The “Great Things” of God in Mary

Introduction

In this article we will meditate on the consequences of the connections that link the Mother of Jesus to the principal events of the Redemption. We will show that the “great things” accomplished in her by the Lord (cf. Lk 1:49a) must be proclaimed and known from generation to generation. Therefore, Mary also becomes a chapter of primary importance within the framework of the Church’s evangelizing mission.

She was both subject and object of catechesis. Subject, in the sense that Mary informs the Church about the events of grace accomplished in her own person by the God of the Covenant. Object, because the Church, in turn, made known these “great things” worked by the Lord in her, for the good of all His people.

In the Scriptures, the “great things” of God refer to the wonderful interventions of grace carried out throughout the whole history of the Covenant. According to the constant teaching of Scripture, the “great things” of the Lord are intended for the benefit of all His people. As such, they must be proclaimed to all, from one generation to another.

“Great Things” for All the People

According to the constant teaching of the Scriptures, the “great things” of God always have an ecclesial and communal purpose. In the divine plan, they are ordered specifically to the good of the whole community of His elect. The psalmist has every right to exclaim: “The Lord has done great things for us” (Ps 126:2).

The Bible records several occasions on which the Lord accomplishes “great things” on behalf of a single person: Abraham, Moses, Joseph, David, Solomon, Jeremiah, Esther, Judith, Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist… Nevertheless, even in these cases, the intention of the divine action remains ecclesial and communal in nature. That is, if the Lord accomplishes “great things” for an individual person, His purpose is to help the whole people or group of which that person is a member.

This economy underlying the redemptive plan retains its validity for the Mother of Jesus as well. If the Almighty has done “great things” in her (Lk 1:49a), He has done so for the benefit of the whole people of the Covenant. And indeed, Mary, in her canticle, is aware of the bonds that unite her to the community of the people of God. She calls herself the “handmaid” of the Lord (Lk 1:48a) and, at the same time, celebrates Israel as the “servant” of the Lord (Lk 1:54a). Moreover, she is aware that God, in looking upon her “poverty” (Lk 1:48a), exalts all the “poor” (Lk 1:52b). Finally, the Virgin recognizes that the Lord, in doing “great things” in her (Lk 1:49a), fulfills the promises made “to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants” (Lk 1:55).

In short, Mary shows a clear conviction: what God did in her person, He did for her own sake and for the whole people of the faithful, of whom Abraham is the father. Therefore, the grace poured out upon Mary must, on the one hand, benefit the whole Church of the people of God. On the other hand, the Church must recognize and celebrate this component of the divine wisdom revealed in the history of salvation.

“Great Things” to Proclaim to All

According to the persistent teaching of the Scriptures, the “great things” of God must be proclaimed; they must be known: it is necessary to announce them publicly. This necessity stems from the fact that such interventions of grace by the Lord, even when carried out through a single person, are ultimately intended for the good of the whole people.

Therefore, they constitute a common heritage that must be handed on and shared from one generation to another. In Deuteronomy (4:9) we read: “Do not let slip from your heart [the things seen and heard], all the days of your life. You shall teach them to your children and to your children’s children.” Following this instruction, the elderly Tobit counsels his son Tobias: “Make known to all men the works of God… and do not fail to give thanks. It is good to keep the secret of a king, but it is glorious to reveal and make known the works of God” (Tob 12:7, 11).

In a prayerful tone, Ps 145:4-5 recalls the catechetical commitment within the community of Israel: “One generation recounts your works to another and announces your wonders. They proclaim the splendor of your glory and tell of your marvels.”

Mary, “Subject” and “Object” of Evangelization

If the Mother of Jesus was so intimately linked to the mysteries of our redemption, she necessarily became “subject” and “object” of catechesis in the context of the Christian faith. Let us explain this in two stages.
First, the Mother of Jesus became a subject of catechesis, since she herself made known the “great things” accomplished by the Lord in her own person. She was, in fact, the main source of information during the infancy and early adolescence of Jesus. This doctrine, firmly rooted in the Scriptures, is common to the Fathers of the Church and to ecclesiastical writers from the fourth and fifth centuries onward.

For example, Saint Bruno of Segni (d. 1123) stated: “We would have none of this if Mary had not kept it. These things come to us from her treasures.” Various authors, ancient and modern, reach this conclusion on the basis of the text of Luke 2:19: “Mary, for her part, kept all these things in her heart” (cf. also Lk 2:51b). In other words, Mary, because of her exceptional mission, knew that she no longer belonged to herself, but to the world.

Indeed, she felt the need to share with the nascent Church the news of the saving events of which she had been the singular and immediate protagonist. This would take place after Pentecost, that is, after the Holy Spirit had granted the Mother of the Lord a harmonious understanding of the various parts of the plan of salvation.
Secondly, the Mother of Jesus became an object of catechesis, in the sense that the Church, in turn, began to proclaim and celebrate the “great things” brought about by God in her. This took place both in the oral preaching of the Christian message and in the written composition of the Gospels. In these sacred books, the Holy Spirit, through the human authors, bears witness to the Church of all times to what the Lord, also through Mary, has done “for us men and for our salvation.”

Conclusion

Easter is the epicenter of the Marian question. After the decisive light that the Resurrection shed on the person of Christ, the apostolic Church of the earliest times was led to reflect also on the identity and role of the Holy Virgin, always in close connection with the person of the Son. If He ascended to the Father in so mysterious and wondrous a way from the womb of the tomb (the earth-mother!), in what way did He descend into the womb of Mary (the woman-mother!) to appear as a man among men?

From this we understand why the Church was inclined to unite the pair “incarnation-resurrection” and to discover the active presence of the Mother of Jesus in each of these two greatest saving events. In keeping the memory of the “great things” that God had accomplished in the Mother of His Son, the Christian community drew the due consequences for the proclamation of the Word and for catechesis. Evangelization, if it is to be complete and faithful, will also have to extend to Mary of Nazareth: Daughter of Zion, Woman, Mother of the Messiah Christ and of the whole people of God.

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On the “great things” that God accomplished in Mary according to the Magnificat, consult the Encyclical Redemptoris Mater of Pope John Paul II.