As soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded
in my ears, the infant in my womb
leaped, for joy (St. Luke i. 46)
Mary's first action after God had come to
dwell in her was one of self-denying charity. She
undertook a troublesome journey in order to visit
her cousin Elizabeth. Thus she proclaimed
charity to be the virtue which above all Christ
brought with Him from Heaven. "By this shall
all men know that you are My disciples, if you
have charity one with another" (St. John xiii. 35).
How can I stand this test?
God made Mary's visit the occasion of a wonderful miracle. On her entrance inio St. Elizabeth's dwelling, St. John Baptist was cleansed from
sin in his mother's womb. Mary was the channel
of the exceptional privilege of the cleansing away
of sin in the case of the unborn child. As then,
so now, Mary is the channel of all graces, and,
above all, of the restoration of the sinner to friendship with God.
Mary's charity is not less present now than
at the time of the Visitation. Nay, she is far more
eager now than then to promote the happiness
and console the sorrows of those who fly to her
for succor. Why do not I obtain more graces and
blessings than I do through Mary's intercession?
It is no fault of hers--it is, alas! because I am
proud, self-willed, selfish, indifferent.
Mother of Christ, Star of the Sea,
Pray for the wanderer, pray for me.