Almost two thousand years ago the Virgin Mary heard the voice of an angel telling her that she would give birth to a son. He was to be called Jesus, the Son of the Highest. With this announcement there came to Mary a great spiritual illumination of thought, and she said (Luke 1: 46, 47), "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."
Christian Science explains that the angel which visited Mary was not a material messenger but a pure thought from God. It illumined her whole being and lifted her to conscious communion with the Father and creator of all. In this sacred moment came the realization to Mary that the child to be born by her would succeed to the throne of David and that his kingdom would be established forever (see Luke 1: 32, 33).
In Christian Science we learn that in Mary's statement, "My soul doth magnify the Lord," the word "soul" means spirituality or spiritual sense, as opposed to materiality or material sense. There is, however, another important aspect of the word "soul," which is of great significance to the student of Christian Science. It is the use of Soul (spelled in Christian Science with a capital "S"), as a name or synonym for God. The dictionary clearly informs us that soul means among other things the lifegiving cause, or the seat of real life. As the sun gives light and warmth to all the earth, so God, understood as Soul, gives spiritual light and warmth to His entire creation and illumines every one of His sons with the Christ, the spiritual nature or essence of His being.
