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. Mark Dohle, OCSO
Holy Spirit Monastery
