Two thousand years ago, a young expectant mother sang a song. It was a defiant song, expressing her longing for an end to the injustices she saw around her. Her song was, at most, heard by a handful of people in a small Middle Eastern household. And yet, over the centuries, people across the world have sung her song, and even today, millions continue to draw hope and inspiration from this young girl’s song:
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’
Last week another young person expressed her longing for a better world, and for an end to the injustice and exploitation of our planet. This time her audience was a gathering of the leaders of nations. But was her message heard?
The two messages are not disconnected. As Pope Francis has pointed out in his message for the World Day of Peace 2020[1], peace, justice, respect and care for our neighbour, and care for creation are all inextricably linked.
Faced with the consequences of our hostility towards others, our lack of respect for our common home or our abusive exploitation of natural resources – seen only as a source of immediate profit, regardless of local communities, the common good and nature itself – we are in need of an ecological conversion. – Pope Francis
To many of us in the UK this week, it has felt as though the voices that have been calling for justice, care for creation, and respect for our neighbour have been swept aside, and the voices of the powerful and privileged have prevailed. To many, it feels as though we are living in dark times. We long for change: a change that will see the hungry filled with good things, not queuing at foodbanks; a change that will see children lifted out of poverty, ordinary people provided with homes to live in, meaningful work and a living wage; a change that will see not just isolated individuals, but governments, businesses and our institutions take seriously our responsibility to protect the fragile world in which we live; a change that will see people of every race, religion, gender and ability treated with respect and care.
In a state based on law, democracy can be an important paradigm of this process, provided it is grounded in justice and a commitment to protect the rights of every person, especially the weak and marginalized, in a constant search for truth… What is true of peace in a social context is also true in the areas of politics and the economy, since peace permeates every dimension of life in common. There can be no true peace unless we show ourselves capable of developing a more just economic system.
– Pope Francis
For me, that is where the message of Mary rings out so powerfully, and this season of Advent bristles with hope. The voices of those who call for peace, for justice, for compassion and care of our neighbour and our world will always be small voices. So often they are stamped upon, ridiculed, vilified or simply ignored.
And yet, the message of Advent is that those voices will not be silenced:
The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it.
[1] This is a really powerful message which is well worth reading in full – there are a lot of implications here which our government would do well to take note of. Pope’s Message for the World Day of Peace 2020
