Hi everyone. Welcome back to logical Bible study. In this podcast, we're all about looking at the gospel from today's mass and having a look at the literal sense of the text. What is the text mean on the most fundamental level? What do the words mean? What was the author trying to get at all of those are the kind of things that we try and help you understand. In this podcast today, we're looking at a text which will be familiar to many of you Catholics. So let's jump into it.
Luke chapter 1 verses 39 to 45 Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the Hill Country of Judah, she went into zechariah's house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child left in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said of all women, you are the most blessed and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my lord for the moment, your greeting reached my ears? The child in my womb, leaped for joy. Yes. Blessed. Is she who believed that? The promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled. So let's start by thinking about the context here, where in Luke chapter one. About halfway through that big chapter, where Luke tells us quite a lot of the background of the birth of both Jesus, and John the Baptist. So, what's the context?
Well, just prior to this Mary, has found out that Elizabeth is pregnant and also, Mary herself has found out that she'll be pregnant and that, of course, happens in the famous Annunciation scene. So if you want to hear an exegesis of the Annunciation scene verses 26 to 38, it's add several times in the liturgical year.
So December 20th every year and then the solemnity of the Annunciation. It's red and then it's red on the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, as well, so that's one of the most common readings in the lectionary but now we get to verse 39 today. So Mary has found out that Elizabeth is pregnant so she sets out to go find Elizabeth At the time of leaving, maid Mary is either not yet pregnant or
has just become pregnant. It's not entirely clear when Mary has when Mary herself gets pregnant but certainly Elizabeth is pregnant. That's why Mary leaves to go visit Elizabeth in her pregnancy and the text says she goes as quickly as she can to a town in the Hill Country. So the text doesn't tell us where exactly Elizabeth and Zachariah live. But there is a traditional site called Ein Karem and that is near Jerusalem. So that would certainly fit the The description that we have
here. You can actually go there today to the ruins of that Village and the place where they think Elizabeth may have lived. And I've actually been there, it's quite a powerful experience. So I encourage him is a is near Jerusalem, and so that's helpful for Zechariah. It's probably about five miles from the temple. So, Zechariah works at the
temple. So it makes sense that he would live in on Korean, which is just outside of Jerusalem, but Mary does not live anywhere near Jerusalem, Mary lives in Nazareth. So for her to get to Elizabeth's house from Nazareth to Ein, Karem, we're talking 90 miles. So she it's a five or six day walk for Mary to go visit Elizabeth this time. She's Not accompanied by Joseph. As far as we know, Joseph might have been working at this time. Still, but she probably did have, she was in a walking
Caravan of some kind. It was quite common for people to travel from Galilee down to Judea. So she enters the house of Elizabeth and Zachariah and as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting the child left in her womb so the child in Elizabeth's womb leaps when she hears Mary's voice. So, the child in Elizabeth's womb is, of course, John John senses, the voice of Mary, and leaps, for joy that fulfills what Gabriel said to Zechariah
earlier. Remember when Gabriel appears to Zechariah. One of the things he says, is your child, John will be filled with the spirit even from his mother's womb. So that was in chapter verse 15 of chapter one. And there's also other parallels here all the way through this text, you'll see some Old Testament echoes. Quite clear ones actually.
And this particular one where the child leaps in Elizabeth's womb, this parallels the experience of Rebecca in Genesis 25. So Rebecca is the mother of Jacob and Esau. And in Genesis 25, the same Greek word, therefore leap is used to describe her children steering in her womb and interestingly in Rebecca's case, the child, the children moving in her womb represented.
The fact that Jacob is going to outrank Esau, even though Jacob was younger And here Elizabeth's experience when John Moves In the Womb, that is a sign that Jesus would be greater than his older cousin John. As we see later in Luke 3, 16. So interesting connections there with Rebecca, of course this has implications of how we should think of unborn children as well. Because here we have children in the womb responding to outside stimuli in a really interesting
way. And so there's some implications here about how we think about abortion and the issue. Is around that, it says Elizabeth was filled with the holy spirit, so notice that she's filled with the holy spirit. It's a supernatural feeling. So Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit. And she says, in verse 42, remember, she's basically being inspired by the spirit here. Blessed. Are you among women? Now, what it actually says there in the Greek is, it's a superlative.
So Elizabeth says to Mary. Most Blessed Are You among women? Because of the special role. God has given her and Elizabeth empowered by the spirit. Is that Elizabeth here? Actually uses the same words that were spoken to the women, jail and Judith.
Some of the Lesser known characters in the Old Testament, the women jail and Judith are in Judges chapter 5 and then Judges chapter 13 fascinating parallel here because both women jail and Judith. They became famous among the Israelites because they killed the opposing enemy military commanders by giving them a mortal blow to the Head. Well, Mary is going to Bear a son, who will crush Satan's Head as well, it specifically says that in Genesis 3, verse 15.
So notice all these interesting parallels here with women in the Old Testament. Clearly Mary here is being presented by God as the Fulfillment of all of the female archetypes in the Old Testament. Mary is like the perfect Israelite woman. And Elizabeth says to Mary, here, blessed, are you among women? And blessed is the fruit of your womb. Of course, this is this comes through into the the Hail Mary
as well. When she says blessed is the fruit of your womb, their base can basically means blessed is your son Jesus and that tells us probably that Mary is pregnant by this point. When she says blessed, she means God has blessed. You, you have been blessed by God verse 43. Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord. Now, what it literally says there and this is a better translation actually is. Why is this granted me that the mother of my Lord should come to me.
Now, notice the focus here is on Mary, not Jesus. The mother of my Lord should come to me. Now, there's lots of discussion here about the word, Lord, that's used here, because Lord can mean to Different things in the Old Testament. Lord, usually means the king the Earthly King. So Elizabeth here could mean something like why should it be? Granted me that the mother of my Messianic King is coming to me and that would certainly fit.
However, there is another meaning of the word, Lord and most Catholics. And fact, most Christians have taken it to be Lord as in God. Because in New Testament times the Hebrew word yhw h often pronounced Yahweh, when that comes over into Greek in the New Testament, it gets turned into curiosity, which is Lord. So Lord can also mean God in the New Testament, and in fact, that's how Luke uses it
throughout his gospel. All of the references to the word, Lord, so far, in chapter 1 of Luke up to this point have been about God. So it makes sense to say that Elizabeth is probably thinking of God, and she is inspired by the Holy Spirit, he remembers so she probably believes Jesus to be God. God, if we're understanding this correctly, This is the key text which informs the Catholic understanding that Mary is the mother of God that is a Catholic belief and Mother of God in Greek there.
The word is theotokos. This is the first Marian Dogma to be defined Catholics have lots of different Marian teachings of. This was the first one to be defined. Clearly in 431 ad at the Council of Ephesus, the church taught that Mary is the mother of God. And it's based largely on this text here when Elizabeth says The mother of my Lord Has Come to Me.
Now, we're going to see some really interesting links here, between the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, and when that arrived in Jerusalem. So, in the time of David, the Ark of the Covenant was brought up to Jerusalem and David's celebrated. There's some interesting links here between that scene in second, Samuel and the scene we have here. Let's have a look at a few fascinating parallels here. There really does seem to be a
clear link here. God has set it up deliberately, so that the scene we're looking at mirrors, the arrival of the The Ark in Jerusalem. So in second Samuel 6 verse 2, it says David arose and went to a village of Judah to retrieve the ark. Well, here Mariah Rises and goes to a village of Judah. In fact, Luke interestingly uses the word Judah here, rather than the more common term in the time of Luke was Judea. But here Luke says, Judah.
And he might be doing that deliberately to recall the line from 2nd Samuel where David goes up to Judah. So there's the first Slink second link between the scenes in 2nd Samuel 6 verse 10. It says the Ark of the Lord entered, the house will hear me re-enters the house in the village of Judah. The thirdly second, Samuel 6 verse 15. It says the people of Israel shout when the ark arrived and here Elizabeth shouts for Joy. When Mary arrives interesting? Isn't it?
In fact, the word shout, which is Anna fineö, that would only occurs here in the New Testament. Assessment. It's never found anywhere else in the New Testament, but that word is found in the Old Testament and a fineö and it's always used in reference to liturgical procession of the Ark interesting, isn't it? It really does seem like everything is pointing towards this being a New Covenant Arc, Mary fourth similarity, when the ark arrives to to David in Jerusalem.
David says how can the Ark of the Lord come to me here. What is Elizabeth say? How is it that the mother of my Lord has come to me. There's clearly got to be something going on here next parallel. It says David danced before the ark when it arrives second Samuel 6 verse 16 and here what is John do John leaps for Joy when the ark arrives in his house. Also this is an interesting one. The ark stays in the house for three months in Jerusalem. But here what is me redo?
She stays in three months in the house of Elizabeth. So, clearly the parallels here, it's pretty overwhelming. Whelming evidence that we're supposed to understand that Mary is being portrayed as the New Covenant, the bearer of the New Covenant, the new arc. So God's Dwelling Place, which in the old Covenant was literally the Ark of the Covenant will. Now God's dwelling place is literally Mary verse 45 blessed? Is she?
Who believed that there will be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord. So Elizabeth, he says, Mary is blessed or happy more literally, because Believed in God's promises unlike Zechariah. Who didn't believe God's promises? If you remember? So isn't it? So fascinating when you dive into the text in this way you see all these new links. Now there is more that happens in this scene but that's all our
lectionary covers today. So if you want to hear the next section of text, that's The Magnificat when Mary says The Magnificat. So that's read on December 22nd every year which may be tomorrow based depending on when you're listening to this podcast, let's turn to the catechism and as it is. Expect, there's a whole lot of places where we see comments here on this interaction between Mary and Elizabeth. So let's read a few of them.
Our paragraph 5 to 3. This is about John the Baptist St. John the Baptist is the Lord's immediate precursor or Forerunner sent to prepare his way prophet of the most high John surpasses, all the prophets of whom he is the last. He inaugurates the gospel already from his mother's womb, welcomes the coming of Christ.
So here or there you hear the mention of him welcoming Jesus, even in the womb, which happened in today's reading again, paragraph, 7, 1 7 is about John. The Baptist John was filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb, by Christ himself, whom the Virgin. Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. Mary's visitation to Elizabeth. Thus becomes a visit from God to his people. Let's go to paragraph 2676 and 2677. This is about being in communion with the holy mother of God,
blessed art thou among women. And blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Jesus, after the Angels greeting, we make Elizabeth's greeting our own filled with the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth is the first in the long six succession of generations who have called Mary blessed blessed is she who believed Mary is blessed among women because she believed In the Fulfillment of the Lord's word, Abraham because of his faith became a blessing for all
the nations of the earth. Mary, because of her faith became the mother of Believers through whom all nations of the Earth. Receive him? Who is God's Own blessing? Jesus, the fruit of thy womb, holy Mary Mother of God with Elizabeth we Marvel. And why is this granted me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? So there we have the words of the Hail Mary into woven with things.
We learn from today's passage in Luke 1 paragrah. 448 is about the word Lord, at the prompting of the Holy Spirit of Lord, expresses the recognition of the Divine, mystery of Jesus paragraph 495 is about Mary's, Divine motherhood called in the gospels. The mother of Jesus Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth at the prompting of the spirit. And even before the birth of her son, as the mother of my Lord, In fact, the one whom she conceived as Man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her son.
According to the flesh was none, other than the father's Eternal son. The second person of the Holy Trinity, hence, the church confesses that Mary is truly Mother of God theotokos So, here we have information about the Catholic teaching on the doctrine that Mary is the mother of God. And it talks about it in trinitarian terms, because Mary is the mother of the second person of the Trinity she is by definition, the mother of God, and you can have a look at the show notes to take a look at
that paragraph. If you want more information there, paragraph 148 is about blessed. Is she who believed Elizabeth greeted? Her blessed. Is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord? Hard. It is for this faith, that all generations, have called Mary blessed. So we'll leave it there for today. I hope you have learned something new about this text and hopefully you tune in again tomorrow.