12-9-24<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the oldest, dearest, and powerful yet tender prayers of Christianity is called the \u201cMagnificat.\u201d Its title comes from the phrase in Mary\u2019s prayer, recorded in the Gospel According to St Luke, in ancient words \u201cMy soul doth magnify the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Bible relates that Mary offered the prayer when she visited her cousin Elizabeth to announce that she was with child. Mary had been \u201cvisited\u201d by the Holy Spirit and told she bore the Savior of Humankind; Elizabeth was pregnant with the future John the Baptist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Various denominations observe the Feast of the Visitation on a gestation-period before Christmas by the calendar, but the celebration is common in the Advent Season as Christmas approaches; and that is what we do here today. Every day of the year, of course \u2013 every moment of our lives \u2013 it is appropriate to observe and celebrate the Incarnation: the coming of Emmanuel, God-With-Us.
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Mary\u2019s prayer, the Magnificant, is also a miraculous summation of the response she had, and we should have, to God\u2019s favor bestowed on His people. It is a masterpiece of Christian humility, even while accepting God\u2019s particularized blessing. In a literary view, it is the perfect balance of the human and the spiritual: in the form of ancient Hebrew poetry there is paralellism \u2013 the relation of \u201cmy soul\u201d and \u201cmy spirit\u201d; \u201cgreatness\u201d and \u201crejoicing\u201d; \u201cthe Lord God\u201d and\u2026 \u201cmy Savior.\u201d Universal truths suggested by phrases contrasting the \u201cproud\u201d and the \u201chumble\u201d; the \u201cmighty\u201d versus those of \u201clow degree\u201d; the \u201crich\u201d confronted by the \u201chungry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Western churches, where it still holds a place in the calendar or liturgy (mostly Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican traditions; but in no way restricted to them) the Magnificat is celebrated in evening service. In Orthodox faiths it traditionally is part of morning worship. Scores of writers and poets through the years have contemplated the Magnificat, and scores of composers have set it to reverent music. It is a universal prayer!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In fact, and somewhat predictably, my favorite musical setting all my life has been the Magnificat<\/em> of Johann Sebastian Bach. His short but amazing composition typically achieves the delivery of the prayer\u2019s layers of meaning and spiritual significance. When the choir, for instance, sings \u201cAll generations\u2026\u201d many groups sing the phrase repeatedly, separately and in harmony, a musical cascade \u2013 and we behold a musical image of angels and saints of the ages calling Mary\u2019s name \u201cblessed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2026 and not only Mary\u2019s name. Of course the Magnificat is her response to the Annunciation. The angel Gabriel announced that she is \u201cblessed,\u201d not Holy in the sense that Jesus was Holy. She recognized that she was a handmaiden, a humble servant \u2013 and that is where we must focus too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For as Mary carried the Savior in her womb, we can have that same Jesus live in our hearts.<\/em> Hallelujah!<\/p>\n\n\n\n So with regard to factors of time and space and circumstance, we can tailor this prayer to be our own prayer, too. Magnify the Lord\u2026 rejoice in His favor\u2026 cherish what He has done for us\u2026 and what He has promised!<\/p>\n\n\n\n My soul magnifies the greatness of the Lord God, <\/em>my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n for He has looked with favor on His humble servant.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n From this day all generations will call me blessed, the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is His Name.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He has mercy on those who fear Him in every generation.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He has shown the strength of his arm,<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He has scattered the proud in their conceit.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up those of low degree, the humble.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n