The Catholic Calendar for Thursday, February 2, 2006
The Presentation of the Lord

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
Malachi 3:1-4
Psalm 24:7-10
Hebrews 2:14-18
Luke 2:22-40

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

Today the Church recognizes the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the temple. We recall that Mary and Joseph , in the spirit of obedience to the law, presented their son in order that He be consecrated to the Lord. This is yet another example of how obedient Mary and Joseph were, how deep their faithfulness.

We do not know the mindset of Mary and Joseph, but as 'typical parents', (though we know they were not), they probably thought that this would be the best for their son. As it turned out they were the ones who benefited by way of the information provided by Simeon and Anna. Simeon foretold the destiny of Christ, and to Mary that she would undergo much suffering. That is one of the many good effects of being obedient, in that there may be a secondary effect form the act of obedience that we may not even be able to imagine. What if Mary and Joseph had decided to 'skip' the temple presentation, since they already had some notion that there son was special?

We likewise can be thankful for the examples of Simeon and Anna. What patience! They were obedient to the Spirit and remained praying in the temple for years, awaiting this very day! They help us better understand that we might not see the results of our efforts for a very long time, and for some people not even while they are living, but following the dictates of the Spirit in obedience always eventually reaps its rewards!

- Joan of Jesus, OCDS
(jmurphy at utica dot edu)

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