Invitation and Challenge Homily for Friday, May 31, 2024

An invitation and a challenge. God calls us no less than he called Mary to say yes to his will. Do we experience the mercy of God? Acknowledge God's strength? Do we see that the power of this world is nothing compared to the power of eternal life?

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Just like Mary, God gives us an invitation and a challenge.

Invitation and Challenge

Today, we celebrate the visitation where Mary goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth. And both Mary and Elizabeth have been witnesses to great actions of God. Elizabeth, old, long thought to be barren, is about to give birth to St. John the Baptist. Mary, of course, has had this dramatic encounter with the angel telling her that she was to be the mother of God. That she would give birth to God’s only son, Jesus.

I have to ask myself as I think of this encounter, what was it like for these couple of months that Mary stayed with Elizabeth? What did they talk about? What kind of comfort and care did Mary provide to Elizabeth? And as someone who was wise, what kind of comfort and care and counsel did Elizabeth provide for Mary?

It is clear that Mary recognizes the significance of the moment that she is living in. Because she gives her beautiful magnificat, her prayer of praise for all that God has done for her and ultimately for the world. She is describing the very types of things that describe the kingdom of God, the way in which we are supposed to live. Her soul, her spirit, proclaims the greatness of the Lord.

By the very nature of who she is, her ultimate yes to God is witness for everyone to see the power of God in their own lives. In fact, the church’s belief about Mary was worked out much earlier than the belief we hold about Jesus. It goes back almost to the apostles, that Mary had a pride of place, a significant role in salvation history.

It is, I think, both an invitation and a challenge for each one of us. Because God calls us no less than he called Mary to say yes to his will. And we can ask ourselves, perhaps as an examination of conscience, do we experience the mercy of God? Do we acknowledge God’s strength? Do we see that the power of this world is nothing compared to the power of eternal life? Do we fill the hungry? Do we recognize that God comes to help us? Do we recall his promise of mercy?

Because this is the great promise for each one of us. As is said, we had all gone astray like sheep. But we have a most magnificent and wonderful shepherd and a great example of faith in the life-giving yes to all things that God asked of her, the life-giving yes of the Blessed Mother.

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