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My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his humble servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed,
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear Him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.
Amen. Alleluia
(Luke 1:46-55)
Mary journeys to visit her cousin Elisabeth. Upon Elisabeth's greeting, Mary praises God with her Magnificat.
The name “Magnificat” comes from the first line of the Latin form of Mary’s canticle (“Magnificat anima mea Dominum”) when translated into English becomes “My soul magnifies the Lord”. The Magnificat as recorded in the Gospel of Luke is a prayer said by the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mary proclaims the Lord’s greatness with characteristic humility and grace. In this Prayer, Mary embraces the overshadowing of God’s glory coming from His boundless fountain of grace. God’s Glory is shown to man by his unending love in the form of mercy.
St. Ambrose once said in referring to this wonderful prayer, "Let Mary's soul be in us to glorify the Lord; let her spirit be in us that we may rejoice in God our Savior."
What St Ambrose means is from Mary’s proclamation of the Magnificat, you can find a superbly and abundantly rich prayer. As such it is meditative and contemplative in nature where by, one can obtain many superlatives pointing to the goodness of God. It is a humble thanksgiving in form while at the same time an exultation of God’s greatness and acknowledgment of His love and mercy.
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