On the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple
Sermon preached by Dn. Jeff Smith on Sunday, February 2, 2025
Good morning!
This morning, I want to compare the synoptic gospels. The first thing that comes to mind is to see how the descriptions of the Nativity are quite different in Matthew and Luke.
The first thing I noticed is that there is no mention of the presentation in the Gospel of Matthew and no mention of the wisemen or Flight to Egypt in the Gospel of Luke. There is no mention of a manger in Matthew. There are no wise men approaching a creche. It just reads that the magi followed a star or some supernatural light until they came to the house of Joseph to offer their gifts. These two stories don’t necessarily contradict each other, but they can complement each other. They dovetail, and we can learn something by comparing them. A few weeks back, we read about the flight to Egypt, and so I began to wonder, if Jesus and his family were in Egypt, how did they manage to get back to the temple for today’s gospel. It doesn’t really make sense. But it might make sense if the flight to Egypt happened after the presentation. Here is a possible chronology: Jesus is born in Bethlehem. Eventually, Mary and Joseph manage to rent a temporary home during which time, Jesus is named and circumcised and then finally presented to the temple after 40 days. Today marks 40 days after Christmas. As an analogy, today’s feast is the end of the Christmas season just as Pentecost is the end of the Paschal season. Today is the last of the feast of lights in the dark of winter. And today’s gospel reads that Jesus is the light of revelation for the gentiles (that’s us of course). Today is the last feast of winter until the Annunciation next month, which of course is also related to Nativity, just next year’s. Everybody with me? I think our calendar makes a lot of sense, if we understand that Herod met with the Magi after Jesus’ presentation in the temple and then he tried to eliminate him. But for now, for today, Jesus is safe in Jerusalem.
So, what else can we discern now to the meaning of today’s gospel? For me, the big takeaway is how it’s all about the joy of anticipation for new life. Just as we all sing the Song of Symeon when we church a baby as “our eyes have seen thy salvation.”
After 40 days, his parents brought Jesus up to the temple to present him to the Lord, just as Samuel was or Mary herself had been presented. In this case, not having much money, they offered two young pigeons as was the tradition. And the righteous Symeon was waiting for them. The Gospel says that the Holy Spirit was upon him. I love that about Symeon, that he was in tune with and blessed by the Holy Spirit to keep his eyes open for the Christ child. But he also warned Mary that Jesus would cause the fall of many in Israel, that he would be spoken against, and that the thoughts of many hearts would be revealed through him.
And let us not forget the 84-year-old prophetess Anna and remember that Mary, having grown up in the temple herself, may well have known her. I think it’s likely that Luke would have had an opportunity to interview Mary before she died. That’s part of our tradition, that Luke was her portrait artist, that he knew and that some of his account is first person testimony. That’s why this description of Anna can be so specific. Anna basically lived in the temple, fasting, praying, and worshipping day and night. If that’s true, the temple virgins would have known her. So, Anna could have known Mary as a child. I think that’s a nice thought. She heard what Symeon said, and as a widow, she told everyone who was looking for redemption about Jesus, or as it is written, “she spoke of him, to all who were looking for redemption.” And so, the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom, and the favor of God was upon him. It sounds a lot like something a mother might say as part of her account of Jesus’ young life.
Symeon prophesied that the “the thoughts of many hearts would be revealed” through Christ. All of us encounter setbacks and grief, and sometimes we are overwhelmed, but remember that Christ is in these moments because he has destroyed the power of death over us. So, let us take care as Jesus reveals the thoughts of our hearts but let us also learn to embrace and gently be with our thoughts and learn what they reveal about us, what they can teach us, if we love them, just as Joanna taught in the retreat yesterday, so that we can fully repent and enter whole and without shame into the house of the Lord. Now as each of us prepares to “depart in peace,” let us reflect as we take the Holy Spirit with us into the world as we go forth in love for each other and for our neighbors. Thanks be to God.