"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant" (Lk. 1:46-48).

Lovers of opera may recognize our Gospel for what it really is: a sort of duet sung by the Blessed Virgin Mary and her cousin Elizabeth, as they contemplate the mighty action of God. The setting is that time between the conception and birth of Jesus Christ. Mary has received the message of the angel with its astonishing news that she is to be the mother of the Savior; she travels to her cousin’s home, where Elizabeth too is expecting a child who later will become John the Baptist. They reflect on what has taken place, and they do so poetically, in the form of two songs or canticles.

Let’s follow the duet for a moment. Elizabeth says, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb…Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord" (Lk. 1:42, 45). She proclaims the blessing that is coming into the world through the child that is to be born; she proclaims as well that Mary, among all women, is to be blessed. Mary, in reply, ascribes the glory to God. "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant." Mary acknowledges that she is to be called blessed, because God has done great things for her, and it is his name which is holy. The cousins reflect together, and at the end of the duet the greatness is ascribed to God.

The words of this poetic exchange have of course been set to music many times. Elizabeth’s words to Mary in our Gospel, joined to those of the angel at the Incarnation or conception of Christ, constitute the heart of the prayer "Ave Maria", known to Christians through the centuries; while Mary’s words in response have found their place in the Evening Prayer of many traditions, including our own Anglican Evensong. If we can extend our operatic metaphor a bit further, you might say that the song that Mary and Elizabeth begin to sing in Luke’s Gospel is one for which Christians have supplied the chorus for thousands of years, recapitulating the theme by proclaiming Mary to be blessed and God to be holy. We are meant to pick up the tune and begin to explore the work of God in our own lives.

Here we are on solid ground, as we apply these words to our own circumstances. Mary in Luke’s Gospel represents the Church; Christians in all times and places. As St Ambrose wrote, "Let Mary’s soul be in you to exult in God" (In Luc. II.26). The same spirit which animates her, should animate us; we too are to exult in God.

Our basis for thanksgiving is the same as Mary’s. As the song continues, Mary proclaims that God has scattered the proud; that he has brought down the powerful and sent the rich away empty. At the same time, he has lifted up the lowly and filled the hungry with good things. In Mary’s time, God had spent generations sifting and refining his People, creating a remnant who would be able to receive him. God’s People had taken some hard knocks: defeat by their enemies and eventual exile in Babylon; reduction in numbers and influence; occupation of the Promised Land by the Romans and loss of their liberty. In relation to the rest of the world, God’s faithful People looked upon themselves as powerless and unfulfilled, a remnant in need of deliverance.

Mary’s song proclaims that the moment has come; the moment when God will no longer reduce his People, but will fulfill the promises made to them. Luke’s Gospel, and the Acts of the Apostles that completes it, tells the story of how God increases his People, as salvation is made available to the Gentiles. Yet this is the critical moment, the moment that makes it all possible, the moment in which God comes into the world. Prophecy is put to one side, as Mary proclaims the reality that is drawing near in the child that is in her womb.

This is the song in which we are invited to join. We too are humble; ordinary folk who are in need of redemption. We too have been knocked about by the circumstances of our lives. The good news is that God has drawn near to us, has come in the fulness of his life to give us life. We can pick up the tune, join in the song, because on us has come the time of fulfillment and joy.

The Rev’d John Bauerschmidt is Rector of Christ Church, Covington.

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