The Word of the Sorrowful. Arise that you are asleep, O Lord... Why do you hide your face, forget our sorrow and our oppression... Rise up to help us... (Psalm 43; 24, 25, 27).

The Word of the Lord. .. do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen thee, and help thee, and sustain thee with the right hand of my righteousness (Isaiah 41:10).

The Word of the Sorrowful. Do not depart from me, for sorrow is near, and there is no helper. (Psalm 21:12). I am poor and beggar... Thou art my help and my deliverer, O my God! do not tarry (Psalm 39:18).

The Word of the Lord. ... Don't be afraid... you are mine. If you pass through the waters, I am with you, whether you cross the rivers, they will not drown you; if you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, and the flame will not scorch you. (Isaiah 43:1-2).

The Word of the Sorrowful. Look, hear me, O Lord my God! Enlighten my eyes, that I may not sleep in the sleep of death... (Psalm 12:4)... and I will go down with sorrow... into hell (Gen. 37:35).

The Word of the Lord. I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me, though he die, shall live... Do you believe this? (John 11:25:26).

The Word of the Sorrowful. Yes, Lord! I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God (John 11:27), Thou art my strength. Into Thy hand I commend my spirit (Psalm 30:5-6)... Thy will be done... (Matt. 6:10) ... be it done to me according to thy word! (Luke 1:38)... You're holding my right hand... and with Thee I desire nothing on earth (Psalm 72:23, 25).

(Extracts from the Holy Scriptures)

225. The Sacred Song of Our Lady

Who was the first hymn-writer of the New Testament Church? Who was the first of all the New Testament hymn-writers to sing the glory and majesty of the Lord, when He, the King of Heaven, deigned to bow down to heaven and descend from His heavenly throne to our sinful earth? From whose lips came the first song of praise and praise to God, the Savior of our sinful race? From the lips of His Most-Pure and Most-Blessed Mother! She, like the ancient Miriam, the sister of Moses, preceded all our New Testament hymns of praise in honor of Her Divine Son; She sang of His mercy and truth, omnipotence and holiness, even at the time when He, the Lord and Creator of heaven and earth, having received Her human nature from Her most pure blood, as a young child dwelt in Her virgin beds! And what a wonderful, truly Divine song it is! How the heart rejoices when it is sung in the church of God! And it is sung almost every day, at matins, before the 9th ode of the canon (with the exception of some feasts), they are sung, preceded by the solemn exclamation: "Let us magnify the Mother of God and the Mother of Light in songs!" — they sing with incense to the whole church and sing after each verse in honor of the Compiler of this song Herself: "More honorable than the Cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim, without corruption of God the Word, Who gave birth to the Mother of God, We magnify Thee!" — The soul rejoices with unearthly joy at this singing; and so full of joy is this wondrous song of the Mother of God, that, as one pastor of the Church says, even in the most bitter moments you will forget your grief, and you will rejoice in spirit, if only you have the strength to sing this wondrous song. And this is because it was sung with great joy by the Mother of God Herself, for just think of what joy the heart of the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos was filled with when She sang this hymn for the first time? It is not for our sinful heart to feel this joy: only the Angels of God can understand it... Let us pay reverent attention to the deep meaning of the song itself; and in order to understand it better, let us open the Holy Gospel and listen to what the God-speaking Luke preaches about when and on what occasion the Mother of God sang Her wondrous song.

"In thy days" — soon after the annunciation of the Archangel to the Most Holy Virgin Mary about the conception and birth of the Son of God from Her — "and Miriam... go to the mountain country of Judea, to go "with diligence" (with haste), for all of Her, the Grace-filled, was now filled with heavenly joy, and who does not know, who has not experienced how a strong feeling of joy prompts us to quickly share it with people close to us? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks! And with whom was it closest to the Blessed Virgin to share Her joy, if not with Her close relative, the righteous wife of the elder – the priest Zachariah – Elizabeth, about whom, moreover, from the same Archangel She learned that she, reproached by everyone for barrenness, had been visited by God with His mercy, that she, Elizabeth, had now conceived a son in her womb, and rejoiced in great joy in God the Savior? And behold, the Most Holy Virgin was coming, going with diligence to the heavens, "to the city of Judah," which lay southwest of Jerusalem; "And she went into the house of Zachariah, and kissed Elizabeth. And as Elizabeth heard the kiss of Mary (as soon as the elder Elizabeth heard the familiar voice of her beloved relative), the child leaped in her womb: and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit..." And then a mystery was revealed before the spiritual eyes of the Mother of the Baptist, unknown to any of the people; she knew who had come to visit her, and out of the abundance of happiness she "cried out" (cried out) "with a great voice, and said, Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb: and whence this may come to me (wherefore have I, a sinner, deserved such great honor, such happiness), that the Mother of my Lord may come to me; For behold, as the voice of Thy kiss was in my ear, the child leaped with joy (joyful trembling) in my womb: and blessed art Thou, who believed, for all that the Lord has spoken to Thee shall come to pass!"

The humble Virgin Mary was deeply touched by this extraordinary meeting; from the lips of Elizabeth She heard the repetition of the Archangel's gospel; and it was then that from Her most pure lips poured out an inspired song to the glory of God the Savior. "And Miriam said, My soul magnifies the Lord, and My spirit rejoices in God my Saviour." In Him alone is all My happiness, all my joy, all my blessedness; I Myself am a useless servant, He is My Saviour: "As He looked down" (He graciously looked) "upon the humility of His servant" (upon My poverty and insignificance), "Behold, from henceforth they shall bless Me" (they shall bless and exalt Me as the Mother of God), "all begotten" (all men, all nations), all those who believe in My Son and God, "for Thou hast done unto Me greatness, O Mighty One" (He, the Almighty, hath done a great work with Me), and may "His name be holy" — glory to Him, the All-Holy, Who works wondrous miracles! "And His mercy" — His ineffable mercy — is poured out and passed from fathers to children, from ancestors to descendants "into generations of generations to those who fear Him. Make power with Thy arm" — He manifested the power of His omnipotence: scatter (scatter, weaken, despise) "the proud thoughts of their hearts," haughty in their knowledge and origin, "bring down the mighty from the throne" — humbled the pride of the presumptuous pagans, choosing the humiliated Jewish people to accomplish salvation: "and lift up the humble: those who hunger" (heartily desiring salvation) "fill with good things" — generously endowed with the blessings of the Kingdom of Heaven — and let the rich (proudly boast of their imaginary virtues) go away (left with nothing). "Receive" – again the Jewish people took under Their paternal care – "Thy servant Israel, remember Thy mercies", fulfilling the ancient promises, as they had spoken through the prophets about the coming Saviour "to our father, to Abraham and his seed" (his descendants); and this mercy of God will last to all people from now on and forever!

(Exposition of the Holy Gospel of Luke (1; 39-56))

226. The Nativity of the Forerunner of the Lord John.