These weekly Reflections are great tools for volunteer Vincentians to tie together what we do in our everyday lives and our faith.  They are originally designed for Vincentians,  but are helpful to anyone who needs of a reminder of what we are called to do for our neighbors in need.

Gospel: (Luke 1:39-56)

Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.

Reflection:

Mary is remembered because she was the first disciple to whom God did great things, lifting her up from among the lowly. Mary belongs so completely to God that even her body is at God’s disposal. Mary’s “Assumption” is a festival of mercy: Mary “returned to her home” when she completed her mission of being an instrument of God’s promise, a home which is to be with God for all eternity. The “Assumption” is a sign of God’s mercy being fulfilled. It is also a sign that our true home is with God. (Living Liturgy, p.192)

Vincentian Meditation:

“True dedication to the service of the poor goes hand in hand with the gift of availability. It was precisely because Mary had this gift of availability, this spiritual agility, that she was able to go “in haste” into the formidable hill country of Judea to visit and assist her cousin Elizabeth in giving birth to John the Baptist. In one word, the gift of availability enables us to walk on the pilgrim way with lightness in our step. The journey of Mary from Galilee to Judea tells us something of the physical strength and endurance of the Mother of God. But it is the inner spiritual strength that sustained Mary on her pilgrimage of faith. The Vatican Council document Lumen Gentium presents our Lady as a pilgrim who has already reached the heavenly Jerusalem and, because she is glorified both in body and soul in heaven, she is a special source of hope and encouragement to us who are still on the pilgrim’s road.” (McCullen, Deep Down Things,p.185-6)

Discussion:

(Share your thoughts after a moment of silence)
How can we better live our Vincentian call to be available to the poor?

Closing Prayer:

For victims of terrorism and violence,
-May Mary’s Assumption sustain our hope.
For an end to the oppression of those without power,
-May Mary’s Assumption sustain our hope.
For all who seek to transform an unjust society,
-May Mary’s Assumption sustain our hope. Amen

Did you enjoy this reflection? You can read more reflections online and watch for new reflections each week.