In Christianity, the Visitation of the Virgin Mary is the episode in which the Virgin Mary, pregnant with Jesus, visits Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist. It is also the name of a Christian holiday commemorating this visit, celebrated on May 31 in the holiday-celebrating branches of Western Christianity and on March 30 in Eastern Christianity.
Visitation of the Virgin Mary to Elizabeth
Mary visits her relative Elizabeth; they are both pregnant: Mary with Jesus and Elizabeth with John the Baptist. Mary left Nazareth immediately after the Annunciation and went “into the hill country … to a city of Judah” (Luke 1:39) to care for her cousin (Luke 1:36) Elizabeth. There are several possibilities as to exactly which city this was, including Hebron, south of Jerusalem, and Ein Karem.
The journey from Nazareth to Hebron is about 80 miles (130 kilometers) in a straight line, probably up to half by road, depending on the route taken. Elizabeth was in the sixth month before Mary came (Luke 1:36). Mary stayed three months, and most scholars maintain that she stayed for the birth of John.
Given prevailing cultural traditions and security needs, it is likely that Joseph accompanied Mary to Judah and then returned to Nazareth, returning after three months to take his wife home. The appearance of the angel, mentioned in Matthew 1:19-25, may have taken place then to put an end to Joseph's tormenting doubts about Mary's motherhood.
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Today, Christians celebrate the visitation of the Virgin Mary. The Feast of the Visitation commemorates an episode from the Gospel according to Luke: the visit paid by Mary, pregnant with Christ, to her cousin Elizabeth, pregnant with John the Baptist. #mythology #myth #legend #calendar #virgemarie #31May
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