Christian Art | Saint Elizabeth | A Child Is Given In Old Age | Miracles Of God
Gospel Of Saint Luke | Chapter 1, Verses 39-80 | Saint Elizabeth | Birth Of Saint John The Baptist | KJV | King James Version | Audio Bible
Elizabeth is introduced in Luke 1:5 as a woman ‘of the daughters of Aaron,’ indicating her priestly lineage, which complements her husband Zachariah’s role as a priest ‘of the course of Abia’ (Luke 1:5). Both Elizabeth and Zachariah are described as ‘righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless’ (Luke 1:6). This emphasizes their piety and faithfulness to God’s law. Despite their righteousness, the couple is childless because Elizabeth is barren, and both are advanced in age (Luke 1:7).
Angelic Announcement
While Zachariah is serving in the temple, an angel of the Lord, identified as Gabriel, appears to him and announces that Elizabeth will bear a son. This child is to be named John, and the angel foretells that he ‘shall be great in the sight of the Lord’ and will be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb (Luke 1:13-15). The angel further explains that John will ‘turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God’ and will go before the Lord ‘in the spirit and power of Elias’ (Elijah), to prepare the people for the coming of the Lord (Luke 1:16-17).
Zachariah, doubting the angel’s message due to the couple’s old age, asks for a sign. In response, Gabriel strikes him mute until the prophecy is fulfilled (Luke 1:18-20). After Zachariah completes his temple duties, he returns home, and Elizabeth conceives, just as the angel had foretold (Luke 1:23-24).
Elizabeth’s Reaction To Her Pregnancy
Elizabeth’s pregnancy is viewed as a direct intervention by God. She expresses her gratitude and relief in Luke 1:25, saying, ‘Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.’ This reference to her ‘reproach’ highlights the cultural significance of childlessness, which in her time was often seen as a cause for shame. Elizabeth recognizes her pregnancy as a blessing from God, who has taken away this stigma.
Visitation By Mary
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, her cousin Mary, who has also received a miraculous message from the angel Gabriel regarding her own pregnancy, visits her (Luke 1:36, 39). When Mary greets Elizabeth, the baby in Elizabeth’s womb ‘leaped’ with joy (Luke 1:41). At that moment, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and speaks a blessing over Mary, saying, ‘Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb’ (Luke 1:42). She acknowledges Mary’s unique role in God’s plan, calling her ‘the mother of my Lord’ (Luke 1:43). Elizabeth further praises Mary for her faith, saying, ‘Blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord’ (Luke 1:45).
This encounter between Elizabeth and Mary, known as the Visitation, is notable for its mutual recognition of the divine workings in their lives. Elizabeth, through the Holy Spirit, recognizes the significance of Mary’s child, while Mary responds with the hymn known as the Magnificat, exalting God for His mercy and faithfulness (Luke 1:46-55).
Birth Of Saint John The Baptist
When the time comes for Elizabeth to give birth, she bears a son, as the angel had foretold (Luke 1:57). Her neighbors and relatives share in her joy, recognizing that the Lord has shown her great mercy (Luke 1:58). On the eighth day, when the child is to be circumcised and named, the relatives expect the boy to be named after his father, Zachariah. However, Elizabeth insists that he be named John, following the angel’s command (Luke 1:59-60). When questioned, Zachariah confirms the name by writing, ‘His name is John,’ and immediately his speech is restored (Luke 1:63-64). At this, fear comes upon all their neighbors, and the news spreads throughout the region, leading the people to wonder about the future of the child (Luke 1:65-66).
Prayer To Saint Elizabeth
O Glorious Saint Elizabeth,
Righteous and faithful servant of God, you who walked blamelessly in His commandments,
We turn to you in humble prayer.
You bore the reproach of childlessness with grace and trust in the Lord’s will,
And through His mercy, you were granted the gift of life in your old age,
Becoming the mother of the great prophet, John the Baptist.
Intercede for us, that we too may trust in God’s plan for our lives,
Even when the way seems unclear,
Teach us to remain patient and faithful,
Just as you waited in hope and humility for God’s promises to be fulfilled.
You recognized the presence of the Lord in the womb of Mary,
And your heart leapt with joy.
Help us to recognize Christ’s presence in our own lives,
And to be open to the Holy Spirit’s promptings,
That we may follow His will with courage and peace.
Pray for all those who long for hope,
For those who struggle with doubt or fear,
And for those who carry burdens in silence.
May your example of grace and trust inspire us to persevere
In faith and love, knowing that God is faithful to His promises.
Saint Elizabeth, pray for us,
That we may grow in holiness and trust,
And be open to the miracles God is working in our lives.
Amen.
This remarkable 6th century reflection from an anonymous African author offers a rich theology of Pentecost, drawing together ecclesiology, pneumatology, and missiology with great pastoral clarity. Writing within the context of the post-Roman North African Church—one marked by persecution, doctrinal strife, and cultural transition—this author bears witness to a theology of hope, rooted in the enduring and unifying presence of the Holy Spirit [ … ]
Jesus has been invited to dinner by Simon the Pharisee, which occasion in itself reminds us of the inclusivity of Jesus’ mission. There it would be customary for the men to recline on low divans, leaning on their left arm with their legs tucked under them, away from the table. It would also be customary for the host to honour his guests with a kiss of greeting, with water for their feet, and with perfumes [ … ]
On Tuesday, His Grace turns to the theme of Jesus’ hidden years. His Grace asks the students to consider questions concerning what really happened: ‘Who, for instance, was Joseph? Was he indeed a carpenter, or has Joseph’s true role in the society in which he lived been misconstrued and forgotten to us? Though it be a beautiful, simplifying image to grasp, which offers to us much that is of value in Catholic faith… ‘A wise elder, which carpenter could mean, or a great engineer, an architekton, which in the Greek does not mean carpenter. But carpenter in the Hebrew could mean a wise man…’ His Grace turns the pages of his Bible back and forth, as if to itemize the paucity of information. Then he says: ‘What I think I can say to you with confidence is that it is of profound significance that we simply don’t know what Jesus was doing for most of his earthly life. There are some very different possibilities. One idea cherished by the Church is that Jesus worked with his father Joseph as a carpenter. Another possibility is that Jesus lived and prayed and studied closely with John the Baptist. They were cousins, and very close, almost the same, in age. Luke’s Gospel tells us clearly that Jesus and John knew each other from within the womb before they were born. So there may have been something quite important happening there. You see, we don’t know – it is an impossible mystery to us – just how much Jesus had to learn. This is because, if Jesus knew everything, humanly speaking, even as a tiny baby, then how can we say he is fully human? We simply can’t probe too far into this mystery, but we can draw extraordinary truth and healing from this thought, which becomes of immense relevance in our own lives. Jesus came to know and to understand himself not merely as a son of God, but as God the Son, and so as self-identical with his Father. It is not an adoptive relationship. Jesus is God. Now so much is hidden here. But this is a great gift. If you think about it, how do we come to know that we are loved by God, that we have our relationship with God? What are we born with in here’ – his chest – ‘and what do we have to learn? This is to say, what is gifted to us by other Christians at our baptism? ‘Jesus must have studied, and experienced profound revelation about who and what he truly was, and, so it seems to be, these studies cannot have been confined to the Semitic world. But this is the important point: there is a hiddenness about all of this. No matter which schools and which sects our Lord might have encountered all these years, this to us is as a desert space. What this means is that we can enter into the hidden life of Jesus, and there we can discover our own being with God, our own sonship. Our own particular being loved by God can come to us, if we can enter within this great unknown – into this desert space, where we are loved by Jesus. I firmly believe that there may be a great Lenten mystery in this period of our Lord’s life.’ A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 1 A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 2 A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 3 A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 4 | King James Audio Bible | KJV A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 5 A Bishop’s Lenten Homily | Holy Week | Extracted From The Gospel According To Tomàs | Faith And Hope And Love And Sexuality | Part 6
