ARCHBISHOP JOHN F. DONOGHUE

Speaking On The Prayer Of Mary

(Archbishop Donoghue gave this talk in February to the women attending a prayer breakfast sponsored by the Catholic group Magnificat.)

STONE MOUNTAIN--You have asked me to say a few words about the prayer from which your association takes its name, the Magnificat prayer of our Blessed Mother, and I am glad to do so. The Magnificat prayer is one that priests say countless times in their lives, being a part of the daily office, and an inexhaustible supply of ideas for sermons and prayers.

I have lived with this prayer for many years. It has accompanied me through the happiest -- and also the hardest moments of my life. But I must be candid, and tell you that no matter how great my love for this prayer, I truly believe that only women probably understand it to the fullest. In a way, men can only observe and admire and love this prayer, but women can live this prayer. It has to do with many things -- biology, outlook, emotions, the actual nature of motherhood, and many other facets of human reality. And so, to stand on fair ground, I am sure that each and every one of you could teach me a great deal about Mary, and about what she felt as this prayer welled up within her soul.

But I do know that at moments of trial during my life, moments when I really feel I am being put to the test, moments when it is the law of God that must be obeyed and not my own will, moments when it is necessary to share and perhaps even to shoulder the burdens of someone else, moments when impatience and anxiety must be surrendered to acceptance, at times like these, I have always derived great comfort from Mary, and from this prayer of a woman's praise for the God who had blessed her.

Perhaps it is because Mary opened the door of her will and her strength to the will of God, and, in the end, she believed the will of God to be the only choice. We also like to think, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say, that we also desire to choose, and to be formed by the will of God.

But Mary's obedience is exceptional, not only in the fruit she would bear, but also in and of itself. It is perfect obedience, perfect humility. Consider what she says of herself in the opening lines:

"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on all ages will call me blessed. The Mighty One has done these great things for me -- holy is his name."

The only self-mention that Mary makes in this prayer is to call herself a "lowly servant," and to say that the ages will call her blessed, because of what God has done for her.

This is the kind of conduct, the kind of attitude and spirit that we all, men and women, young and all, need to admire, to study, to ponder and somehow, try to work into every moment of our conscious lives. Our question should be, not who am I, but who does God make me. Not what can I do today to find happiness and fulfillment, but instead, how can I be the instrument of God's salvation in the world today.

We have many things to help us. We have our prayer together. And we have the secret interior prayer that lives in every person's own heart. And perhaps, most efficacious, we have the sacraments of the Church from which we receive grace, grace being the presence of God's will in one's life.

But of the prayers we say together, and when necessary, we say alone, and there are many beautiful prayers throughout the Scriptures as well as in the writings of the saints, Mary's prayer should remain high in our affections and on our daily list. For it is a prayer of health and optimism, a prayer that corrects our perspective when we have lost sight. A prayer that stills within us any eruption of pride, arrogance, or any supposition that we can ever get along without the help of God to hold us up. A prayer, truly, for life.