Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Advent

Today's Mass Readings

One of my favorite poems has the simple title, “Elizabeth and Mary.” It was written by the poetess/artist, Mary Lou Sleevi (1926-2014). I first got to know Mary Lou in the early 1990s. She had given me a copy of her book, Women of the Word. This is a collection of her paintings and poems inspired by women in the Bible. Over the years, we had many wonderful conversations. She did exhibitions of her paintings at my invitation in both Minnesota and Iowa.

In her painting accompanying the poem, she has a young Mary reaching out to touch her cousin Elizabeth who appropriately has white hair. It is the picture of a “pregnant teenager welcomed in the warm space of wise old human hugging.”

The angel Gabriel had said to Mary that “Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age” (Luke 1:36). Mary’s response was to travel “in haste” to help her cousin in the last three months of her pregnancy.

What did those two women do during those three months? Listen to how the poetess describes it.

“The three months together
was a time to tell stories,
big and little stories that connected their lives.
These are the her-stories
That nobody knows.
In the days between the old and the new,
each became her sister’s keeper.
Tears and fears
were as safe between Elizabeth and Mary
as awesome joy.
Each surely needed to let herself go.
The two grew as friends,
working and praying and resting in God.”

Mary had trusted in the angel’s promise to her. She had great faith. It was a faith that expressed itself in charity toward her elderly cousin Elizabeth.

Years later, St. Paul would write that what is important is “faith working through love” (Galatians 5:6). Mary had that kind of faith. Visiting her needy elderly cousin Elizabeth was her faith expressing itself in love.

Elizabeth’s response to the visit of Mary was joy. In the words of the poetess, “Her gladness at the sight of Mary took a Quantum Leap as John recognized Jesus. In body language of the Spirit, greetings bounced from unborn to Unborn.”

Reflection by Archbishop Jerome Hanus, OSB