The scene in the Gospel lesson this morning is called, "The Visitation." It's about two women, cousins. They have something in common. They are both going to have babies, and both, miraculously. Elizabeth is too old, and Mary is so young, she is a virgin, betrothed, but not married. What does this mean?

Mary comes to Elizabeth's house in the Judean hills. It sounds upscale, doesn't it, the "Judean Hills." Elizabeth is the city cousin. She is sophisticated, from a patrician family. Her folk are the Aarons. They trace their ancestry clear back to Moses' brother. They are the priestly class. Zechariah, her husband, is part of the same class. He, too, is a priest, with high enough status to have been chosen to preside at the altar of the Temple in Jerusalem. Which is where he met the angel Ga…