Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
February 2, 2024

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/020224.cfm

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Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy, we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, that time when Jesus is brought to the Temple to be dedicated, just as any Jewish boy would have been.

When the days were completed for their purification
according to the law of Moses,
Mary and Joseph took Jesus up to Jerusalem
to present him to the Lord,
just as it is written in the law of the Lord,
Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,
and to offer the sacrifice of
a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,
in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

Luke 2: 22-24

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This event is one of the many throughout Jesus’s life that show us two things:

• Jesus honored Jewish Law
• Jesus, although God, lived a human life

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This Gospel scene in particular is layered with a poignant and tender humanity. First off, Jesus is a baby, small and vulnerable in the vastness of the Temple.

His young parents, although knowing he is God, bring him to be blessed in the ancient traditions of their faith. They certainly must have wondered how to handle teaching the Messiah the faith! How to guide the human development of one Who is Divine! It’s challenging enough for young parents to adapt to a new human being in their lives, let alone one who is also Divine!

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But how fortuitous that the sage and comforting elders await them at the Temple doors, dear Simeon and Anna. These two are steeped in a wise faith, deepened by a long patience.

Put yourself in the scene of this beautiful passage and listen to Simeon. Watch his eyes as he looks upon the sweet face of Jesus:

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.
This man was righteous and devout,
awaiting the consolation of Israel,
and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit
that he should not see death
before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.
He came in the Spirit into the temple;
and when the parents brought in the child Jesus
to perform the custom of the law in regard to him,
he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:

“Now, Master, you may let your servant go
in peace, according to your word,
for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and glory for your people Israel.”

Luke 2: 25-32

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Now turn toward beautiful Anna, filled with the grace of prayerful years, as she takes the Holy Child in her arms:

There was also a prophetess, Anna,
the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher.
She was advanced in years,
having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four.
She never left the temple,
but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that very time,
she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child
to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

Luke 2: 36-38

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As we pray with the Holy Family and these two ancient prophets, how do we feel about the presence of Christ in our midst? What might we have said to Jesus, to Mary or Joseph had we been in the Temple that morning? What might we have seen or heard from Anna and Simeon that would have fueled our own hope and faith? How open is the door of our heart’s temple to welcome the Holy One? What Grace are we awaiting in our deepest hearts?

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Poetry: Wait and See (Simeon and Anna) by Richard Bauckham

Richard Bauckham is a renowned English biblical scholar and theologian, whose many published works include The Theology of the Book of Revelation (1993) and Jesus and the Eyewitnesses (2006).

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In the drab waiting-room
the failed travellers, resigned, sleep
on the hard benches, inured
to postponement and foul coffee.
Hope has given up on them.

There are also the impatient,
pacing platforms, and the driven,
purple with frustration, abusing
their mobiles, for the hardest part
of waiting is the not doing.

Truly to wait is pure dependence.
But waiting too long the heart
grows sclerotic. Will it still
be fit to leap when the time comes?
Prayer is waiting with desire.

Two aged lives incarnate
century on century
of waiting for God, their waiting-room
his temple, waiting on his presence,
marking time by practicing

the cycle of the sacrifices,
ferial and festival,
circling onward, spiralling
towards a centre out ahead,
seasons of revolving hope.

Holding out for God who cannot
be given up for dead, holding
him to his promises – not now,
not just yet, but soon, surely,
eyes will see what hearts await.

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Music: We Shall Behold Him – LaKisha Jones and the Woodlands United Methodist Church

One of my top ten favorite hymns… “the sweet light in his eyes”!
Lyrics below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VSlU-3wJ8Y

The sky shall unfold
Preparing His entrance
The stars shall applaud Him
With thunders of praise
The sweet light in His eyes,
shall enhance those awaiting
And we shall behold Him, then face to face

O we shall behold Him, we shall behold Him
Face to face in all of His glory
O we shall behold Him, yes we shall behold Him
Face to face, our Savior and Lord

The angel will sound, the shout of His coming
And the sleeping shall rise, from there slumbering place
And those remaining, shall be changed in a moment
And we shall behold him, then face to face

We shall behold Him, o yes we shall behold Him
Face to face in all of His glory
We shall behold Him, face to face
Our Savior and Lord
We shall behold Him, our Savior and Lord
Savior and Lord!