1 Samuel 1-2

I read and re-read this opening section of the story of Samuel, marveling at the many ways it prefigures the story of Mary and the birth and childhood of Jesus. Hannah, a woman thought barren, is so faithful, so trusting in the Lord. She pours out her heart to God; she shares her bitterness and her disappointments with Him; and she trusts in Him despite her "deep sorrow and misery" with Him. And God hears her prayer. Eli, the priest, offers her words of hope that God will grant what she has asked. She leaves the temple with renewed hope--her burden seems lifted and she is no longer downcast. Soon after, she conceives a son, Samuel. Keeping her promise to God, she gives her young son to Eli, the priest in the temple, that Samuel might serve the Lord for the rest of his life. In doing so, she offers words of thanksgiving that greatly resemble the Magnificat of Mary proclaimed at the Annunciation--beginning with "My heart exults in the Lord." How trusting indeed in God is Hannah that she can proclaim with joy her gratitude at a time she is giving up her only son to God. I also marvel that Mary, Mother of Jesus, must surely have been familiar with this story and seen the echoes of it in her own life. Perhaps she even drew inspiration and confidence from it. What an inspiring model of faithfulness Hannah is.