People's Prayers: Prayers of the People: Now Presenting ~ Feast of The Presentation, WLWC* '25 Yr C

For Sunday, February 2, 2025; Readings: Leviticus 12:1-8, Psalm 48:1-3, 9-14; 1 John 5:1-5, Luke 2:22-38, WLWC*

On completing the days of her purification for a daughter or a son she shall bring a yearling lamb for a burnt offering ~ and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering ~ to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting…Then he shall offer it before the FIRE of SINAI…and the priest shall make atonement on her behalf and she shall be restored. [Leviticus 12:6-7a, 8a,c]

Great is the AGELESS GOD and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God is God’s holy mountain...We contemplate your faithful love God…Your right hand is filled with righteousness…For this God is our God, our God forever and ever. She will be our guide until we die. [Psalm 48:1, 9a, 8, 14]

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Messiah is born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child of the parent…For the love of God is this, that we keep God’s commandments [which] are not difficult…anything born of God conquers the world…this is the victory…that conquers our faith Who…conquers the world…the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. [2 Corinthians 5:1, 3-5]

Now when the days of their purification were fulfilled according to the teaching of Moses, they brought Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Holy One...There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon…righteous and devout…It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had seen the Messiah of the Most High God…When the parents brought in the child Jesus…Simeon took him in his arms and praised God saying…”You release now your slave in peace, Master…for my eyes have seen your salvation…” There was also a prophet Anna…of great age…She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she…began to praise God, and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. [Luke 2:22, 25-30, 36a, 37b-38]

40 Days Later... February 2, 40 days after Christmas, is packed with theological and liturgical significance. A special Feast day in the Church calendar, it is often overlooked when, as in most years, it falls on a weekday. The official name is: The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple. It is also recognized as The Purification of Mary because the Law of Moses required that she ~ like the Infant Jesus ~ participate in a rite of purification 40 days after childbirth. Its importance underscores that Mary and Joseph raised Jesus in faithful observance of his ancestral religion, a point of significance in his ministry to come. It also serves to reference the requirements of women and girls in childbirth and menstruation set out in brief in Leviticus 12:1-8. The Rite could be extended for the woman having given birth, especially to a girl-child, to as long as 66 days, highlighting in the Leviticus reading the required burnt offering and sin offering of the woman, the ancient and often continuing implication that women and girls, because of the blood, were/are more unclean and sin-filled than their male counterparts. That said, Dr. Gafney tells us that while the practice sounds harsh for the woman, it likely also offered some time for healing and rest as well as maternal bonding with her newborn.

In one sense, it’s very much like The Churching of Women once used widely in Catholic and Anglican churches. Women refrained from returning to church for 4-6 weeks after childbirth. In those times women didn’t even attend the baptism/christening of their children and experienced isolation in the terms of being unchurched if only temporarily. When they returned, after offering a prayer of thanksgiving, they were given a blessing. This ritual has, mercifully, fallen into disuse.

Some Christian calendars mark this as the official end of the Christmas season ~ because beyond the “12 Days of Christmas” between Christmas Day and the Epiphany ~ this day concludes the 40 Days of the Incarnation. In some practices, the day is also Candlemas, a traditional time to bless candles for liturgical use. And of course, the period of time of “40” in itself is frequently used throughout the Hebrew and Christian Testaments of The Bible and Christian practice to highlight auspicious activities such as the Israelites wandering 40 years before reaching the Promised Land, and the 40 days of Jesus in the wilderness to prepare for his active ministry. In some Christian denominations we employ 40 days of repentance and fasting in the period of Lent before the Resurrection [though importantly, those 40 days exclude Sundays…stayed tuned for more on that when Lent begins].

The focus of today’s readings for us is the Infant's Presentation in the Temple in Jerusalem ~ a fulfillment of prophecy, a revelation. The prophet Simeon, whose name means “God has heard,” is an aged, righteous, and devout man waiting for the promised sight of the Messiah before he will know death. The Holy Spirit has guided him to this moment and as he takes this Child in his arms, his joy is palpable. In a modern translation his prayer, said in the Daily Office in the Book of Common Prayer [www.BCPonline.org], says:

Lord, you now have set your servant free
    to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior,
    whom you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations,
    and the glory of your people Israel.

Another aged prophet, Anna, is present. She lived in the Temple full time worshipping, fasting, and praying. Her name means “full of grace,” and she breaks out in praise of God and tells everyone about this special Baby. We, too, can easily get caught up in this moment ~ remember the excitement of special births, baptisms or christenings in your family?
Then in the midst of the all the elation, Simeon gives Mary a hint of things to come when he says, “This Child is destined for the falling and rising of many in Israel…a sign that will be opposed…a sword will pierce your own soul too.” Given all that Mary and Joseph have experienced so far ~ Angel announcements, the difficult journey to Bethlehem, the birth in less than ideal circumstances, shepherds, heavenly choruses, Wise Men, and prophetic dreams…one can barely imagine what the young new mother, Mary, is thinking. Perhaps Cornish poet Charles Causley’s words give voice to Mary’s thoughts and to every parent’s hopeful yet anxious wish:

Vivid upon her tongue

Unspoken prayers

That she may not outlive

The life she bears.

We know what is coming in the life of Jesus. May our prayers be spoken through our thoughts, words, and actions, bringing consolation, courage for the tests we shall encounter, and the light of salvation to enlighten the world around us in service to our God in Christ. May these of eyes of our hearts, our minds, and our souls, stay present to, with, and in the love of Christ, for God, for others, and for ourselves as we have been so commanded.

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader: ~ O FIRE of SINAI, we present ourselves to You to fill our hearts, minds, and souls with the joy of Simeon and the constant presence of Your wisdom and strength. Guide our feet, our hands, and our mouths, to live Christ’s Mission and Ministry, in caring for all God’s people, acting and speaking with words of peace to all we meet.