A Light Of Revelation To The Gentiles, And The Glory Of Your People Israel!

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

Reading I
Malachi 3:1-4
Thus says the Lord God:
Lo, I am sending my messenger
to prepare the way before me;
And suddenly there will come to the temple
the Lord whom you seek,
And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.
Yes, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.
But who will endure the day of his coming?
And who can stand when he appears?
For he is like the refiner’s fire,
or like the fuller’s lye.
He will sit refining and purifying silver,
and he will purify the sons of Levi,
Refining them like gold or like silver
that they may offer due sacrifice to the Lord.
Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem
will please the Lord,
as in the days of old, as in years gone by.

+++ +++ +++ +++
Responsorial
Psalm 24
R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
Lift up, O gates, your lintels;
reach up, you ancient portals,
that the king of glory may come in!
R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
Who is this king of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.
R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
Lift up, O gates, your lintels;
reach up, you ancient portals,
that the king of glory may come in!
R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
Who is this king of glory?
The Lord of hosts; he is the king of glory.
R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
+++ +++ +++ +++

Reading II
Hebrews 2:14-18
Since the children share in blood and flesh,
Jesus likewise shared in them,
that through death he might destroy the one
who has the power of death, that is, the Devil,
and free those who through fear of death
had been subject to slavery all their life.
Surely he did not help angels
but rather the descendants of Abraham;
therefore, he had to become like his brothers and sisters
in every way, that he might be
a merciful and faithful high priest before God
to expiate the sins of the people.
Because he himself was tested through what he suffered,
he is able to help those who are being tested.
+++

Gospel
Luke 2:22-40
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.

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.”

The child’s father and mother were amazed
at what was said about him;
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother,
“Behold, this child is destined
for the fall and rise of many in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be contradicted
'and you yourself a sword will pierce'
so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
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.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions
of 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.
+++

Today's Gospel says, "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'."

The actual ritual is not described but we are introduced to two elderly people who were in the Temple at the time. The first of these was a devout man called Simeon. He had been told that he would not die until he had first laid eyes on the promised Messiah. Guided by the Spirit he came into the Temple and recognized in Mary's child the long-awaited Messiah. He makes a prayer of thanksgiving to God for answering his prayer "for my eyes have seen your salvation". And what he has seen is "a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory for your people Israel".

Jesus, the Incarnate Word of God, is a divine revelation to those who are not Jews, and the glory of God's own people from whom he came. Mary and Joseph are quite amazed at the words being spoken. There is a lot they still do not know about their Son. But Simeon then had some ominous words for the Mother: "This child is destined for the fall and the rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."

This is the paradox of Jesus. He comes as Savior bringing life for the whole world and yet there will be people who will reject his message of truth and life. His own people will be deeply divided over him. This will be a source of deep pain for the Mother, something she will not realize fully until she sees him die in agony before her eyes. Simeon's words must have been very puzzling and even alarming to Mary and Joseph.

The second person to greet the parents and their Child was another deeply religious person. She was Anna, whose husband had died after only 7 years of marriage and who had now been a widow for more than 60 years. She spent all her time in the Temple in prayer and fasting. On seeing the Child, she gave thanks to God and spoke about him to everyone she met. As mentioned, when this feast was called the Purification of Our Lady there was for a long time a custom in the Church for mothers to go through a purification ceremony after giving birth, traditionally called “churching”.

Such a rite is now seen as inappropriate but the revised Roman Ritual still provides for the blessing of women both before and after birth. The latter is only in cases where the mother could not be present at the baptism of her child. In general, it would seem highly appropriate for a special blessing to be given to mothers on this day. The feast is now called the Presentation of Our Lord and the emphasis is more on Jesus than on his Mother. The blessing and the procession of candles as well as the Scripture readings focus on Jesus who is the "Light of the World".

The First Reading is from the prophet Malachi. It consists of a prophecy which can be applied to the Messiah and hence to Jesus. The opening sentence reminds one of John the Baptist: "I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me". But then the rest of the sentence foreshadows today's feast: "Suddenly there come to the temple the Lord whom you seek and the messenger of the covenant whom you desire. Yes, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts." This is a clear reference to Jesus, as the Word of God and the one who will inaugurate the New Covenant between God and his people. The prophecy goes on to warn that the coming Messiah will be a real challenge, he will be "like the refiner's fire". He will refine the sons of Levi, "refining them like gold or silver, that they may offer due sacrifice to the Lord". For those who welcome his message and his call, Jesus is good news but for those who will reject his call it will mean death and the end of life.

The Second Reading is from the Letter to Hebrews. It speaks of the meaning of God's Son coming to live among us as one of us, which, of course, is the theme of today's feast, for the Son of God came to share our flesh and blood and all that goes with it. It was in this way that he would "destroy the one who has power of death, that is, the devil". On the contrary, he has come to liberate "those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life". In order to do this, the Son "had had to become like his brothers in every way, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people". And, on the cross, Jesus will be Priest and Victim, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. As the reading concludes, "because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested". All of this is foreshadowed in the warnings that Simeon gives to Mary about the sword of sorrow which will pierce her heart.

Living Space
The Irish Jesuits