Luke 1:46-55a

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:46b-47, ELW)

Mary’s song should, in truth, be the church’s anthem. These revolutionary lyrics encapsulate the hope and the promise of our faith, and demonstrate beyond a shadow of a doubt God’s solidarity with those who might otherwise be forgotten. If we believe that the world is not as it should be, then our unceasing prayer should be that God would overturn the order of the ages and bring to birth a new creation in which those who have been brought low will be raised up, and those who have been raised up will be brought low. Nothing less than God’s intervention can transform our weary world, and nothing less than God’s faithful love can sustain us as we eagerly await that transformation. As Christmas draws ever closer, may we be bold in joining our voices with Mary’s to announce God’s will for the whole creation, and give thanks for the birth of Christ, which makes God’s will known to all the world.

My heart shall sing of the day you bring.
Let the fires of your justice burn.
Wipe away all tears,
for the dawn draws near,
and the world is about to turn.
(“Canticle of the Turning”, Rory Cooney, ELW #723)

– Pastor Andrew Chavanak, St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA), Falls City