What is the Visitation?

The Visitation is a beautiful, often overlooked mystery of the Rosary and anecdote from the Gospel of Luke. It celebrates the joyful embrace of two spirit-filled women: Mary, who just learned she would carry the son of God, and her older cousin, Elizabeth, who was also pregnant, having long been considered barren.

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, "Most 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."

And Mary said: "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness. Behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name."

-Luke 1:41-49