”The Spirituality of the Magnificat” – Fr. Robert Maloney

The Magnificat is a freedom song of the poor.  Mary, the lead singer, epitomizes the lowly of Israel, those marginalized by society, for whom there is “no room in the inn.”[1]  God is her only hope, and she sings his praises with exuberant confidence. 

As members of the Vincentian Family, we gladly join our voices to hers.

Recalling the Magnificat, Pope John Paul II writes eloquently in Redemptoris Mater.[2]

The Church’s love of preference for the poor is wonderfully inscribed in Mary’s Magnificat….  Mary is deeply imbued with the spirit of the “poor of Yahweh,” who in the prayer of the Psalms awaited from God their salvation, placing all their trust in him (cf. Pss 25; 31; 35; 55).  Mary truly proclaims the coming of the “Messiah of the poor” (Is 11:4; 61:1).  Drawing from Mary’s heart, from the depth of her faith expressed in the words of the Magnificat, the Church renews ever more effectively in herself the awareness that the truth about God who saves, the truth about God who is the source of every gift, cannot be separated from the manifestation of his love of preference for the poor and humble, that love which, celebrated in the Magnificat, is later expressed in the words and works of Jesus.

The Magnificat is important for all of us.  Many members of our Family pray it everyday.  Recently, the First General Assembly of our Vincentian Marian Youth Association, in its final document, stated:

1. We will base our Marian spirituality on the canticle of the Magnificat, which invites us to live in joyful thanksgiving to God for the wonders of salvation.

2. Inspired by this Magnificat canticle we will make a clear option for God who is the only Absolute, and we will take our place among the poor, for this is the “milieu” in which we will be living out our commitment to God.

In this article, I will examine the Magnificat in three steps:

1.           its structure,

2.           its contents,

3.            the spirituality it expresses.

For the full text visit http://www.secretariadojmv.org/inter/ingles/formacion/the_spirituality_of_the_magnificat.htm