seasons of motherhood | pray the rosary | Behold Your Mother
Today we will pray the Second Joyful Mystery: The Visitation.
I imagine that the barrage of questions asked of a typical mom-to-be reached Mary’s ears throughout her pregnancy. It can certainly be draining. If folks are not asking questions, they have at least been looking at your growing stomach since their first suspicions of your pregnancy. And yet, when Mary reaches the house of Elizabeth, there are proclamations instead of questions. It is with a gut instinct that Elizabeth processes the miracle happening within Mary:
"Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb… Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled” (Luke 1:42;45).
This instinct was so powerful and accurate that Elizabeth’s words become those on our own lips during each Hail Mary of this Rosary. Mary does not have to explain a single thing. Elizabeth and Mary share a peace as they experience miraculous motherhood together. The same is true today. The gift of motherhood comes with a community that understands. We are never alone. We are bonded to others through the exhaustion, anxieties, tiny moments, precious touches, and utter joy. Women with whom I had never had much in common became close allies in my child-rearing.
Women to whom I ministered across varied generations, races, classes, and languages, all could connect to the full emotional spectrum of motherhood. God became flesh to show us that we are not alone, and He now entrusts us and the other moms in our lives to minister to one another.
As you wait in anticipation of your beautiful gift, I pray that you find gratitude in the visits with present and future moms. In doing so, you are connecting yourself to your neighbors in a new, deep, and loving way.
The writers of Catholic Mom enthusiastically gathered to share meditations on each Mystery of the Rosary in a special way for pregnant mothers. We invite you to join us throughout the month of May as we pray together each day, and to share these reflections with other moms who will enjoy them.
Images: created by Ted Schluenderfritz for Holy Cross Family Ministries