Today is Christmas. At least for our group. We began this morning following in the footsteps of Mary as she “traveled in haste to the hill country of Judah, entered the house of Zachariah, and greeted her cousin Elizabeth.” As we left Jerusalem for the short drive to the place of the Visitation, you really notice the “hill country” and those words of St. Luke come alive.
The town that marks the home of John the Baptist is today known as Ein Karem. There are two main churches that pilgrims visit there. The first is the Church of the Visitation. This church is built on top of the first century well where Mary would have met Elizabeth and proclaimed her beautiful “Magnificat” prayer, “My soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my savior.” The second church is built over the home of Elizabeth and Zachariah and marks the place where John the Baptist was born.
It seems strange to say this on just our first full day here, but I think today may end up being the highlight of the entire pilgrimage for me. As you can read in the “about” section of this website, St. John the Baptist is my primary patron and the inspiration for the name of this website and online ministry. I stood by the well where Mary met Elizabeth and thought of the supernatural joy of little John jumping in his mother’s womb. He was overjoyed to know that Jesus was right there. Although both babies were still in their mother’s wombs, they knew each other. John’s entire mission was to proclaim the coming of Jesus, and here they met for the first time. I prayed that I could have this same joy to continue preparing the way for the Lord like John did 2000 years ago.
In the upper church here, there are several beautiful mosaics depicting various important Marian moments in Church history. One of my favorites is Mary protecting Christians under her mantle. I realized here that I have sadly let my relationship with Mary grow somewhat cold. With all the trouble in the world and my own life, we were reminded here that praying the Rosary has always brought victory. I really felt the need to place myself more deliberately under the protection of Mary and take more seriously invoking her intercession.
At the home of Elizabeth and Zachariah I was able to spend time praying at the birthplace of John the Baptist. There is so much more to life than just the things we see or feel. I really tried to trust in the power of this place, that God had some special strength he could impart here through the intercession of my heavenly patron. As the rest of our group moved on I was able to sit by myself for a bit and once again thank John for his heavenly friendship and pray for his blessings on my life and mission. The spot is marked with the inscription, “Hic Praecursor Domini Natus Est… HERE the precursor of the Lord was born.”
After visiting the birthplace of the precursor, it was time to visit the birthplace of Jesus. We made a brief stop at the Shepherds Fields outside of Bethlehem and then moved on to the Church of the Nativity. In what is sure to be a highlight of the trip, I was the main celebrant for Mass at the birthplace of Jesus. There I was, a little priest from Kansas, standing where the Patriarch presides over Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, making Jesus present in the Eucharist in the same place where he first became visibly present 2000 years ago. The Church was busy with people going here and there, but it was Christmas for me and our group. You can check out my homily from the Mass for the full insights.
Today was incredible. What a way to to begin our days following the footsteps of Jesus. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.