Part of a series of four Advent reflections centred on Mary and her song in Luke 1:46-55.
“She has shown strength with her arm;
she has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
She has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
she has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.“
In the first week of Advent we met Mary as our ancestor. What kind of ancestor is Mary? In her song called the Magnificat we meet Mary as a prophet. We might think of prophets as people who predict the future, like Nostradamus, or Cassandra from Greek mythology, but this isn’t what Mary does. A prophet is someone who speaks God’s truth. God’s word bubbles up through God’s prophets, people like Miriam, Amos, Hannah and Isaiah.
The types of words prophets speak can fall into two categories. Firstly, when those in power say “all hope is lost” then it’s the prophet’s job to say “don’t despair! God is our hope and our strength!” Powerful people often confuse themselves with God. They think the end of their power is the end of everything. The prophet says, “there is life after death, after the death of your pride and control.” Secondly, when the powerful say “We are a great nation! We are the answer to your prayers. There is no other alternative!” the prophet says, “the end is nigh.” The prophet punctures the delusions of the powerful. One day they will be in the grave just like everyone else. The prophet both comforts the despairing and shakes people out of their complacency. We are God’s beloved and we are also dust.
We live in a world where the rich are still on their thrones. The lowly are still oppressed and the hungry stay hungry. Mary prophecies the end of the world as we know it. The world she describes is one we don’t yet know. For it to come about, our world will have to end. For some of us, especially those of us who benefit from the way things are, the end of the world is a terrifying prospect. With the ongoing climate crisis, the end of the world as we know feels very close. Mary reminds us that this world must end, and that God will be with us in its ending and is waiting for us on the other side.
God of the prophets Miriam, Hannah, Amos, Isaiah and Mary,
Thank you for truth-tellers, those who speak words of comfort and discomfort
Thank you for those who puncture our despair and false hopes.
Thank you for those who announce your love for us.
May we be your faithful friends, as we work for the end of this world.
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Jolly Quaker 
Thanks for this. It is a cruel irony that a community that holds the magnificat in a special place still manages to act in the opposite way, to stand on the side of human powers etc.
I was thinking about this after visiting a Gurdwara with my Sikh friend last week. I’m only mentioning this because the tendency is easier to see in other groups than in ourselves sometimes – but for a group which talks about peace so much, they’ve got a horrible history of violence and disunity amongst themselves.
Like my Sikh friend, I think we also have a religious narrative we are supposed to be embodying. And I suspect like almost everyone with a beautiful narrative, we often do the opposite of the teaching.
This Advent I’m grateful for the generosity of my neighbours who have much to teach us and the lessons I can see in the mirror they reflect back to us.
Thanks for these reflections Joe.