Mary’s social position is a feature which further separates this royal birth narrative from similar stories in the Ancient Near East (a fact we will explore in greater detail later). Mary is ‘a daughter of kings reduced to the rank of the poorest of the daughters of Israel.’ But in this low estate, in this emptiness and need, she finds favor. Her hands and her womb are empty. But God fills all things. Both Mary and Elizabeth receive this gracious favor despite their humble position in life. ‘Two women of simple life and circumstance were strangely blessed by God – one becoming a mother in old age that her son might be the forerunner of the Messiah, the other chosen to be the mother of the Redeemer.’ Favor, the blessing and fullness of God, is the motif that runs throughout the song enjoying and exploring expression in Mary and in the history of humankind.
In a sonata, the melodic or rhythmic motif receives treatment through an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. Here the theme of favor is presented, developed, and revisited. It is the melodic turn that gets lodged in memory and goes with you through the day after hearing Mary’s song.
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