"My
soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in
God my savior". With these words Mary first acknowledges the
special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal
favors, bestowed unceasingly on the human race.
When
a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord,
he proclaims God’s greatness. His observance of God’s commands,
moreover, shows that he has God’s power and greatness always at
heart. His spirit rejoices in God his savior and delights in the mere
recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation.
These
words are often for all God’s creations, but especially for the
Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual
love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints,
she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her savior, for she knew that
he who was the source of eternal salvation would be born in time in
her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord.
– Saint
Bede the Venerable
Saint
Bede the Venerable's patronage:
Lectors; English writers and historians.
