‘My
soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he
has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call
me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is
his name.
It is with faith that Mary begins her song to the
Lord. Her soul magnifies the Lord. I love that phrase. Her soul will make the
Lord larger. Her spirit rejoices in God,
her Savior. Deep expressions of faith in
the Lord. The rest defines why she has
such faith. God has looked with favor ‘on
the lowliness’ of his servant. All
generations will call her blessed. The
Mighty One has done great things. Holy is
His Name.
If there is not faith that God can change things, make
things right, there is no chance for peace.
Because peace must be laid upon the power of the Living God. Humanity is incapable of mastering that peace
for ourselves. We do not have faith in
ourselves, we do not have faith in one another.
Yes, exceptions do exist, but they prove the rule.
There is a story in the Bible where people have faith
in themselves. They fancy that they can
build a tower that will reach up to heaven, the tower of Babel. To
prevent them, God mixes up their languages so they scatter across the face of
the earth. It is intriguing to consider
what humanity may be capable of now as we continue to become a more globalized
community.
There is this dichotomy that works in the concept of
faith that we must be aware of as we consider how it is a foundation of
peace. On the one hand, faith seems to
break down. We believe in our Father,
who art in heaven. But humans continue
to kill each other off in droves. It is
a challenge to have faith in an ultimate being who doesn’t seem to do anything
in times of crisis.
On the other hand, faith cannot stand alone. Faith is joined to the fight for
justice. Faith is joined to the
requirement to love. It is there, as we
are working for peace, that the power of faith shines through. The direct work of faith is what I call a
miracle, and miracles truly happen. They
seem to happen all the more often when love and justice are present.
When Mary has faith, her soul magnifies the Lord,
makes him larger. When there are many of
us magnifying the Lord, what power our faith takes on.
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