Magnificat!
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior...[i]
So begins the Blessed Virgin Mary's joyful poem of praise, as recorded by St. Luke, which has become one of the great “theme songs” of Christianity throughout its long history. In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, as well as in the Lutheran and Anglican Traditions, it is sung every evening by those who celebrate Vespers or Evensong. In the Eastern Orthodox Churches and the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches, it is sung every Sunday morning as part of their Orthros (Matins) service. In all Christian communities, it is held in honor for its place in Luke's Gospel.
In this song, we hear Mary glorifying God who has “looked with favor on his humble servant,” who has “done great things” for her, who has “shown the strength of his arm”, and “filled the hungry with good things.” But beyond her words, we can see that she is also revealing, or “magnifying” the glory of the Lord through the radiant witness of her life. And through these sung words and this example, Christians throughout the world are reminded each day to discover and to share in the same essential reality – this mystery, as St. Paul puts it, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory [ii]. Just as Mary conceived and carried Jesus in her womb, so also are we called to receive him in the depths of our being, so that we might be united to God and transformed by his grace. And in so doing we are called to become, like Mary, those who joyfully magnify the Lord to the world around us.
For those of us who are responsible for sacred music in the Church's liturgical worship, we can see how this Magnificat is also suited to be at the heart of all our work. Whether it be in the way we make music, in the way we relate to one another, or in the way we meet the many challenges which belong to our vocation, we are called to reveal, each in our own small way, the infinite goodness of the Lord. As St. Pachomius (A.D. 292-348) put it: “If you see a man pure and humble, that is a great vision. For what is greater than such a vision, to see the invisible God in a visible man, the temple of God.”[iii] But here also is our dilemma: for most of us know from long painful experience that our lives, filled as they are with human weakness, struggle, failure, and sin, seem to be a far cry from such a luminous witness. And so the temptation can be to regard this model as a distant, unattainable ideal rather than a reality intended for our own lives today.
Or we musicians might seek the fulfillment of this call by accomplishing “big” things: in composing or performing great works that elicit the admiration of others through their beauty, brilliance, or emotional content. While in certain circumstances such pursuits can be appropriate and edifying, they do not in themselves manifest the pure and humble heart of Mary's song – and sometimes can obscure this heart. So what then is the key principle, if there be one, that will allow us in our music and in our lives to participate in the joyful praise of the Magnificat?
Is this key not in cultivating what has been traditionally called the “interior life” of Faith, in fidelity to Christ and his Church? In other words, in allowing the Holy Spirit to enter into, permeate, and transform every aspect of our music and our lives? Such a path is not a simplistic solution, but rather a life-long quest which requires diligence and perseverance in the sacramental life, prayer, study, reflection, and faithful action. At the same time, the basis for such efforts is in realizing our radical poverty before God, and in seeking his mercy and grace anew each day – which he is faithful to pour out on us in abundance. The frustration mentioned above about seeing the painful incongruity between glowing biblical models and our own lives, is for most of us the necessary gateway to any authentic Christian spirituality. But we must not stop at this gateway, as if it were a roadblock. Instead we must keep entering through it each day, onto the path of repentance, peace with God in Christ, and “walking in the Spirit.” And as the power to do this comes from above rather than from ourselves, the natural response is peace, gratitude, and joy - “My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
Now as this quality of the interior life is of greater importance than our level of artistic / musical greatness, it is often in the most humble of circumstances that the glory of God is most clearly communicated in our music: in Mary's Magnificat, in Jesus chanting with the Apostles at the Last Supper, in Paul and Silas singing hymns while sitting in prison. Or in more recent times, the sixteen Carmelites of Compiegne chanting psalms and hymns as they were led, one by one, to the guillotine during the French Revolution. Maximilian Kolbe leading his fellow prisoners in singing hymns as they were being starved to death in Bunker 13 of Auschwitz.
And for us: in a refugee camp, in a prison chapel, or in a small parish with only minimal resources; settings such as these can also be privileged opportunities for the grace of God to be manifested in our sacred music, in the midst of our weakness and limitations. This does not give us license to be negligent of the indispensable practical dimensions of music-making and building our programs, or of investing in the professional help we need. On the contrary, an authentic interior life leads to that peace whose fruit is wisdom and diligence. Self-centeredness tends to foster obstinacy in our own fixed ideas, ways, and preferences, whereas the love of God impels us to go beyond our comfort zone in the lively pursuit of truth and love, of life-long learning and growth. Thus it is also in a larger parish or community, endowed with accomplished musicians and abundant resources, that something of great spiritual as well musical beauty can be accomplished. In fact, this Magnificat is meant to be sung and lived by all of us, whatever our situation might be.
So let's get ready now to plunge into the practical sections of this book, a book which is being presented here as blogs and podcasts. We will first spend a good deal of time in considering how to choose the repertoire, i.e., the appropriate musical settings, which are needed for each part of the Mass. This will take some time, as in proceeding from the beginning to the end of the Eucharistic Liturgy, we will look at the history, context, and meaning of each part that is intended to be sung by the choir and/or congregation. The aim in doing this is to enable us to make wise musical choices that are worthy of our great traditions, while also being well-suited to our particular contemporary circumstances. Then farther down the road, we will systematically examine the many aspects of skill – musical, vocal, and choral - which are also vital components in our work as church musicians. The purpose in doing this will be to provide a thorough, enlightening, and helpful guide for the further study and training which these areas normally require.
As we do this, let's pray fervently for one another. And for all faithful Catholic Christians, let's also look to Mary, she who has been aptly called “full of grace”, “mother of mercy”, “seat of Wisdom”, and Theotokos : not only as our radiant living model for singing the praises of God, but also as our efficacious intercessor before his throne.
[i] Luke 1:46-47. “Magnificat” is a commonly used name for this “song of Mary” which in Latin begins with the words “Magnificat anima mea Dominum”. Although the Gospel of St. Luke does not say whether or not Mary actually sang this poem of joyful praise, it has become one of the most oft-sung pieces of liturgical music in both the Eastern and Western Churches.
[ii] Colossians 1:27
[iii] Saint Pachomius the Great, quoted in The Synaxarion, The Lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church, Volume 5. 164. This saint is venerated in both the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Churches as the founder of cenobitic (communal) monasticism.