The Holy Father gives a catechetical instruction every Wednesday during his General Audience. Pope John Paul II's initial catechesis were his instructions on the Theology of the Body. Before his death, he began a long series on the Psalms and Canticles of the Liturgy of the Hours, the Prayer of the Church.
Pope Benedict XVI continued the series until its fulfillment, yesterday, in his catechesis on the Magnificat, the Canticle of Mary in the Gospel of Luke. (I've taken the liberty of copying the entire text from Zenit--hope you like it!) Ending with the song of Mary has important resonances within the life of the Church--not least of which is a reference to the culminating chapter of Vatican II's Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church: The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God in the Mystery of Christ and the Church.
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
1. We have come to the end of the long itinerary begun exactly five years ago by my beloved predecessor, the unforgettable Pope John Paul II. In his catecheses, the great Pope wished to go through the whole sequence of Psalms and canticles that make up the fabric of the fundamental prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours and of Vespers.
On arriving at the end of this pilgrimage through the texts, as a journey through a garden full of flowers of praise, invocation, prayer and contemplation, we now make room for that canticle that seals the whole celebration of Vespers, the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55). It is a canticle that reveals the spirituality of the biblical "anawim," namely, of those faithful who acknowledged themselves "poor" not only because of their detachment from all idolatry of wealth and power, but also because of their profound humility of heart, free from the temptation to pride, open to saving divine grace. The whole Magnificat, which we just heard interpreted by the Choir of the Sistine Chapel, is characterized by this "humility," in Greek "tapeinosis," which indicates a situation of concrete humility and poverty.
2. The first movement of the Marian canticle (cf. Luke 1:46-50) is like a soloist who raises her voice to heaven to the Lord. To be pointed out, in fact, is the use of the first person which resounds constantly:
"my soul …, my spirit …, my Savior …, will call me blessed …, has done great things in me…."
The soul of the prayer is, therefore, the celebration of divine grace that has come into Mary's
heart and life, making her the Mother of the Lord. We hear precisely the Virgin's voice speaking in this way of her Savior, who has done great things in her soul and body. The profound structure of her canticle of prayer is praise, thanksgiving, grateful joy. But this personal testimony is not solitary and private, merely individualistic, as the Virgin Mary is conscious that she has a mission to fulfill for humanity and that her life is framed in the history of salvation. Thus she can say: "His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him" (verse 50). With this praise to the Lord, the Virgin gives voice to all creatures redeemed after her "fiat," who in thefigure of Jesus, born of the Virgin, find the mercy of God.
3. At this point develops the second poetic and spiritual movement of the Magnificat (cf. verses 51-55). It has the tone of a choir, as if to Mary's voice were joined that of the community of the faithful, which celebrates God's amazing decisions. In the Greek original of the Gospel of Luke we find seven verbs in aorist, which indicate many other actions that the Lord has carried out permanently in history:
"he has shown strength with his arm …, he has scattered the proud …, he has put down the mighty from their thrones …, exalted those of low degree …, he has filled the hungry with good things …, the rich he has sent empty away …, has helped his servant Israel."
Evident in these seven divine works is the "style" in which the Lord of history inspires his conduct: He places himself on the side of the least. Often, his plan is hidden under the opaque terrain of human vicissitudes, in which the "proud," the "mighty" and the "rich" triumph. However, in the end, his secret strength is destined to manifest who God's real favorites are: the "faithful" to his Word, "the humble," "the hungry," "his servant Israel," namely, the community of the People of God that, as Mary, is constituted by those who are "poor," pure and simple of heart. It is that "little flock" which Jesus invites not to be afraid, as the Father has willed to give it his kingdom (cf. Luke 12:32). Thus, this canticle invites us to associate ourselves to this little flock, to really be members of the People of God in purity and simplicity of heart, in love of God.
4. Let us accept, then, the invitation that St. Ambrose makes to us in his commentary on the Magnificat. The great doctor of the Church exhorts:
"In the heart of each one may Mary praise the Lord, in each may the spirit of Mary rejoice in the Lord; if, according to the flesh, Christ has only one mother, according to faith all souls engender Christ; each one, in fact, receives in himself the Word of God … Mary's soul magnifies the Lord and her spirit rejoices in God as, consecrated with her soul and spirit to the Father and to the Son, she adores with devout affection only one God, from whom everything proceeds, and only one Lord, in virtue of whom all things exist" ("Esposizione del Vangelo Secondo Luca," 2,26-27: Saemo, XI, Milan-Rome, 1978, p. 169).
In this wonderful commentary on the Magnificat of St. Ambrose I am always moved by this amazing word:
"If, according to the flesh, Christ has only one mother, according to faith all souls engender Christ; each one, in fact, receives in himself the Word of God."
Thus the holy doctor, interpreting the words of the Virgin herself, invites us to offer the Lord a dwelling in our souls and in our lives. Not only must we bear him in our hearts, but we must take him to the world, so that we too might engender Christ for our times. Let us pray to the Lord to help us to praise him with Mary's spirit and soul and to take Christ again to our world.
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