CONNECTION TO A SONG OF JOY (MAGNIFICAT) - December 22, 2004

Homily for December 22, 2004

CONNECTION TO A SONG OF JOY

(MAGNIFICAT)

Yesterday we talked about the connection of the Messiah to his cousin Elizabeth, with  the gospel narrative taken from Lk. 1:39-45.

Today’s gospel narrative, from Lk. 1:46-56, expresses Mary’s response to the welcoming words of Elizabeth upon seeing her and being greeted by her.

This song of joy, Mary’s Magnificat, finds a counterpart in Hanna’s Song as recoded in the First Book of Samuel 2”1-10. For comparison, let us take these two songs side by side and compare them to each other in their forms.

MAGNIFICAT (Lk. 1:46-56)		HANNA’S SONG (1 S. 2:1-10)
VERSE	TEXT	VERSE	TEXT
46-47	My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord and my spirit exults in God my Savior.	1	My heart exults in Yahweh, my horn is exulted in my God, my mouth derides my foes, for I rejoice in your saving power.
48	Because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid. Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed.	2	There is none holy as Yahweh (indeed there is no one but you) no rock like our God.
49	For the Almighty has done great things for me. His name is holy.	3-4	Do not speak and speak of haughty words, let not arrogance come from your mouth. For Yahweh is an all-knowing God and his is the weighing of deeds. The bow of the mighty is broken but the feeble have girded themselves with strength.
50-51	And his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him. He has shown the power of his arms, he has routed the proud of heart.	5	The sated hire themselves out for bread, but the famished cease from labor; the barren woman bears sevenfold but the mother of many is desolate.
52	He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.	7-8	Yahweh makes poor and rich, he humbles and also exalts. He raises the poor from the dust, he lifts the needy from the dunghill to give them a place with the princes and to assign them a seat of honor.
53	The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich he sent empty away.	9	He safeguards the steps of the faithful but the wicked vanish in darkness (for it is not by strength that man triumphs).
54-55	He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy-according to the promise he made to our ancestors - to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.	10	But enemies of Yahweh are shattered, the Most High thunders in the heavens. Yahweh judges the end of the earth, He endows his kings with power, he exalts the horn of his Anointed.
56	Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.	11	And she left  for Ramah, but the boy stayed to minister to Yahweh in the presence of Eli the priest.

After establishing the similarity in form for these two songs, let us go now to the parallel texts of the Magnificat.

As a whole, the Magnificat is paralleled to Is. 29:19, which says:

“But the lowly will rejoice in Yahweh even more, and the poorest exult in the Holy One of Israel, for the tyrants shall be no more, and the scoffers vanish and all be destroyed who are disposed to do evil.”

In summary, verse of Isaiah and the Magnificat says: the lowly, the poorest, will rejoice and exult in Yahweh, the tyrants, the scoffers, and those disposed for evil will be destroyed.

Let us see now in detail the particular verses in the Magnificat, whether their parallel texts say the same thing as this little summary.

Verses 46-47 has the following parallel passages:

1.      Is. 61:10 – I exult for joy in Yahweh, my soul rejoices in my God, for he has clothed me in the garments of salvation, he has wrapped me in the cloak of integrity.

2.      1 S. 2:1 -  My heart exults in Yahweh, my horn is exalted in my God, my mouth derides my foes, for I rejoice in your saving power.

3.      1 S. 1:11 –  Yahweh Sabaoth, if you will take notice of the distress of your servant, and bear me in mind and not forget your servant and give her a man-child, I will give him to Yahweh for the whole of his life and no razor  shall ever touch his head.

4.      Ps 132:16 – Vest her priests in salvation and her devout shall shout for joy.

5.      Ba 5:2        - Wrap the cloak of the integrity  of God around you, put the diadem of the glory of the Eternal on your head.

Verse 48 refers to the parallel in the following places:

1. Lk 11:27      - Now as he was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice   and said: “Happy the womb that bore you and the breast that sucked you.

2. Gn 30:13 -   Then Leah said, ‘ What happiness! Women will call me happy! So she named him Asher.

3. Ps 126:3 -    What marvels he did for us, and how overjoyed we were!!

For Verses 49-50, the parallel verse is:

1. Ps 111:9      - Quickly he comes to his people’s rescue, imposing his covenant once and for all; so holy his name, commanding our dread.

Verse 51-52, the parallels are:

1. Ps 89:10      - You split Rahab like carcass and shattered your enemies with your mighty arm.

2. Ps 138:6      - From far above, Yahweh sees the humble, from far away, he marks down the arrogant.

3. Is 57:15       - For thus speaks the most High  whose name is in eternity, whose name is holy: ‘ I live in a high and holy place, but I am also with the contrite and humbled spirit to give the humbled spirit new life to revive contrite hearts.

4.  Si 33:12      - has cursed and humiliated by degrading them from their positions.

5. Si 10:14-15  - The Lord has thrown down ruler’s thrones, and seated the humble in their place. The Lord has plucked up proud men by the roots, and planted the lowly in their place.

6. Si 11:5         - Monarchs had been made to sit on the ground.

7. Ezk 17-24    - And every tree in the field will learn that 1, Yahweh, am the one who stunts tall trees and makes the low ones grow, who whithers green trees and makes the withered green.

Verse 52 has the parallel texts as follows:

1. Job 5:11 - If his will is to rescue the downcast or raise the afflicted to heights of joy, he wrecks the plans of the artful, and brings to  naught their intrigues.

2. Ps  75:7-8 - Lowering one, raising another.

3. Job 12:19 - He makes priests walk barefoot and overthrown the powers that one established.

Verse 53- has the following parallels:

1.      Ps 107:9 - Satisfying the hungry, he fills the starving with good things.

2.      Ps 98:3            - Mindful of his love and faithfulness to the House of Israel.

3.       Gn 12:3 - I will curse those who slight you, all the tribes of the earth shall bless themselves by you.

4.      Is 41:8-9 - You Israel my servant. Jacob whom I have chosen descendant  of Abraham my friend

5.      Gn 13:15 - All the land within sight, I will give to you and your descendants forever.

6.      Gn 22:18 - All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.

7.      Ac3:25   - You are heirs of the prophets, the heirs of the covenant God made with our ancestors when he told Abraham: in your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.

What is very prominent in this song of joy is the connection to a crisis situation where kinsfolk tend be aware of the danger to life and destruction yet are open to the opportunities for bonding and sharing. This is clear in Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth (as narrated in the yesterday’s gospel) and the visit of Elizabeth’s neighbors (tomorrow’s gospel narrative)  in order to share her pain at a time when Elizabeth needed a woman to be at her side during her delivery, but also to share her joy in welcoming a new member of the family after her delivery.

            Because of the connection to this experienced crisis situation is the claim to the tenacious faith of the Messiah’s womenfolk which made them recognize the presence of a danger yet were able to make a leap at the opportunities that were presented.

            Tomorrow’s gospel will bring us to our eight Messianic connection, the Connection to the priest Zechariah, spouse of Elizabeth, and father of John the Baptist.