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According to the gospel of St. Luke, the Virgin Mary after receiving the good news from the angel Gabriel, visited her cousin Elizabeth (a week's travel away) and stayed with her for three months.

The question is:

  1. Did Mary visit Elizabeth immediately or a few days after the angelic visitation?
  2. Did Mary witness the birth of St. John the Baptist ?
  3. If Mary immediately went to see Elizabeth and only stayed three months, would her pregnancy have been obvious to others when she returned to Nazareth?
  4. How far advanced was Mary's pregnancy when she returned home from visiting Elizabeth?

A Catholic perception or another denomination maybe acceptable to answer too.

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  • Welcome Surya! If you haven't already done so, I hope you'll take a minute to take the tour and learn how this site is different from others. Regarding your question: it could be improved by specifying whose opinion you want. For example, do you want to know if there is Catholic (or Methodist, or Calvinist, etc.) teaching on this?
    – Nathaniel is protesting
    Oct 1, 2015 at 12:37
  • Diferent perception maybe okay for me, since there are lot of fraction of christiany around the world. For first may be from Chatolic, since I am was a chatolic.
    – Surya Tanamas
    Oct 3, 2015 at 6:53

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Luke 1:56 says that she stayed with Elizabeth for 3 months. We know for certain, then, that Mary was at least 3 months pregnant with Jesus. She went to Elizabeth when Elizabeth was in her 6th month of pregnancy (Luke 1:36; 1:39). The NIV says that Mary left immediately and stayed for 3 months. The trip from Nazareth to the town that Elizabeth lived in was a week apart. So we know that, unless she conceived at another time other when the angel talked to her, she was in her 3rd and 1/2 month when she left.

  1. The NIV (New International Version) tells us that at that time Mary got ready and hurried to Elizabeth (Luke 1:39), suggesting she left ASAP.

  2. It is very likely, although irrelevant, that Mary was able to witness the birth of John the Baptist. (She may have been not too excited about giving birth to Jesus) She went to Elizabeth when Elizabeth was at least 6 months along in her pregnancy (Luke 1:36). Mary stayed 3 months (Luke 1:56), so she most likely saw the birth of John the Baptist.

  3. If she left immediately to Elizabeth, when she came back it is unknown to me if it would have been obvious. The Bible gives no indication that she was obviously pregnant.

  4. Mary was at least 3 1/2 months along (Luke 1:56). You said in your question that the trip was about a week away; so she traveled for a week, stayed for 3 months and traveled home for another week. This would actually total to 3 1/2 months. Therefore Mary had to have been at least 3 1/2 months along in her pregnancy by the time she returned to Nazareth.

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    Welcome to Christianity.SE. Thanks for taking the site tour. And thanks also for providing an answer. Can you also provide answers to any of the other questions in the body of the question? If so, it would make your answer stronger. For some tips on writing good answers here, please see: What makes a good supported answer? Meanwhile, I do hope you'll stick around.
    – Lee Woofenden
    Nov 3, 2015 at 22:26
  • if that sure, St. Mary is not there when St. John Baptis born !?
    – Surya Tanamas
    Nov 4, 2015 at 8:26
  • You don't calculate distance between Nazareth, a town in Galilee and a town in the hill country of Judea. It's said to be a week journey !!??
    – Surya Tanamas
    Nov 5, 2015 at 3:11
  • I said a minimum of 3 months. So we could actually say she was 3 months and a half along in her pregnancy. I will change that now.
    – A Child of God
    Nov 5, 2015 at 14:10

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