Today we commemorate Boniface of Mainz, Missionary to the Germans. Born in England, educated as a monk, and ordained a presbyter, Boniface decided to become a missionary. Granted a papal commission in AD 719, Boniface set to work planting, organizing, and reforming churches in Hesse, Thuringia, and Bavaria. In AD 743, now as an archbishop, Boniface was assigned to the See of Mainz. A little over a decade later, in AD 754, Boniface was martyred by a group of pagans while working in (what would become) the Netherlands. Boniface is remembered for his faith and his tireless work in spreading the Word to Germanic Europe.

Today we observe the Visitation. While pregnant with Jesus, the Virgin Mary visited her relative, Elizabeth, who was then pregnant with John the Baptist, another child conceived under miraculous circumstances. In the presence of Christ, John ‘leaps’ in his mother’s womb, foreshadowing his role as forerunner of the Messiah. This presence of the Messiah also caused Elizabeth to proclaim Mary’s blessedness and Mary responded with the Magnificat, a summation of her place in salvation history and God’s gracious gifts.