Magnificat: The Canticle of Mary
Magnificat, the Canticle of Mary
The Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) is the canticle of Mary sung during the Visitation to Elizabeth. It is one of the most beautiful texts of the New Testament and the Marian poem par excellence. For the full article: Magnificat, the Canticle of Mary.
Structure and Content
The Magnificat has three parts: (1) Mary’s personal praise of God, who has looked upon her humility. (2) the proclamation of God’s holiness and mercy. (3) a revolutionary canticle, “He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and exalted the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty-handed.”
Place in the Liturgy
The Magnificat is the canticle of Vespers (evening prayer) of the Divine Office, prayed daily by the whole Church. It is framed by the antiphon proper to the liturgical season. The community stands for the Magnificat as a sign of respect, in the same way that it stands for the Gospel.
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Magisterium of the Church
Magnificat anima mea Dominum, et exsultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo, quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae. Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes.
Lucas 1,46-48 (Vulgata Clementina, Canticum Mariae)
📚 Literal translation: My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior, because He has looked upon the humility of His handmaid. And behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
Magnificat est canticum Mariae, canticum Messianum, canticum pauperum et humilium, canticum Ecclesiae peregrinantis.
Paulus VI, Exh. Ap. Marialis Cultus, n. 18 (2 februarii 1974)
📚 Literal translation: The Magnificat is the canticle of Mary, the messianic canticle, the canticle of the poor and the humble, the canticle of the pilgrim Church.
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This article grows out of the works in the Locus Mariologicus library. The Postgraduate Program in Mariology takes you to the same source, with academic guidance: Scripture, the Fathers of the Church, and the Magisterium, from the first dogma to contemporary questions.
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