08/03/2026
This International Women’s Day we look to ‘The Magnificat’ (Luke 1:46-55), one of the most ancient hymns in Christianity, which uses words proclaimed by Mary, the mother of Jesus, to her cousin Elizabeth. As the crisis in the Middle East deepens, we think of, and pray for, those who are most in need of the messages of strength, love and hope contained within the words. This piece was originally written by Leanne Clelland for Christian Aid Scotland.
‘The Magnificat’ is a song of justice which resonates all year round.
When crisis threatens, love builds hope.
Love builds hope in some of the world’s toughest places.
Love builds resilience in some of the world’s fiercest climates.
Mary’s song, ‘The Magnificat’, is one of the world’s most famous songs. It’s the song of a young woman first heard by an older woman, but heard and understood down the years by ‘all those whose dreams and yearnings are given voice in its words’. Mary’s song is a radical and revolutionary song of joy and justice, an anthem for women and other oppressed groups who are denied a full and free life and who are seeking to uproot the structures and systems that keep them on the margins of society. It’s that Biblical mandate that is at the very heart of the Churches’ and Christian Aid’s work – challenging and changing the systems that keep people poor or oppressed, rather than merely continuing to respond to the symptoms of poverty or oppression. God is a God of justice for all.