‭‭Luke‬ ‭1:46‭-‬55‬ ‭NLT‬‬. “The Magnificat: Mary’s Song Of Praise: Mary responded, “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me. He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him. His mighty arm has done tremendous things! He has scattered the proud and haughty ones. He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands. He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful. For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”

Day 1 —“Wait With A Purpose”

“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (v. 46)

“Every December when his children were little, pastor and writer Lou Lotz and his wife would make an Advent Activity Calendar and hang it on the fridge. Every day they’d lift up the paper flap and there would be a family activity for the day and an accompanying Scripture reading. The calendar provided a way to focus attention on the coming celebration of Jesus’ birth.

That’s the point of Advent calendars, and the season of Advent—to prepare for the coming (or advent) of Jesus. Just as all creation waited for Jesus’ birth, we now wait for Jesus to come again. In our passage today, Mary provides us with an example. As she waits for Jesus to be born she worships God for being faithful; for taking care of his people again and again, and she joyfully welcomes her part in that work.

For kids, December can feel endless and a little empty—full of nothing but waiting. For adults, in contrast, December can feel overstuffed and sometimes a little empty of joy. In the devotions between now and Christmas, we invite you to wait joyfully. Each day we will offer a Bible reading and short activity—acts of service, fun, reflection, or prayer. With Mary, we hope you will lean on God’s faithfulness in your waiting and find ways to participate in God’s good work in the world.

Today’s Activity: Make a list of the things you are looking forward to in this Advent season, and prioritize those that make your spirit rejoice in God like Mary did.”

[I found this plan today on The Youversion app. This is actually the devotional for December 1st, but it's too good to wait another year to share it. I'll share the December 16th devotional later. If you would like to read and download the whole inspirational advent calendar, click here.]

The Magnificat

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly 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 lowly. 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.

Mary’s cooperation with God is not aimed primarily at her being crowned in heaven, but at the in-breaking of God’s kingdom of love and justice. Mary’s Magnificat proclaims the scattering of the proud and the casting down of the mighty, the lifting up of the lowly and the filling of the hungry. [Yet most of us are] much closer to pride and might and wealth than [we are] to lowliness and hunger. And so the promise God makes through Mary, [then and now,] is that the path God lays out, the path Mary has followed, will involve [each soul] being humbled, in God’s mercy... the church, too, will be and must be humbled, in God’s mercy, to become what we are called to be, following the promise we see in Mary as our “beginning and image.” [That amazing] hope of the Assumption [teaches us that] in order to share any Christian hope at all— we have to start by admitting that both we and the world are broken in a way that we cannot fix on our own. We have to admit that we hope for something we cannot achieve ourselves. And then, even in the midst of our sin and hypocrisy, we begin to cooperate with the freedom God offers, the freedom Mary knew fully, to be humbled in order to be lifted up. Mary’s Assumption is the promise that such hope is better than we can imagine, and the reminder that the way to it is through God’s mercy rather than our own strength.

Sam Sawyer, S.J

Christmas Song Story: Gabriel’s Message

“Gabriel’s Message” is a Christmas folk carol that tells of Gabriel’s announcement to the Virgin Mary that she would become the mother of the Christ. The song is also known as “The angel Gabriel from heaven came” from the first line and based on the passage from Luke 1:46-55. For this reason the text is known as “The Magnificat.” The hymn is considered a Basque Christmas folk carol from the…

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And Mary said: ‘My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, 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.

Luke 1:46‭-‬50

Mary’s song, known as the Magnificat, is awe inspiring. Mary's words display an attitude of thankfulness in the face of ridicule and condemnation. Mary could have focused on the situation and felt nothing but fear. Fear of rejection, fear of being ostracized. Instead, she focuses on praising her Creator and her Saviour. The message for us is that we are to have faith and trust in our God. No matter the situation or circumstance, God has it all in His hands, that should cause us to praise and thank Him always. Not just this Christmas season, but all seasons.

would you still accept him?

Meowgnifico or Magnificat? What are we going to call him?

“𝘔𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥..."

Mogtober 2023 #15 — Fen + A Cat Meme

Well, now Jupiter thought he really had seen everything. 

   The blanket was the size of a tent intended for a commander of old, all big and tent-like and not at all compact the way tents were now. 

   This, of course, was only a guess at the size of the fluffy fabric, because it was currently wrapped around Fen, fully. Only her head and ears poked out. 

   He spluttered. 

   Fen stirred, and opened a baleful eye at him, as if she was saying, I dare you. I dare you to make fun of me. 

   “Umm…” he said. “Frank bought burritos?” Why did he say that? That was entirely irrelevant. 

   Fen seemed to agree. “What does that have to do with anything? Let me sleep.”

   “They were just perfect,” he said. The word purrito came to mind, but he shoved it down his throat. Even he didn’t risk Fenestra’s ire. 

   “Alright, bye!” He said, and bolted away. 

   Fenestra grumbled, then settled back into sleep. 

just finished the hsr main quest. the only thing to say i guess is. happy transitioning(?) genderfluidity(?) to sam/firefly!

Holy Is His Name | Magnificat | Canticle / Song of Mary | John Michael Talbot | Sunday 7pm Choir

In retrospect mildly confused by how many Christian songs my state school sang but at least we didn't miss out the second verse of O Holy Night. Like COWARDS.

“Ya todo ha terminado, Redentor;

duerme, entra en el descanso merecido,

lavaremos tu Cuerpo tan herido

con lágrimas y ungüentos de dolor.

Besamos tus heridas, mi Señor:

a tus pies con un beso arrepentido,

a tus manos con beso enternecido,

tu pecho con pasión y con amor.

Y ahora te sembramos en el huerto

esperando que sea primavera.

Lleva la buena nueva a los que han muerto,

devuelve a Adán su libertad primera,

no tardes en volver a nuestro puerto,

que estamos impacientes, a la espera”.

— Anónimo

The Assumption

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”

The Magnificat, Mary’s hymn of joy, marks the first time anyone recognized her as the mother of Our Lord. And it marks the beginning of Mary’s public ministry.

Wait. What? Mary had a public ministry?

We don’t have any Mary parables. She wasn’t out teaching, healing the sick, raising the dead, or any of that stuff.

Right. Because that wasn’t her public ministry. Mary’s public ministry wasn’t being Christ.

Mary’s public ministry was being a Christian. Being the first Christian.

With Mary’s “yes,” she was all in. No reservations. Nothing held back. 100% in for God’s plan.

Which means that Mary lived the faith. Without counting the cost.

So it should surprise no one that we look to her as our model. Our first and best example of how to follow Jesus. Of what it really means to be a Christian.

And the Assumption? If we see Mary for who she really is, the first Christian. The first to be 100% in. Then it makes perfect sense that the God who was with her every step of the way would bring her home.

Good for her. But what does any of that mean for you and me, two millennia later?

It means that Mary is our example of how to live the faith, our roadmap. In the face of all of the heartache and all of the tears, with all that she went through, Mary shows us what it really means to be a Christian.

The Assumption is nothing less than proof of God’s promise. God’s promise to Mary. God’s promise to each one of us.

That in spite of the heartache, in spite of the tears. That no matter what we go through. God will be with us, every step of the way. And that at the last, God will bring us Home.

Today’s Readings

Respectfully asking for a punk version of the Magnificat. I mean what's more punk than than this

He has shown the strength of his arm, has scattered the proud in their deceit. He has lifted up the lowly and cast down the mighty from their thrones. He has filled the hungry with good things and has sent the rich away empty.

Like no offense to existing magnificat songs but I want to feel the drums resonate in my body and guitars screeching and voices shouting the melody with the same raw energy as Mary provides. The magnificat is joyful and a promise of radical justice for the oppressed!!