JESUS CHRIST WAS BORN somewhere around 4 BCE. This year was an unforgettable and challenging year for the Jews. It’s the year when Herod the Great died. There’s always a danger of rebellion or invasion when an empire or country is in a state of transition. When Herod the Great died, the Jewish folks rebelled.
Syrian legions, under the direction of Rome, were sent to crush the rebellion. They burned the city of Sepphoris in Galilee and reduced its inhabitants to slavery. That’s important because Jesus grew up in Nazareth about 4 miles from Sepphoris. Those who could not hide from the Syrian legions were killed, raped, and enslaved.
Those who survived lost everything. Mary and Joseph, Zechariah and Elizabeth would have witnessed this horrific act, perhaps seen, or helped refugees pouring into Nazareth. Mary’s Song is sung against this backdrop. Jesus would have grown up in the shadow of this devastating event.
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THE JEWS BELIEVED that the only way to overcome the imperial power of Rome was through God’s intervention. Everyone anticipated God’s intervention. Zechariah, Elizabeth, and Mary anticipated God’s redemption from Rome’s brutal dominion.
The Romans imposed heavy taxes on the Jews. They had to choose between collaborating and resisting the Romans.
I read this week of a second-century town in modern Bulgaria. Following the death of a Roman emperor, the town chose to support a candidate for emperor who failed to gain the title. In order to appease the new emperor, the town sent a gift of 700,000 denarai (remember, one denarai is equivalent to a day’s wage) in an effort to keep the peace. Because Rome keeps peace by brutality.
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MARY’S SONG ECHOES the social upheaval and economic exploitation. The Romans economically exploited the Jews and took advantage of their natural resources. Those who were socially impacted by the Roman imperialism experienced poverty, hunger, and disease.
The Jews could barely subsist from day to day. They longed for a Messiah to bring some form of physical and spiritual healing. There was no way for them to improve their social life, which created resentment against Rome.
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GOD ACTS on behalf of Israel. God is at work now and then on behalf of his people. Christ’s salvation does not only concern a future time, but also the present time. We cannot simply spiritualize the Magnificat.
The Song of Praise demonstrates that God is concerned with the social and political realities of daily life. God acts on behalf of the oppressed. God acts against the proud and powerful.
God brings down the powerful. God lifts the lowly. God is God of this moment and all the moments to come.
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GOD ACTS on behalf of Israel. God is at work now and then on behalf of his people. Christ’s salvation does not only concern a future time, but also the present time. We cannot simply spiritualize the Magnificat.
The Song of Praise demonstrates that God is concerned with the social and political realities of daily life. God acts on behalf of the oppressed. God acts against the proud and powerful.
God brings down the powerful. God lifts the lowly. God is God of this moment and all the moments to come.
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GOD RULES; not Caesar. God rules on earth as in heaven. Jesus, the new King, rules on earth without Caesar’s permission. He rules not through violence, but he rules gently. The Song of Mary invites us to imagine how the world would look like if Jesus sat on Augustus’ throne and ruled with peace and justice.
The themes of Mary’s Song appear in every culture, society, and generation. People still anticipate deliverance from unjust rulers and unjust law.
God is present in everyday struggles and sufferings. Jesus is present in the efforts of the weak and marginalized to feed their children, pay their bills, and have health insurance. Jesus is concerned with the social realities of the first century and our time.
God still seeks partners like Mary to advocate for the marginalized and to participate in their salvation.
Speak to us, Lord.
Speak to us in the waiting, the watching,
the hoping, the longing,
the sorrow, the sighing, the rejoicing.
Speak to us by your Word in these Advent days,
and walk with us until the day of your coming. Amen.
