Advent readings, Day 24 - Luke 1: 39-45

Luke 1: 39-45  Mary didn’t waste a minute. She got up and traveled to a town in Judah in the hill country, straight to Zachariah’s house, and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby in her womb leaped. She was filled with the Holy Spirit, and sang out exuberantly,

You’re so blessed among women,
    and the babe in your womb, also blessed!
And why am I so blessed that
    the mother of my Lord visits me?
The moment the sound of your
    greeting entered my ears,
The babe in my womb
    skipped like a lamb for sheer joy.
Blessed woman, who believed what God said,
    believed every word would come true!

Lots of thoughts from this passage.  Notice how Mary immediately seeks out someone else, in this case her cousin Elizabeth, when she becomes pregnant.  A reminder of how we need others in our lives and how we can provide support for others.

But I am particularly struck by the baby in Elisabeth's womb "skipping like a lamb" at the sound of Mary's voice.  Maybe it had been really quiet around the house since Elizabeth's husband Zechariah had been struck mute when he did not believe the angel who said that Elizabeth would become pregnant.  Maybe it was just that moment in the day when baby John in the womb was going to move no matter what else was happening.  But maybe there was a recognition that Mary was carrying the Son of God.  Not a learned argument about the Son of God or a virgin birth, but a visceral response to being in the presence of the one carrying the Son of God. There's something powerful about this immediate response to being in the presence of the Christ-child in the womb.  This story has me wondering about how we respond when we see God in our midst.