Sermons from St Faith's
Candlemas
Denise McDougall, February 3rd, 2013
From a commercial perspective
everything related to Christmas is now well and truly over, even
the January sales have been and gone. However the liturgical
season keeps us focused for much longer and today we celebrate
Candlemas or the Presentation of Christ. By tradition this is
the 40th and last day of the Christmas season and is sometimes
spoken of as the day when the Church’s year changes direction;
we stop looking back to Christmas and begin to look forward to
Lent, Good Friday and Easter. In today’s Gospel reading we heard
about two people who despite their advanced years show some of
the positive attributes of old age. They represent a simplicity
and wisdom and as Simeon blesses the Saviour of the world old
gives way to new, age to youth, and Mary realizes even more
clearly the uniqueness of her child.
Luke takes us beyond the manger at Bethlehem to the Temple
at Jerusalem and as we heard in the reading from Malachi, ‘The
Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his temple’.
As the story unfolds Mary and Joseph would have been settling
into their roles as parents and experiencing the same emotions
as all new mums and dads, and they were also doing everything
that was expected of them in Jewish Law. Jesus had been
circumcised at 8 days old and now Mary was to observe the
purification law.
The Jewish ritual of purification took place because women were
considered to be unclean after the birth of a child and weren’t
even allowed to go into the Temple to worship. It took place 40
days after the birth of a son and 60 days after the birth of a
daughter and the mother went to the sanctuary in the Temple or
synagogue to be ritually purified. This then meant that she
could go back to religious services and generally go out in
public again. I do wonder what 21C traditionalists make of
that one!
Mary and Joseph were doing what was expected of them but because
of the intervention of two old people their Temple visit turned
out to be very different from what they anticipated. What began
as an ordinary routine event turned into something
extra-ordinary and unique. Simeon and Anna from the Temple
display the wisdom which begins with attentiveness to God and
God’s word and although from very different backgrounds they
were both able to recognise the significance of what was going
on around them. Their longing belonged to their circumstances,
they were people of God oppressed by a foreign power, longing
for the promised Saviour who would set them free. And both were
rewarded for waiting so faithfully in hope, keeping their vision
alive and trusting that God would not let them down.
Simeon was probably an active man in the temple, in society and
business and was waiting for God to comfort Israel. Inspired by
the Holy Spirit he entered the temple as Jesus was brought in
and immediately recognised in the child the fulfilment of the
salvation that God has promised. On seeing the child Simeon
echoes the prophet Isaiah’s words, ‘a light to lighten the
Gentiles as well as being the glory of God’s people.’ Here we
have the vulnerability but also the wisdom of the old and the
vulnerability along with the innocence of a tiny baby. Jesus’
humanity is powerfully pictured not as a mighty warrior but an
ordinary and yet at the same time an extraordinary baby, he
enters into the weakness of our lives to fulfil his unique role
as Saviour from sin and death, Jesus Christ the true ruler of
the world, the promised Messiah, the real King; this tiny baby
is to offer a very different kingdom to that of Caesar Augustus.
And although we don’t know how long it was before Simeon died
after he had recognised Jesus we do know he was able to depart
in peace.
Anna we are told never left the Temple where she spent her time
worshipping, fasting praying and waiting. We have all
experienced the anxieties of waiting especially if it is news of
a loved one away from home or an operation or test results, we
long for the wait to be over but none of these much shorter
periods of waiting can ever compare to Anna’s steadfast hope and
longing for the Messiah. Perhaps next time we get thoroughly
frustrated or impatient about something we should think of her
unwavering faith, commitment and patience and let her
characteristics help to shape us.
These two old people had the great gift of prophecy, prophecy
that is in the most classic OT sense, the ability to see beneath
the obvious and to proclaim openly what is really happening in
what appears to be a very ordinary situation; they were also
realistic enough to say that things wouldn’t be easy.
Simeon was given the confidence to proclaim what effect Jesus
would have on Israel. ‘He would be the cause for the rise and
fall of many.’ He warns Mary that Jesus will face the conflict
between God’s saving purpose and people’s opposition and that he
will be rejected and that Mary too will share in his pain. Harsh
words but they impress upon Mary the unfolding uniqueness of her
Son. The presentation of Jesus in the temple foreshadows his
later entrance into Jerusalem, where he will present himself to
his Father on the cross, as the true sacrifice for our
salvation.
So Simeon and Anna, welcome Jesus in the holiest place in Israel
as the Light and Redeemer of the world, Jesus is the fulfilment
of God’s promise for everyone and that includes us. As
Christ is re-presented to us today we are all being challenged
to respond with renewed commitment to the Gospel and of course
with Jesus there are no half measures, no compromise or neutral
ground. If we follow him we have to make choices not only about
what we believe but also about what we practice and how we live
out our beliefs in our everyday lives. We do have the choice to
either accept or reject God’s will and plan for us but if our
desire is to mature spiritually then failing to accept God’s
challenge or being swayed to do something else instead of
praying or worshipping is not only detrimental to our own
spiritual growth but also the growth of the Church. We
should have the courage to speak out to others about what the
Christ –child and what our faith means to us. Of course this
can’t just happen in a vacuum it comes from being faithful,
interpreting the scriptures, being devout in prayer and worship
and consistently working to be more Christ-like. And as we
approach Lent what great opportunities there are for spiritual
growth, The CTW courses on offer at different times and venues,
Wednesday mornings at SM with reflection and discussion based
around Gospel readings and relationships, Stations of the Cross
on Fridays and Sunday addresses led by Mirfield ordinands,
Bishop James’ Lent course at the Cathedral. They are all there
for the taking, not that I am suggesting you go to everything!
So, as we move towards Lent and journey to the Cross together I
hope we all grow in wisdom and understanding and proclaim openly
what God is really doing in our lives. Aging is inevitable and
yes it does eventually bring limitations but for those of us of
a certain generation we have lots of life and faith experiences
which we should share with younger generations. Age may
not be considered as a time for productivity but it can be a
time for fruitfulness, a special time to share the wisdom we
have acquired over the years.
Simeon and Anna didn’t ever give up and neither must we and then
perhaps one day we too will be able to say Lord your servant can
now go in peace ....... ‘
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