Mild, meek, pregnant, servant-of-the-Lord Mary takes a trip to see her cousin Elizabeth, who is miraculously pregnant in her own right. Elizabeth sees Mary and John the Baptist leaps in Elizabeth’s womb at the sound of Mary’s voice. Filled with joy, Elizabeth shouts out what is to become the Hail Mary prayer.
Sweet stuff, right? You then expect mild, meek, pregnant, servant-of-the-Lord Mary and Elizabeth to continue on with a perfect WE/Oxygen/Lifetime movie of the week scene, but…
Mary, little Mary, belts out this zinger, The Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55):
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our fathers.”
Holy Toledo! What just happened?
Mary has been transformed after she accepts God’s will. She has flipped the tassel over to the other side. She has graduated from a meek, mild servant of the Lord to the MOTHER OF CHRIST.
She speaks with the confidence of the Spirit. She speaks from the power of God, a power which will eventually help Mary endure the pain of motherly loss.
She lays down the law. This is what God is, this is what He did for me, and this is what He wants done. How can you not like that?
I can imagine bystanders in close vicinity to Mary slowly backing away…
Author Note for the New Year: Pope Benedict call us to a “Year of Faith” and to a renewed evangelism. In 2013, I want to use the Holy Family as my guide to navigate the through the Five Wounds of Secularization (Busyness, Consumerism/Materialism, Violence/Revenge, Individualism, and Entitlement).
Copyright © 2013, Mike Hays
Mike Hays
Mike Hays is a husband, a father of three, a lifelong Kansan and works as a molecular microbiologist. Besides writing, he has been a high school strength and conditioning coach, a football coach and a baseball coach. His debut middle grade historical fiction novel, THE YOUNGER DAYS, is a 2012 recipient of The Catholic Writer's Guild Seal of Approval Award. You can find it at the publisher's website or on Amazon.
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