Candlemas
“‘Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed”
Summary
“Today is the last day out for Nativity figures, tomorrow they will be packed away, until next Christmas. Since Christmas we have been celebrating those moments when Christ was revealed as the light of the world: at Cana, at the Jordan, to the Magi and today, to Anna and Simeon in the temple. When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple, Luke 2:22-40, they were doing what the parent of every child would do. Yet Simeon and Anna see in him something unlike every other child, in him they see God was fully present, they see the human and the divine united. This moment of realization comes only when they all meet together: Anna, Simeon, Mary, Joseph: the rich and the poor, the male and the female, the old and the young. We too are chosen as God’s children, mere human beings who, nevertheless, have the capacity to be more than the sum of our human circumstances. We have the capacity to be enlightened and changed by others who are not like us and yet share with us the calling to shine God’s light in the world.
GOSPEL
Luke 2:22-40
‘When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word,
for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.”
And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul, too.”
There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom, and the favor of God was upon him.
