There’s Something About Mary
(Lynn Casteel Harper)

Luke 1:52-55

“God has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
    and lifted up the lowly;
God has filled the hungry with good things,
    and sent the rich away empty.
God has helped his servant Israel,
    in remembrance of God’s mercy,
according to the promise God made to our ancestors,
    to Abraham and to God’s descendants forever.”

After saying a risky yes to a divinely unorthodox pregnancy, Mary boldly declares a vision of God’s reign in which God throws “down the powerful from their thrones, and lifts up the lowly;” and “has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.”  A prophetic, truth-telling disciple, Mary announces a new order, in which the Creator of Heaven and Earth favors her lowly estate, while scattering the proud in their hearts. 

Mary’s vision of power topples the usual visions of power as physical strength, economic wealth, intellectual superiority, or military dominance.  In her vision, the poor, the hungry, the lowly—they are the chosen ones, the truly blessed, the friends of God.

And so, let us sit with Mary in prayer for a moment and allow her vision, her spirit, and her faith touch and inspire our own.

-Rev. Lynn Casteel Harper

How is Mary’s song inspiring you?

What song do you think Mary would sing today?

This episode was written and recorded by Lynn Casteel Harper. It was produced by Jim Keat. Background tracks include Relenquish by Podington Bear, Picturebook by Dan Depper, Seeking Clarity by Alex Fitch, and Canada Goose by Podington Bear.

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