B2 - E2 Mary and Elizabeth
Meanwhile, after two months of married life, Mary and Joseph were on their way to visit the expectant parents. As they neared their destination, Mary ran ahead, delighted at the prospect of giving her cousin a happy surprise. She knocked on the door and entered, to the utter astonishment and delight of Elizabeth who went to embrace her very unexpected but highly welcome visitor. As she did so, she felt her baby leap within her.
Although she hadn't known that Mary was also expecting a baby, Elizabeth was filled with such an overwhelming sense of God's presence that she cried out, "Mary, you are the most blessed of all women and the baby you are carrying is blessed too. How can it possibly be that the mother of my Lord has come to visit me? Even my own baby leapt for joy when I heard your voice."
Mary was overwhelmed by her greeting and poured out her thanksgiving to God for honouring her, a completely unknown and obscure person, with the most precious gift of all time. God was showing her that because of this gift, she would be held as blessed and exalted for all ages to come.
In her prayer, she foresaw that God's all-merciful love for the poor, downtrodden and afflicted people of this world would set them free from oppression and injustice. This prayer would have resonated deeply with Elizabeth who had been set free from the shame of childlessness.
By this time, Joseph had arrived and he and Zechariah, despite his inability to speak, were swept up in the celebrations. The two couples spent some time together before Joseph returned home. He was happy to do so knowing that Mary would be able to give much-needed support to Elizabeth and Zechariah and also gain so much from being with them and helping them at this momentous point in their lives.
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