Visitation

Sometimes things are hidden in the liturgy that offer a kind of interpretive key to the feast. I think today's celebration of the Visitation has one of those hidden keys in the entrance antiphon. It is taken from Psalm 38, "Come and hear the great things the Lord has done for me." It is echoed in the Gospel, where Mary says, "The Almighty has done great things for me." So that theme of "the Lord doing great things" for "me" is part of the meaning of the Visitation. It is meant for us. I think it is pivotal to the spiritual life to consciously pause to call to mind, on a regular basis, just what "great things" the Lord has done in our individual lives. God is involved with us; he is not a spectator in our lives! Every day, the Lord does "great things," but most of the time we may not even notice them. Mary was a person who noticed not only the extraordinary grace that was given her, but the Lord working in small things--something like Elijah recognizing the Lord in the "still, small voice."
The Almighty has done great things for me.