“And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”

(Luke 1:46)

It’s another one of those popular Biblical words that, over the course of twenty centuries, now has a completely different meaning.

Remember training magnifying lenses on insects on a hot, sunny day?

Those same magnifying lenses are now life-lines for people who suffer from macular degeneration. I really believe that the original meaning of the word still has great relevance to our spiritual, devotional, worship lives.

µ∈γαλ∪∨ω   –  megalune, or magnify in the Greek. Making large or great; exalting; speaking highly of. When I see a brother in Christ, using a magnifying glass, straining to see every letter, every stroke of God’s precious Word, my heart melts. That is magnifying.

The verse I started with may be anachronistic, season-wise (from the Advent narrative, not the Lenten), but even in our Holy Week sorrows and burdens, our reflections on the passion of our Lord, we magnify him. It is eucharistic; praise-worthy. The very name of Jesus calms our fears, redeems us. Even on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and that awkward, in-between Holy Saturday of vigilance, our spirits rejoice. We know the fullness of God’s love for us, magnified through His dear Son.

Remember: God’s love is unconditional.