Covenant and Community

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today, Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, invite us to celebrate and share the joy of our relationship with Christ especially with people to whom we can bring love and support.

Community and Care

The reading from the Prophet Zephaniah, proclaims “Shout for joy, daughter Zion!”

h. [3:14] Zec 9:9.

i. [3:17] Jl 2:27. (Zephaniah, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB, n.d.)

The reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans celebrates Mutual Love.

f. [12:9] 2 Cor 6:6; 1 Tm 1:5; 1 Pt 1:22 / Am 5:15.

g. [12:10] Jn 13:34; 1 Thes 4:9; 1 Pt 2:17; 2 Pt 1:7 / Phil 2:3.

h. [12:11] Acts 18:25.

i. [12:12] 5:2–3; Col 4:2; 1 Thes 5:17.

j. [12:13] Heb 13:2; 1 Pt 4:9.

k. [12:14–21] Mt 5:38–48; 1 Cor 4:12; 1 Pt 3:9.

l. [12:14] Lk 6:27–28.

m. [12:15] Ps 35:13; Sir 7:34; 1 Cor 12:26.

n. [12:16] 15:5; Phil 2:2–3 / 11:20; Prv 3:7; Is 5:21. (Romans, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)

The response from the Prophet Isaiah expresses Israel’s thanksgiving to the Lord.

* [12:1–6] Israel’s thanksgiving to the Lord, expressed in language like that of the Psalms. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Mary’s Visit to Elizabeth is celebrated in the Canticle of Mary known as the Magnificat.

* [1:43] Even before his birth, Jesus is identified in Luke as the Lord.

* [1:45] Blessed are you who believed: Luke portrays Mary as a believer whose faith stands in contrast to the disbelief of Zechariah (Lk 1:20). Mary’s role as believer in the infancy narrative should be seen in connection with the explicit mention of her presence among “those who believed” after the resurrection at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:14).

* [1:46–55] Although Mary is praised for being the mother of the Lord and because of her belief, she reacts as the servant in a psalm of praise, the Magnificat. Because there is no specific connection of the canticle to the context of Mary’s pregnancy and her visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat (with the possible exception of v. 48) may have been a Jewish Christian hymn that Luke found appropriate at this point in his story. Even if not composed by Luke, it fits in well with themes found elsewhere in Luke: joy and exultation in the Lord; the lowly being singled out for God’s favor; the reversal of human fortunes; the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The loose connection between the hymn and the context is further seen in the fact that a few Old Latin manuscripts identify the speaker of the hymn as Elizabeth, even though the overwhelming textual evidence makes Mary the speaker. (Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)

Andy Alexander, S.J. comments that upon hearing that her elderly relative Elizabeth is also pregnant – because nothing is impossible with God – Mary’s first and immediate instinct is to go and help Elizabeth.  Full of grace, and carrying the human expression of God’s dying-to-self love, Mary shows us that when we receive God’s love, the grace will be there to share it with others.  To highlight this central part of our faith, our new Pope, Leo XIV, outlined this movement in his inauguration homily.

Brothers and sisters, I would like that our first great desire be for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world.

In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth’s resources and marginalises the poorest. For our part, we want to be a small leaven of unity, communion and fraternity within the world. We want to say to the world, with humility and joy: Look to Christ! Come closer to him! Welcome his word that enlightens and consoles! Listen to his offer of love and become his one family: in the one Christ, we are one. This is the path to follow together, among ourselves but also with our sister Christian churches, with those who follow other religious paths, with those who are searching for God, with all women and men of good will, in order to build a new world where peace reigns!

This is the missionary spirit that must animate us; not closing ourselves off in our small groups, nor feeling superior to the world.  We are called to offer God’s love to everyone, in order to achieve that unity which does not cancel out differences but values the personal history of each person and the social and religious culture of every people.

Brothers and sisters, this is the hour for love! The heart of the Gospel is the love of God that makes us brothers and sisters. With my predecessor Leo XIII, we can ask ourselves today: If this criterion “were to prevail in the world, would not every conflict cease and peace return?” (Rerum Novarum, 20).

With the light and the strength of the Holy Spirit, let us build a Church founded on God’s love, a sign of unity, a missionary Church that opens its arms to the world, proclaims the word, allows itself to be made “restless” by history, and becomes a leaven of harmony for humanity.

Together, as one people, as brothers and sisters, let us walk towards God and love one another.  [Inauguration homily] (Alexander, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “John prophecies from the womb,” by Maximus of Turin (died between 408-423 AD)

"Not yet born, already John prophesies and, while still in the enclosure of his mother's womb, confesses the coming of Christ with movements of joy - since he could not do so with his voice. As Elizabeth says to holy Mary, 'As soon as you greeted me, the child in my womb exulted for joy.' John exults, then, before he is born. Before his eyes can see what the world looks like, he can recognize the Lord of the world with his spirit. In this regard, I think that the prophetic phrase is appropriate: 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you came forth from the womb I sanctified you' (Jeremiah 1:5). Thus we ought not to marvel that after Herod put him in prison, he continued to announce Christ to his disciples from his confinement, when even confined in the womb he preached the same Lord by his movements." (excerpt from SERMON 5.4) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 1:39-56 comments that our joy, however, is not something we should hide or keep to ourselves. As Jesus’ followers, our lives should shine with the joy and light of God’s love. Through our demeanor and our actions, we can make that joy readily apparent to everyone we meet. We can bring the light of Christ to a world that often sits in darkness!

On this special feast day, perhaps you could pray the joyful mysteries of the Rosary, or maybe just the second decade, the Visitation. As you do, let the joy so evident in this scene bubble up in your heart. Then “go in haste” to share this joy with all those you encounter today!

“Lord Jesus, help me to shine with the joy I experience in knowing you.” (Meditation on Luke 1:39-56, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the joy expressed by Zephaniah to visit Jerusalem ruled by God himself. Paul’s Letter to the Romans speaks of Christian virtues that we see in the reaction of Mary and Elizabeth. Mary set out for the hill country to Ein Kareem outside Jerusalem. Mary celebrates the fact of raising the lowly as the Queen of the anawim, people who but for the grace of God are not going to make it. Mary remains for three months and this refers to a greater sign nearby where David left the Ark for three months. Friar Jude reminds us of the role of Mary as the new Ark of the Covenant.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces indigenous author Sherri Mitchell who describes how we can heal our collective human shadow through compassion and spiritual maturity. There are other times when we meet our shadows with darkness. When this happens, we will simply expand the shadow and create more space for harm to occur. So how do we face the shadows that we see, and make the choice to bring light instead of darkness? How do we get to the place where we are willing to stop blindly lashing out, and end the illusion of war within ourselves and with others? 

We do so by facing ourselves, in every reflection, in every moment, with some degree of compassionate awareness and spiritual maturity. This is the real challenge of our lives…. 

The question is not why we are here, but how we show up most powerfully to meet the times that we are part of. The work that we are required to do is to reconcile the external world that we have created with the inner wisdom that we have acquired. Can we see how we, collectively, have played a role in the reality that is unfolding around us? Can we look at the world that we’ve created and identify our fingerprint in the design?…  

Are we willing to recognize the patterns of harm that we have been involved in, and consciously choose to heal the reverberations of that harm that are unfolding all around us? Will we as a species finally find a way to create a reality of peaceful coexistence, now that we know that failing to do so would be a complete destruction of ourselves? (Rohr, n.d.)

We ask the Spirit to inspire our action to bring loving support to people to celebrate their lives as children of God.

References

Alexander, A. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. Creighton University's Online Ministries. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/053125.html 

Isaiah, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/12?2 

Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/1?39 

Meditation on Luke 1:39-56. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/05/31/1289960/ 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Embracing the Shadow: Weekly Summary. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/weekly-summary-embracing-the-shadow/ 

Romans, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/romans/12?9 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Joyful Anticipation of the Messiah. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=may31a 

Zephaniah, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/zephaniah/3?14 

Sharing and Society

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today highlight the objections that we may encounter as we execute our Baptismal Anointing as priest, prophet, and leader.

Sharing and Society

The Reading from the Acts of the Apostles describes the accusations before Gallio and Paul’s return to Syrian Antioch.

* [18:12] When Gallio was proconsul of Achaia: Gallio’s proconsulship in Achaia is dated to A.D. 51–52 from an inscription discovered at Delphi. This has become an important date in establishing a chronology of the life and missionary work of Paul.

* [18:13] Contrary to the law: Gallio (Acts 18:15) understands this to be a problem of Jewish, not Roman, law.

* [18:18] He had his hair cut because he had taken a vow: a reference to a Nazirite vow (see Nm 6:1–21, especially, 6:18) taken by Paul (see also Acts 21:23–27). (Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 18 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 47 seeks to acknowledge the universal rule of Israel’s God.

* [Psalm 47] A hymn calling on the nations to acknowledge the universal rule of Israel’s God (Ps 47:2–5) who is enthroned as king over Israel and the nations (Ps 47:6–9). (Psalms, PSALM 47 | USCCB, n.d.)

The Gospel of John invites us to ask the Father in Jesus' name.

j. [16:20] Ps 126:6.

k. [16:21] Is 26:17–18; Jer 31:13; Mi 4:9.

l. [16:22] 14:19; 15:11; 20:20.

m. [16:23] 14:13 (John, CHAPTER 16, n.d.)

Larry Hopp comments that legacy type questions are not new, today’s readings point out the truth that they are important to our Lord and Savior.

That visionary message is clearly not meant for Paul alone.  It is equally crucial to you and I as we face today’s evil world.  It is simply easier to keep quiet rather than to speak out against what we know is wrong.  Does anyone really care whether we are born-again followers of Jesus?  In fact we will often be chastised or humiliated for proclaiming our commitment to Jesus.  After all, the world’s vision is to selfishly seek our own needs rather than to seek to serve others as Jesus teaches. While today we may not be afraid of physical harm for our outspoken belief in Jesus, we definitely will often be under verbal & unspoken attack since we would be standing against what the world deems as acceptable. Those around us often view our commitment to Jesus as un-loving or intolerant. (Hopp, 2025)

Don Schwager quotes “Alleluia will be our whole joy,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"I trust I will not weary you if I mention what you know already: that we say ALLELUIA daily and that we take delight in it daily. For you know that ALLELUIA means "Praise God" and by this expression we, agreeing in speech and thought, exhort one another to praise God. Only the one who displeases God in no respect praises God in security. Furthermore, in this time of journeying we say ALLELUIA for solace on our way. ALLELUIA is the song of the traveler for us; but we are advancing through a laborious path to a peaceful country where all our activities will be laid aside and nothing will remain for us except the ALLELUIA. Let us sing now, not for the delights of peace, but for comfort in our labor. Sing as travelers are accustomed to sing; comfort your labor by singing; do not love inactivity; keep singing and keep progressing. ...If you are advancing; progress in well-doing, progress in good faith, progress in good deeds. Keep singing and keep advancing. While we are here let us sing ALLELUIA though we are still beset with cares, so that in the future we may sing it there (in heaven) in tranquility. After the labors of this world there will be unceasing repetition of ALLELUIA. ..There ALLELUIA will be our food; ALLELUIA will be our drink; ALLELUIA will be our peaceful action; ALLELUIA will be our whole joy." [excerpts from Sermon 255 (1); Sermon 256 (1 and 3); Sermon 252 (9)] (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Acts 18:9-18 comments that like Paul, we don’t need to be afraid. And we can’t remain silent! God calls each of us to “make disciples” even though we may feel anxious about witnessing (Matthew 28:19). We might fear rejection or saying the wrong thing or being misunderstood. We might even wonder where to begin. But Paul’s experience in Corinth shows that sharing the good news doesn’t have to be complicated. He lived there for eighteen months and built strong friendships. And that’s an excellent starting place.

Second, when the Holy Spirit prompts you to speak, do not be silent! Simply share how your faith has changed you. How has Jesus brought greater joy and peace into your life? You might even admit your doubts and how God helps you overcome them.

As you love, listen, and speak, the Spirit will bless you and your friend. And that’s really good news!

“Lord, help me to speak of your goodness!”

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the Acts passage concerning Paul in Corinth when the Jews take him to the procounsel around 52 CE.The brother of Seneca decides it is just questions of religion. All through Luke, Christians shown to be innocent in observing the law. Paul remains in Corinth and Ephesus for a time. He sails for Syria after taking a Nazarite vow. At the time of Paul this was a vow for a period of time expressing the concept of hair as sacred to God. Paul is trying to be a good Jew. In the Gospel of John, Jesus speaks of labour pains as prior to his suffering and crucifixion. At the end the Father will give you whatever you ask, recalling Jesus as one with the Father. Friar Jude reminds us that our relational, not transactional, Loving Father gives what His children need.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that our success-driven culture scorns failure, powerlessness, and any form of poverty. Yet Jesus begins his Sermon on the Mount by praising “the poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3)! Just that should tell us how thoroughly we have missed the point of the gospel. Nonviolence, weakness, and simplicity are also part of the Western shadow self. We avoid the very things that Jesus praises, and we try to project a strong, secure, successful image to ourselves and the world. We reject vulnerability and seek dominance instead, and we elect leaders who falsely promise us the same. 

I can see why my spiritual father St. Francis of Assisi made a revolutionary and pre-emptive move into the shadow self from which everyone else ran. In effect, Francis said through his lifestyle, “I will delight in powerlessness, humility, poverty, simplicity, and failure.” He lived so close to the bottom of things that there was no place to fall. Even when insulted, he did not take offence. Now that is freedom, or what he called “perfect joy”!   

Our shadow is often subconscious, hidden even from our own awareness. It takes effort and life-long practice to look for, find, and embrace what we dismiss, deny, and disdain. After spending so much energy avoiding the very appearance of failure, it will take a major paradigm shift in consciousness to integrate our shadow in Western upwardly mobile cultures. [1] (Rohr, n.d.)

We contemplate the fullness of life that is possible in our relationship with Christ and implore the Spirit for fortitude and prudence in our mission.

References

Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 18 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/18?9 

Hopp, L. (2025, May 30). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. Online Ministries. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/053025.html 

John, CHAPTER 16. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/16? 

Meditation on Acts 18:9-18. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/05/30/1286367/ 

Psalms, PSALM 47 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/47?2 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Chasing Success, Creating Shadow. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/chasing-success-creating-shadow/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Your Sorrow Will Turn into Joy. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 30, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=may30