MAGNIFICAT

MAGNIFICAT – The prayer or hymn sung by the Virgin Mary when she visited St. Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the Baptist, shortly after the Annunciation ^{(Luke 1:46 55)}. Sung frequently during Matins in the Orthodox Church, this hymn takes its title from the Latin for the beginning phrase, “My soul magnifies the Lord.” ^{(1 Sam. 2:1-10.)}