“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.” (Magnificat)
Mary was deeply conscious of her gratitude to God. It was a characteristic of the Jewish people to feel thankful to the God who - in spite of their many infidelities - continued to care for them. “Berakah” was the Jewish word for thanks, which in Greek is "Eucharist".
Jesus took bread and wine at the Last Supper, symbolic of what would have been basic food and drink of the Jewish people. He gave thanks to his Father before he gave his disciples the fruit of his sacrifice. Even though he knew he was facing a terrible death he was still able to express his gratitude.
Each day is a gift from God. Each evening we can recount incidents in the day where we receive blessings. We can think of the beautiful surroundings of our country, the wildlife, friends we encounter, our families and above all our relationship with the Lord, especially when he comes to us in Holy Communion. We might ponder deeply on his willing acceptance of his death on the cross for our sakes and his Resurrection which promises us eternal life.
We would do well to ponder on the words of Franciszek Galowniczek, the married man who owed his life to St Maximilian Kolbe: “So long as I have breath in my lungs I would consider it my duty to tell people about the heroic act of love by Maximilian Kolbe.” May we too echo the sentiments of those words, in thanksgiving to our loving God.