Mary’s Song: Inspiring ethical leadership and civic virtue

By Rev’d Fiifi AFENYI-DONKOR

As we enter the Christmas season, churches from historic mission denominations such as The Methodist Church Ghana will once more resound with ancient canticles, scriptural hymns drawn directly from the Gospel narratives. Among them is Canticle 7, Mary’s Christmas Song, known liturgically as the Magnificat (Luke 1:46–55). More than a hymn of personal praise, it is a prophetic declaration of God’s purposes. So politically charged is it that, at times in history, notably under twentieth-century authoritarian regimes in Latin America, its public reading was forbidden for fear it would awaken the conscience of the oppressed and unsettle entrenched power.

While rooted in Christian worship, the Magnificat speaks beyond the walls of the church, offering a moral and ethical vision with implications for public life, civic responsibility, and national leadership. The child Mary bears will grow to embody this song in His life and ministry, revealing in human form the humility, justice, and mercy the Magnificat proclaims.

Here in Ghana, as we prepare for Christmas through carols, conventions, and community gatherings, the Magnificat confronts us with a pressing question: will our worship remain confined to the sanctuary, or will it shape the moral and civic character of our nation? Mary’s vision is not merely to be admired; it is to be embodied.

Humility: The Foundation of Ethical Leadership

Mary begins by acknowledging her “low estate.” God’s choice rests not on social influence or political connection, but on humility, openness, and obedience. In the Magnificat, humility is not weakness; it is a moral posture that recognises dependence on God and responsibility toward others.

This posture challenges the pride, self-promotion, and unchecked ambition that too often mark public life. When humility is absent, leadership easily becomes performative, power defensive, and service secondary to self-interest.

The manger in Bethlehem reminds us that true leadership is founded on service, not dominance, and on truthfulness, not manipulation. Humility shapes the inner character of leaders before it ever appears in public policy or institutional culture. Without this inner grounding, reforms remain cosmetic and ethics collapses under pressure.

In Ghana, we already see glimpses of humility-driven leadership, in youth advocacy groups promoting civic education and in professionals who choose ethical business models that prioritise transparency over short-term gain. The question, then, is not whether moral courage is possible, but whether we are willing to scale these examples into our politics, institutions, and everyday leadership, allowing what is already transformative at the margins to reshape the centre of national life.

Worship That Transforms Public Conduct

Where humility describes the inner posture of the heart, worship describes the practices that shape public behaviour. When Mary declares, “His mercy is for those who fear Him,” she links reverence for God with visible patterns of ethical living.

To fear God is to honour God through integrity in the marketplace, fairness in the workplace, and transparency in public service. Worship, therefore, cannot be confined to song and liturgy; it must find expression in how power is exercised, resources are managed, and people are treated.

Faith that remains private fails the public test. The Magnificat calls for worship that strengthens both personal virtue and the common good. This demands practical commitments: businesses adopting ethical covenants, professional bodies enforcing standards, and citizens engaging responsibly with democratic tools such as the Right to Information framework and participatory budgeting.

Even at the local level, worship takes concrete form, mentoring a young person, supporting an ethical enterprise, or participating in a community accountability forum. Through such practices, worship moves from words spoken in church to deeds that reshape society. When such ethical practices are sustained, they inevitably expose not only personal shortcomings but also the structures and systems that enable injustice.

Confronting the Abuse of Power

“He has brought down rulers from their thrones and lifted up the humble.” This is not gentle poetry; it is a prophetic indictment of systems that crush the powerless and exalt the arrogant. In Ghana, instances of corruption and institutional failure tempt us toward cynicism. The Magnificat serves as a moral mirror, exposing compromise and challenging complacency.

Confrontation requires courageous, sustained action: supporting investigative journalism, demanding institutional accountability over blind loyalty, and empowering faith communities to move beyond pulpit declarations toward organized, non-partisan civic advocacy. This mirror must also turn inward: the church itself is called to repentance and renewal, modelling the accountability it proclaims.

Compassion That Seeks Justice

“He has filled the hungry with good things.” Mary’s song reveals God’s particular care for the poor and vulnerable. In a nation where many face economic strain, the Magnificat summons a dual response: compassionate personal action, supporting neighbours, mentoring youth, sharing resources, and advocacy for just systems that ensure fair wages, transparent resource management, and responsible economic policy.

Christian compassion is both charitable and structural. Churches and communities can organize to meet immediate needs while also channelling their collective voice to advocate for social protection programs, equitable pricing, and accountable governance.

 

Mary’s Song as a Civic Creed

Ultimately, the Magnificat offers Ghana a transformative creed. If its values shaped our common life, we would see honesty in commerce, integrity in leadership, justice in institutions, and compassion in communities. These are not abstract ideals: they are the values the child Mary carried would later teach, model, and defend through His ministry among the poor, His confrontation of unjust power, and His self-giving love.

Bringing this vision from song to reality is the work of committed citizens: the professional auditing ethical impact alongside financial results; the voter prioritizing policy over patronage; the community organizing for both charity and systemic change. Even those outside a faith context can recognize that these values, humility, integrity, justice, and compassion, strengthen society.

Conclusion

This Christmas, as carols fill the air and families gather, the Magnificat calls us beyond celebration to transformation. It urges us to embody, in our homes, workplaces, and public squares, the kingdom values of humility, justice, mercy, and compassion made visible in the life of Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate.

May we, as Ghanaians, have the courage not only to sing Mary’s song in our churches but to live it through our daily choices, our civic participation, and our collective demand for a nation that reflects the justice of the God who came to dwell among us. Let this be the season we begin, in earnest, to sing this new song into the life of our land.

 

 

 

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