The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
瑪利亞就在那幾日起身，急速往山區去，到了猶大的一座城。她進了匝加利亞的家，就給依撒伯爾請安。依撒伯爾一聽到瑪利亞請安，胎兒就在她的腹中歡躍。依撒伯爾遂充滿了聖神，大聲呼喊說：「在女人中你是蒙祝福的，你的胎兒也是蒙祝福的。我主的母親駕臨我這裡，這是我那裡得來的呢？看，你請安的聲音一入我耳，胎兒就在我腹中歡喜踴躍。那信了由上傳於她的話必要完成的，是有福的。」
路加福音 1:39-45
這段福音發生在天使向瑪利亞報喜訊，瑪利亞答允跟隨天主旨意之後；雖然她知道依撒伯爾素不生育，而且上了年紀，但充滿信德的她深信天使的話，立刻前往探望已懷孕的依撒伯爾。
二人見面時，聖神的臨在是如此明顯：還在母親腹中的洗者若翰感覺到救主和聖母的接近，即歡喜踴躍；依撒伯爾也謙恭地問候瑪利亞，稱她為「我主的母親」，即使瑪利亞本來是比她年輕的親人。
聖神被形容如風：風隨意向那裏吹，你聽到風的響聲，卻不知道風從那裏來，往那裏去(若3:8)。我們有否開放自己，如依撒伯爾一樣，隨時接受聖神的感動呢？對於天主的旨意，我們又有否立刻以實際行動回應？
這篇默想由生命恩泉文摘編輯小組撰寫，內容以下列文章為根據: Commentaries on the daily readings by Sacred Space, 彌撒福音釋義 - 將臨期第三週星期六
Mary set out in those days 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.”
Luke 1:39-45
This bible passage happened after the angel Gabriel announced the birth of Jesus and Elizabeth's pregnancy to Mary. Though she knew Elizabeth was barren and in her old age, she has faith to believe in what the angel said, and traveled to visit her cousin in haste.
When they met, the Holy Spirit was among them: the infant leaped for joy in Elizabeth's womb as he felt the Saviour and His mother approaching, and Elizabeth recognized Mary as “the mother of her Lord”, even though Mary was her younger cousin.
The Holy Spirit is often represented by wind: the wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes (John 3:8). Have we always kept ourselves open as Elizabeth, so God may fill us with the Holy Spirit as He pleases? And do we always respond positively to God's plans, like Mary, even though we might not fully understand what lies ahead?
This reflection is prepared by the FLL Inspire editorial team as a digest of the following articles: Commentaries on the daily readings by Sacred Space, 彌撒福音釋義 - 將臨期第三週星期六
Prep for Christmas: A Crash Course on Agape
Spiritual Talk – Fourth Sunday of Advent (Year C)