Luke 1:46-55
New Catholic Bible
46 The Canticle of Mary.[a] And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
48 For he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant;
henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
49 The Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
50 His mercy is shown from age to age
to those who fear him.
51 He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has routed those who are arrogant in the desires of their hearts.
52 He has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
54 He has come to the aid of Israel his servant,
ever mindful of his merciful love,
55 according to the promises he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
Footnotes
- Luke 1:46 Mary’s splendid canticle, the Magnificat, proclaims a new course for history, the end of injustice, and the birth of a new world, that of the kingdom, in which everything is different from our habitual experience. Every people gives thanks to God; the joy of the poor bursts forth; hope is born for the salvation of the despised of this world.
The Magnificat, which is very similar to the canticle of Hannah (see 1 Sam 2:1-10) and has become the Christian song of thanksgiving, lends itself to be the prayer of those who have suffered but have never lost their hope in God. The entire prayer of the Old Testament converges upon this one, but with a wholly renewed power; it is easy to see why the Church never tires of reciting it. It is one of the gems of the Church’s daily office of Evening Prayer (Vespers).
