The Visitation

By Fr.Gus Carter

12/ 24/ 06

Fourth Sunday of Advent

St. Therese of Lisieux once wrote: "It is good to speak of Mary's privileges, but it is necessary above all that we can imitate her." Perhaps that is why some of the most appealing saints loved the mystery of the Visitation in a special way. St. Francis de Sales was known for his extraordinary compassion. He named the order of nuns he established "Sisters of the Visitation." Mother Teresa mentioned one time that her favorite mystery of the rosary was the Visitation.

The story of today's Gospel is of an ordinary human experience. Mary comes to the aid of her elderly cousin who is about to deliver a child. Yet the way Luke tells the story, we are reminded that the whole two thousand years of the Old Testament history gives witness to Jesus, the Savior. The arrival of the salvation of all humankind is announced by a simple movement of the baby in its mother womb. Mary had been told, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you. Therefore, the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God." Mary's response to this earthshaking news was to believe and accept. Then she goes off to help her cousin. The mighty deeds of God often arrive in the simplest of ways. Our small kindnesses to each other are really shaping the course of the world. A modem example of God coming in great simplicity is the life of Therese. She was practically unknown in her lifetime. Yet a modest story of her life, "The Story of a Soul" came to make her a doctor of the Church and the most beloved saint of all time. She tried to make every act of her life an expression of her love for God. She believed whole heartedly the teaching of the masters of spirituality in the Church: "It is not so much what you do, but the love with which you do it that is effective before God." Jesus proclaimed the primacy of love in human life. Believing what had been revealed Therese shaped a spirituality available to every human being.

Therese tried to do each of her daily tasks well, not as a begrudging perfectionist, but as an expression of her deep desire to show her love for God under all circumstances. She herself wrote about not being able to be a theologian or a missionary converting thousands or a martyr giving her life for the Lord. She said. "I will be the heart of the Church. I will be love." She understood how constant kindness to others could be an overwhelming power in the Church. She declared near the end of hr life, "I will spend my heaven doing good." That could sound like boasting, but it was really her confidence in the power of God. Her writings about her rather short life have inspired tens of thousands of persons. Being a loving person does require a life of small sacrifices. Therese's life showed us how we can be loving throughout our days. The message of her life was that anyone could be a saint. Mother Teresa patterned her life after Therese. The most common message she gave was, "Be loving wherever you are."

I think many individual have been inspired to live more contemplative lives because of Therese. We can all find time each day as St. Teresa of Avila said, "To spend some time in the presence of Jesus whom we know loves us." Therese did not have much theological education, but she came to love Sacred Scripture. She sang in her heart the beautiful expressions of God's goodness found in the psalms. Even when she was living in what is called the "dark night," she found consolation in the Gospels