Magnify

The first thing I thought of when I saw the word “Magnify” was drawing attention to my knitting mistakes! The next thing I thought of were reading glasses. We know what magnify means but when do we do it and why? When do we make something appear larger or more important or more intense than it is?

In the Magnificat, Mary proclaims how her soul magnifies the Lord. I read this as an intensification of her praise and devotion to God. She said yes to God’s gift and it must have been so overwhelming that her love spilled out in a burst of emotion where she proclaims God’s love for all God’s people especially the disenfranchised. The words are intense and are meant to disrupt the cozy view of mother and child. This is a mother’s love on steroids, one that goes beyond the son she is bringing into the world but extends to the suffering.

There is a magnification of love at Christmas. People tend to think of others, giving goes up and awareness of some of the disparate parts of our world comes out from beyond the shadows.

The Magnificat is included in Evening Prayer. Every evening, we are reminded to intensify the love of God we have been given to reach beyond ourselves and shower it on those who have been beaten down and left out.