The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to ponder the Joy and Praise in the example of Mary’s response to her magnificent mission.
The reading from the Prophet Zephaniah is a Song of Joy.
The reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans identifies the marks of the True Christian.
* [12:14–21] Since God has justified the believers, it is not necessary for them to take justice into their own hands by taking vengeance. God will ultimately deal justly with all, including those who inflict injury on the believers. This question of personal rights as a matter of justice prepares the way for more detailed consideration of the state as adjudicator. (Romans, CHAPTER 12, n.d.)
The response from Isaiah proclaims Thanksgiving and Praise.
* [12:1–6] Israel’s thanksgiving to the Lord, expressed in language like that of the Psalms. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 12, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Luke, Mary Visits Elizabeth and proclaims the Canticle of Mary.
* [1:43] Even before his birth, Jesus is identified in Luke as the Lord.
* [1:45] Blessed are you who believed: Luke portrays Mary as a believer whose faith stands in contrast to the disbelief of Zechariah (Lk 1:20). Mary’s role as believer in the infancy narrative should be seen in connection with the explicit mention of her presence among “those who believed” after the resurrection at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:14).
* [1:46–55] Although Mary is praised for being the mother of the Lord and because of her belief, she reacts as the servant in a psalm of praise, the Magnificat. Because there is no specific connection of the canticle to the context of Mary’s pregnancy and her visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat (with the possible exception of v. 48) may have been a Jewish Christian hymn that Luke found appropriate at this point in his story. Even if not composed by Luke, it fits in well with themes found elsewhere in Luke: joy and exultation in the Lord; the lowly being singled out for God’s favor; the reversal of human fortunes; the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The loose connection between the hymn and the context is further seen in the fact that a few Old Latin manuscripts identify the speaker of the hymn as Elizabeth, even though the overwhelming textual evidence makes Mary the speaker. (Luke, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)
Mary Lee Brock (2013) is struck by the calm confidence Mary has in God’s steadfast love.
Now I feel inspired by Mary to bear witness to God’s love. This inspiration brings more questions than answers: How can I be aware of the signs of God’s presence within me? How can I be more present to others modeling the way Mary was so present to her cousin Elizabeth? In the hectic pace of life, how can I slow down so I can make the best choices with the gifts I have been given by God? Where do I need to be brave and be more explicit about my faith? How can I bring that faith to action for the greater glory of God? (Brock, 2023)
Don Schwager quotes “John prophecies from the womb,” by Maximus of Turin (died between 408-423 AD)
"Not yet born, already John prophesies and, while still in the enclosure of his mother's womb, confesses the coming of Christ with movements of joy - since he could not do so with his voice. As Elizabeth says to holy Mary, 'As soon as you greeted me, the child in my womb exulted for joy.' John exults, then, before he is born. Before his eyes can see what the world looks like, he can recognize the Lord of the world with his spirit. In this regard, I think that the prophetic phrase is appropriate: 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you came forth from the womb I sanctified you' (Jeremiah 1:5). Thus we ought not to marvel that after Herod put him in prison, he continued to announce Christ to his disciples from his confinement, when even confined in the womb he preached the same Lord by his movements." (excerpt from SERMON 5.4) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 1:39-56 comments that Mary isn’t just stopping by on her way to somewhere else. No, it’s a visitation with a serious purpose.
Just as she did with Elizabeth, Mary is eager to visit you, too. In all of your challenges or uncertainties, she can be there to help you through her prayers and example. Let her companionship be a source of encouragement for you.
“Lord, thank you for sending Mary to visit me!” (Meditation on Luke 1:39-56, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler notes the extension of the passage from Zephaniah to the raising of Jerusalem by Jesus. Paul concludes his letter encouraging hospitality and graciousness to others. Friar Jude connects the visit of Mary. the New Ark of the Covenant, to Elizabeth to the action of David in bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.
Rev. Dr. James Hanvey SJ, who lectures in Systematic Theology at Heythrop College, suggests that our particular contemplation of the Mother of God should not be limited just to May. Through Mary we receive and understand the grace of God in a special way - ‘we see the truth of God’s promises fulfilled’.
Here is that reversal of the Kingdom, celebrated in Mary’s Magnificat: where the ‘yes’ is not an act of subjection or subservice, but a self-gift of loving service which lives in the transcendence of God’s own self-gift; it is the way in which we choose to live beyond ourselves, not for ourselves, ‘but for him.’ In this sense, Mary is also the stumbling block for all the atheistic secularisms and their values which can sometimes creep into even Christian life and ways of thinking. Mary, who always draws us into the life of her Son, also keeps us open to the mystery that is God’s redemption and sanctification of the human and created order. In this way we can discover the constantly new beginning, the natality of the Spirit which allows us to announce our Magnificat not only in May but in every time and season. (Hanvey, 2012)
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces the Rev. Canon Stephanie Spellers who describes how the Holy Spirit helps us to follow Jesus’ way of self-emptying love in times of immense transition. This is a very non-American way of being. Think of the phrases that shape our national identity. We assert our “right” to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” which means we are free—and even expected—to organize our lives around our own individual desires. So much of our American story consists of groups of people protecting themselves and what’s theirs, with a gun or a flag or the cloak of racial, class, or gender privilege.
Jesus’s story is exactly the opposite. In this moment, as we reckon with the limits and consequences of self-centrism, domination systems, and the church’s capitulation to empire, we could lean into the Jesus way. We could reclaim kenosis [self-emptying], or perhaps claim it for the first time. [4]
Imagine recentering on the God we know in Jesus. Imagine becoming practicing communities that follow Jesus and embody his community of love. The forces of empire and establishment will tell you that’s a worthy cause but impossible in this day and age. They are wrong. What it takes is disciples who together follow Jesus in his Way of Love, lean fully into the Spirit that animated him, and try to do what he did and live as he lived, so that we, our communities, and the whole world might become more like him. [5] (Rohr, 2023)
We are prompted by the Spirit to live with the grace and peace modeled by Mary as she responds to her call as Mother of Jesus.
References
Brock, M. L. (2023, May 31). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/053123.html
Hanvey, J. (2012, June 1). A Timeless Magnificat. Thinking Faith. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/articles/20120601_2.htm
Isaiah, CHAPTER 12. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/12?2
Luke, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/1?39
Meditation on Luke 1:39-56. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://wau.org/meditations/2023/05/31/695170/
Rohr, R. (2023, May 31). The “Age of the Spirit” — Center for Action and Contemplation. Daily Meditations Archive: 2023. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-age-of-the-spirit-2023-05-31/
Romans, CHAPTER 12. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/romans/12?9
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Joyful Anticipation of the Messiah. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2023&date=may31a
Zephaniah, CHAPTER 3. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 31, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/zephaniah/3?14
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