"Blesssed Art Thou Among Women..."

Our Lady- Our Teacher

Real Catholics will commemorate Monday, July 1st, 2024 as the Octave Day of the Nativity of St John the Baptist, and be attentive to the Commemoration of the Visitation of Our Lady the following day.  (The "Feast of the Precious Blood" perplexes this Wolf.  Such a commemoration seems more appropriate on the Octave Day of Corpus Christi.  He can only comment, that, following the Council of Trent, Holy Mother Church remained in a very sorry state, and the subsequent feast days added to the calendar- with the notable exception of that of the Sacred Heart, which was requested by Our Lord Himself to St Margaret Mary Alocoque- seem as so much window dressing covering the dilapidated structures.  One finds this especially if one peruses the "Liber Usualis", the Gregorian Chant Propers for these Masses are abysmal- portions of other chants all mashed together and having a more modern musical ring, as opposed to the subdued solemnity of the more ancient chants.)  The Visitation of Our Lady, one of the Mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary, is also one of the most neglected.  But it is a mystery nonetheless, with many things worth pondering.

Our Lady, following the Annunciation, proceeds with haste into the "hill country" to "a city in Juda".  Most have been taught that this was an Act of Charity on the Part of Our Lady, going to share the Good News of the Annunciation with her cousin, and to care for her during her maternity.  But what if this was primarily an act of discernment on the part of Our Lady.  On the one hand, she had perfect faith.  On the other hand, she knew all too well, from her experience and meditations, the subtle power of The Ancient Serpent and how he had seduced Eve.  She had no doubt her elderly cousin was pregnant, and all was as the Angel Gabriel had said.  But on the other hand, how was she to act now that she was to be the August Mother of God.  She was going to give the Holy Ghost His opportunity to instruct her with all humility.

And, of course, God obliges.  "And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:   And she cried out with a loud voice, and said: Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.  43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?   For behold as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.  And blessed art thou that hast believed, because those things shall be accomplished that were spoken to thee by the Lord."

We can only ponder that if Our Lady acted with such humility, what should we, poor sinners, do before the August Majesty of the Living God?  Meanwhile, we should also ponder that Our Lady was given the Great Grace of the Annunciation not primarily for herself and her dignity, but that she might participate in the Redemption.  By the same token, we should tremble that we have been given- hopefully- the gift of discernment in this time of Great Apostasy, and contemplate the corresponding obligations.  Too many "Traditional Catholics"  have their Lamps hidden under "Bushel Baskets".  This is not to say that we are obligated to go through the streets like the Prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah, nor shout from housetops.  But we should not waste time with the pomps of the modern world.  And our fastings and penances should be notable, as should be our example.  All who come across us should be struck by our Godliness.  Just as St Francis preached a sermon without words, so should our lives be a continual testimony when among men.  And if we are not being persecuted, ostracized, marginalized, or otherwise downtrodden in some way, we should be suspicious of our spirituality.

Meanwhile, we can also begin to ponder the tribulation of St Joseph.  Obviously, he was not privy to those words of Elizabeth, nor to the Canticles either of his wife or of St Zachary.  Rather, according to St Mathhew, "Now the generation of Christ was in this wise. When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child, of the Holy Ghost.  Whereupon Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing publicly to expose her, was minded to put her away privately."

This Wolf suspects that St Joseph first became aware Our Lady was expecting shortly after the Nativity of St John the Baptist, when the pregnancy would have become visible.  Then, over the next forty or so days, until August 15th or thereabouts, he was in anguish.  This period of time was also known as "Our Lady's Lent", and Traditionally Good Catholics abstained from sweets and treats until the Glorious Feast of the Assumption from after the Feast of the Visitation (July 2nd) until that of the Assumption.  So, this year, let us accompany St Joseph in his sorrow and discernment until the Angel Gabriel came to console him in a dream.