All who hope in God

[markdohle]

All who hope in God

Mary’s song of praise in the Magnificat “is the
canticle of the People of God on the journey,
and of all men and women who hope in God,
 in the power of his mercy.” Pope Francis

+++++

Advent is a time of hope.  For Jesus Christ is God’s mercy in the flesh and Mary in her joy over this deep mystery and actual reality praised God in her “Magnificat”

”My soul magnifies the Lord
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
Because He has regarded the lowliness of His handmaid;
For behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed;
Because He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name;
And His mercy is from generation to generation
on those who fear Him.
He has shown might with His arm,
He has scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and has exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent away empty.
He has given help to Israel, his servant, mindful of His mercy
Even as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity forever”.

To live in hope is not easy, it takes courage, for we live in a world of suffering, injustice and the seeming triumph of evil in the world.  In the Incarnation we see a reversal of our world, a reversal so profound that many cannot bring themselves to believe, for it seems too grand to be true.  Yet the Lord Jesus was lowly.  He was from a poor family, from a town of no importance and even showered with contempt…..yet Christ Jesus was born in such a town.  He identified with those on the fringe, those hated by the religious establishment, with tax collectors, who were in reality, to put if mildly; scum.   Yet Mathew, one of his Apostles came from such a group.  He showed love for the powerful as well, but he used a different approach, he told them of their alienation from God, for which he was hated.  Yet after the resurrection many converts came from those he so roundly berated

The journey is hard yet our faith can be a light that leads us deeper into the love of the Father who shows his face in Jesus Chris our Lord.  Yet faith sometimes has to be chosen over and over again so as to deepen it.  For God’s ways or not ours…when we think we understand God’s ways that is when we can let go of our hope in God’s love and Word.  The ‘cross’ is no respecter of person…we either carry it or it will drag us.—Br.MD

 

[Jayne]

Both Mary and Zechariah had very powerful songs of praise to God - both under the persuasion and overshadowing of the Holy Spirit.  Both included a lot of Old Testament references, allusions, and even direct quotes, so both had to have known OT scriptures well.  Mary's song has similarities to Hannah's -which is obvious and understandable -  and she also referenced a lot of the psalms.  Doing a side by side comparison of the two songs and seeing all of the OT references is both interesting and inspiring.

I've always been of the opinion that this knowledge of scriptures and their incorporation - even if only alluded to -  into the songs would be normal for Zechariah.  He was a priest.

And Mary, being a young girl, would have at least been taught about Hannah, so her song would be familiar, but she includes so much more from the OT that she had to have grown up with a family where scriptures were taught in the home and were considered important.

I always get two things from these songs.

[1] Without the Holy Spirit, there would be no Christmas story.  From Mary to John the Baptist to Elizabeth to Zechariah to Simeon, the Bible directly tells us that their actions and words were directed by the Holy Spirit.

[2] The references to the Old Testament in these songs is telling of the importance of learning and leaning on scripture - to incorporate it into our praise to God.  The psalms were meant to be spoken and sung BACK to God. 

We can learn alot from both of these praise songs.

 

 

 

[Jayne]

24 minutes ago, Yowm said:

Most likely so, but she could also be speaking prophetically.

Maybe she was doing both.  The Bible doesn't say she was prophesying like it says that Zechariah was.  He was definitely bringing forth a new prophecy for the people.  Mary's song seems more of a praise to God, like Hannah's song.

[Wayne222]

Beautiful posts. 

[markdohle]

18 hours ago, Yowm said:

welcome to Nazareth

Coming to the dust bowl of Nazareth...our world
planted in a child's womb...our nature
The Creator morphs as the creature...our weakness
robed in swaddling cloths ...our futile righteousness
He presents Himself...unnoticed by many,
welcomed by a few. -Yowm

 

Beautiful Yowm, well said and written.

Peace
mark

[markdohle]

11 minutes ago, Wayne222 said:

Beautiful posts. 

Thanks Wayne.

Peace

Mark