Mary to Elizabeth.
That feast is thus suppressed in the liturgical eye, but I think that
Mary would be okay with that since it’s in her nature to be an arrow pointing
toward the mysteries greater than herself.
You know the story of the Visitation. Just after the conception of Jesus in her
womb, Mary goes “in haste” to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth who is bearing John
the Baptist. When she arrives,
Elizabeth, and the child in her womb, recognize the presence of God and Mary is
moved to pray the “Magnificat” which we echo each evening in the prayer of the
Church.
“My soul magnifies the Lord.” Indeed, Mary, in her very being is like a
magnifying glass. When one looks to her,
the mystery of God is enlarged and made more visible. This is where liturgical convergence offers
new meaning to the mysteries celebrated today.
Mary is at once daughter of the Father, spouse of the
Spirit, and mother of the Son. Her
identity is rooted in relationship…her relationship to the Trinue God and the
relationship of the persons of the Trinity one to another. Relationship means receiving and giving and
Mary models the primacy of grace. The
gift of God’s love must first be received before we can resolve to give
anything back to Him. The meeting of
receiving and giving is communion.
Communion is perfectly modeled in the Trinity, reflected and imprinted
in the identity of the Blessed Mother and extended to us. We are invited to discover our deepest
identity in communion and like Mary, to “Magnify the Lord” and His greatness in
our very beings.
- Sister M. Karolyn, FSGM
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