Liturgical Readings for : Friday, 31st May, 2024
05-31-The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Feast
FIRST READING
A reading from the Book of the Prophet 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The Lord has repealed your sentence; he has driven your enemies away.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.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God
Responsorial Psalm Is 12
Response Great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
1. 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. Response
2. Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name!
Make his mighty deeds known to the peoples! Declare the greatness of his name. Response
3. 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. Response
Gospel Acclamation Lk 1:45
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Blessed is the Virgin Mary who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 1:39-56 Glory to you, O Lord
Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?
Mary set out at that time and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s 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.
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel Reflection 31st May, The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Luke 1:39-56
The gospel reading for today’s feast highlights the value of a certain way of being present to others. It invites us to ask ourselves, ‘What is the quality of our presence to others?’ Mary went on a journey from Nazareth in Galilee to the hill country in Judea to be present to her cousin Elizabeth. The quality of Mary’s presence to Elizabeth is evident in the impact her presence had. The gospel reading says that when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth herself was filled with the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth’s being filled with the Holy Spirit immediately resulted in Elizabeth pronouncing a beatitude upon Mary, ‘Blessed is she who believed…’ Mary’s way of being present to Elizabeth brought out what was best and deepest in Elizabeth.
The quality of Elizabeth’s presence to Mary also had a profound impact on Mary, drawing forth from Mary her great prayer of praise to God that has come to be known as the Magnificat, after the Latin translation of its opening word. The meeting between these two women, their way of being present to each other, is a commentary on the call of Saint Paul to the church in Rome in today’s second reading, ‘Have a profound respect for each other’. More important than what we do for each other is the way that we are present to one another. Even if we don’t have the energy or the health to do something for others, our way of being present to them can bring to the surface all that is good, all that is of God, in them.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd.
