Episode 617 The Annunciation of Mary (Luke 1:26-56)

This week we’re reading Luke 1:26-46, the annunciation of Mary and the Magnificat. In this biblical version of the Bechtel test, we find two women, Mary and her older relative Elizabeth, as the only two people on earth who know that God is in the process of upending the world. We marvel at the strength of young Mary, who doesn’t flinch when the angel Gabriel tells her she will give birth to the messiah. And we ponder the wisdom of Elizabeth who, filled with the Holy Spirit, is able to see beyond the social taboos of a pregnant teenager to recognize that the woman standing before her is the mother of God. We read Mary’s words, “My soul magnifies the Lord,” and we wonder…what do our souls magnify? And how can we recognize the subtle work of God happening right before our eyes?