INANE BONHOMIE

And Mary said: My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. His mercy extends to those who fear him. (Luke 1:46,47,50)

The Bible says much about “the fear of the Lord”. We are told in the Psalms, in the book of Job, and in the Proverbs that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”. Part of the indictment of the heathen world is that “there is no fear of God before their eyes”. Jesus told us, “Fear him who can destroy both body and soul in hell,” referring to his Father in heaven; and the early disciples are described as “walking in the fear of the Lord”.

There is too much shallow frivolity and irreverence in the world, and even in the Church, today. Men have prised open so many locked secrets that there is little left which they regard as sacred. Even in religious circles many people seem to be characterized by an inane bonhomie which has neither depth nore substance. People have so lost sight of the unfathomable majesty of God, that they have tended to become over-familiar with him. They imagine that they can link arms with him as if he were their partner on the golf course.

Such people God scatters in the imaginations of their hearts. His mercy is rather on those who fear him. The Virgin Mary was a simple, devout, God-fearing maiden; we must follow her example if we hope to share her experience.

John Stott, The Canticles and Selected Psalms, p.46