My Soul Magnifies the Lord

Painting: Visitation de la Vierge by Jean Jouvenet, 1716, downloaded from Wikimedia Commons.

In some Bible translations, the Blessed Virgin Mary exclaims to her kinswoman Elizabeth, "My soul magnifies the Lord!" What might that mean?

A hint, I think, comes from Mary's question to the Archangel Gabriel in the Douay-Rheims translation, "How shall this be done, because I know not man?" Modern translations direct us to its meaning that Mary was a virgin and that she had not engaged in sexual intimacy with a man. This use of the word "knowing" is paralleled in the Old Testament when describing the procreative act—the marital act—such as "Adam knew Eve" in Genesis 4:1.

Such "knowing" need not be sexual intimacy. Indeed, we make the distinction in knowing about a person (e.g. when we have a passing knowledge of a person, meaning that we know he exists and some characteristics but not much more) and a knowing which implies a friendship. In a similar way, a person may know things about God, such as the belief that God is Triune, three persons united in one nature and being, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But knowing about God does not necessarily mean an intimate relationship with God—a friendship with God.

In the Canticle of Zechariah (part of this morning's Gospel at Mass), Zechariah foretells the mission of his son, John the Baptist:

You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
        for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
        to give his people knowledge of salvation
        by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
        the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
        to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
        and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

The Lord prepares his way by giving them knowledge of their salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. When the Pharisees and Sadducees approach John to be baptized, he asks (Mt 3:7), "Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"  Knowing that we're separated from God—in a state of spiritual death—is a good place to start in repairing our friendship with God. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Ps 111:10). Through prevenient grace, Mary had never lost friendship with God, but she must have realized the terrible brokenness of those around her who had a broken relationship with God. And it's likely that her awareness of the gift she had been given had brought about the feeling of gratitude and thanksgiving.

Turning back to Luke 1:46, in which Mary begins her canticle, "My soul magnifies the Lord," I think it's helpful to see other translations of the verse. NABRE has "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord." NCV has "My soul praises the Lord." NASB has "My soul exalts the Lord." The Message Bible, which follows the philosophy of dynamic equivalence in translating (as opposed to formal equivalence or a more literal translation), has "I’m bursting with God-news." And interestingly, NIV has "My soul glorifies the Lord." Again, I think all of these are helpful.

But how could a soul glorify or magnify the Lord? There is nothing any creature can do to add to God's greatness. Rather, a soul demonstrates God's glory and greatness by allowing God to work within that soul, and thus providing an example of God's work. As is often attributed to St. Irenaeus, "the glory of God is man fully alive" or in context:

For the glory of God is a living man; and the life of man consists in beholding God. For if the manifestation of God which is made by means of the creation, affords life to all living in the earth, much more does that revelation of the Father which comes through the Word, give life to those who see God.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God grew within Mary. She willingly received the Word, and in the Nativity of Jesus Christ, she gave what she received to the whole world. In using the Mother of God, the Theotokos, as a model, we can follow her example. By the power of the Holy Spirit and if we are well disposed, we may receive the Word in the Eucharist, allowing the Word to grow within us. And in participating or cooperating with God's grace within us, we can give this work within an outward expression by our charity, as Mary gave birth to Jesus.

Divine Liturgy

Image by Robert LeBlanc from blending Robert Cheaib's photo at Pixabay with the painting: Christ Crucified by Diego Velázquez

Whenever I read about the deeply flawed hierarchy of the Church Militant, I mentally insert this from Hilaire Belloc:

“The Catholic Church is an institution I am bound to hold divine – but for unbelievers a proof of its divinity might be found in the fact that no merely human institution conducted with such knavish imbecility would have lasted a fortnight.”

But of course the problem isn't merely the clergy. To borrow an anecdote about Chesterton: What's wrong with the Church? I am.

I think we all could do with a little liturgical catechesis. We first admit our wretchedness and need for help and healing: Christe eleison! Then we listen and absorb the Word within us (consuming Him!), so that united with Jesus Christ we may offer ourselves and our lives to the Father, all the while giving thanks for the transformation of our stony hearts into real hearts of flesh that we hope will beat in unison with our Savior. We really need to take the movement within the Mass very seriously, and then go forth out into the world: Ite Missa Est!

Man and Woman He Created Them

Image: The Creation of Adam (1510), from the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo, downloaded from Wikimedia. The image and title are inspired by Pope Saint John Paul II's Theology of the Body published as Man and Woman He Created Them.

By sharing his story, Tom Hoopes has given me a gift. I've had a similar experience which I've almost always shared as part of the story of my return to the Catholic Church, but I've not been able to connect it well with the whole of my reversion to the faith. That is, this experience, which I know is a significant part of my faith journey, never seemed to fit well with with the rest of my journey. It's been a puzzle piece that never seemed to fit in with the rest of the puzzle of my life.

In early 1995, when I had already been long lapsed in the practice of my faith, I had a similar powerful experience. Of his experience (which is similar to mine), Tom Hoopes writes, "I didn’t see any visions, feel a physical sensation, or hear an audible voice, but I remember it vividly, and it was unmistakably him." Until now, the penny had not dropped, but now, in a concrete way, I see "it was unmistakably him." In pride, I might give my intellect all the credit, but in reality it was by the grace of God. I came to the realization and knowledge that contraception was immoral. God smiled upon me.

I was tapping away on my 386 while listening to C-SPAN in the background. And on the TV, there was a talk or forum on what we would understand now to be about LGBT rights. A man, who I think was a journalist, asked a question, something like, "if heterosexuals can do it, why can't homosexuals do it?" I don't remember exactly what the question was, but it set off a train of thought that brought me to the conclusion that contraception was immoral. My first thought was a humble one, and I think that this is important to note, since it signifies the softening of my heart to an encounter with the truth. In 1995, like most or many people of that time, I could have been reasonably characterized as a homophobe. Back then, I could never knowingly have had a friendship with a gay man. The thought of sodomy brought about only a visceral reaction and it was a strong one. "Icky" and "gross" are far too weak to express my feelings. But my first thought to this man's question was "he's right!" or "he has a point!" And so I questioned: why should I consider the homosexual act to be wrong? Why is the heterosexual act okay? I thought, is marriage that which "blesses" the sexual act, so that if we allowed homosexuals to marry, then the homosexual act would be okay? Intuitively, I dismissed that as an arbitrary logical move. So I asked, why marriage? (whisper: children). What is it about marriage which makes the heterosexual act morally acceptable? And I realized that the procreative aspect is the key to understanding why the heterosexual act within marriage is morally acceptable. And on the flip side, I realized that if contraception is morally acceptable then anything is morally acceptable—for once procreation is "logically" separated from the sexual act, all judgments on the morality of consenting sexual acts are arbitrary and visceral.

My thoughts were more primitive then, but under the guidance of the Church's Magisterium, the teachings of the Church, I've come to a more mature understanding of the meaning of human sexuality. Indeed, the Church's teaching on human sexuality has been a motive of credibility for me, evidence that through the Church, a divine light shines in the world. It is as the hymn goes, I once was blind, but now I see.

The Infant in My Womb Leaped for Joy

Drawing: Mary and Eve by Sr. Grace Remington, downloaded from Catholic Link.

Sister Grace Remington's drawing captures my feeling (today and most days). If I dare, if I could, I'd have Eve represent me as a repentant sinner in the drawing. A prayer starts, "O Jesus, living in Mary, come and live in your servants..."

But there is a similar picture that comes from Scripture. This event happens immediately after the Word of God becomes incarnate in the womb of Mary. The archangel Gabriel tells Mary that her kinswoman is six months pregnant, and Mary departs in haste to her cousin. This is called (in praying the Rosary) the Mystery of the Visitation. Raphael has a wonderful painting of this event.

Painting: The visitation by Raphael, 1517, downloaded from Wikimedia.

After the news broke on the Supreme Court's decision on Dobbs, I sent the following in an email to some friends (this by no means unique, I've seen similar published around the web):

Given that the majority on the court are Catholics (and the core of the majority opinion today), I wonder if it's mere coincidence that the opinion was released today, on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Even more, today's solemnity displaced the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist (which is ordinarily celebrated on June 24th). This is appropriate, as John said, "He must increase; I must decrease" (Jn 3:30). In Luke 1:39-44, when mother Mary enters Elizabeth's house, John leaps for joy in his mother's womb at the entrance of the newly conceived Jesus within the womb of Mary.

As mercy pours out of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I thank our heavenly Father for all the gifts we've been given, including the gift of life, and for those who embrace it, the gift of eternal life in communion with the Holy Trinity. And I pray that He continues to rain down grace upon us to strengthen us for the upcoming battles, and that we unite ourselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 

Because, I desire a change in my heart, I concluded with a couple of favorite passages in Scripture:

(RSVCE) Ez 36
26 A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances.

(RSVCE) Ps 51
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    and put a new and right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from thy presence,
    and take not thy holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of thy salvation,
    and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Since today was a celebration of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, this morning's Gospel reading finished with the line: "[Mary] kept all these things in her heart." It's something worth pondering.