Luke 2:22–40
When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, / according to your word; / for my eyes have seen your salvation, / which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, / a light for revelation to the Gentiles / and for glory to your people Israel.” And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had finished everything required by 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 favour of God was upon him.
Commentary
In today’s Gospel and the feast of the Presentation, we usually focus on the Holy Spirit that helps the old man Simeon recognize and praise God and bless the parents of Jesus. The usual lesson we learn from them is about the dwelling of the Holy Spirit in ourselves. However, we may benefit more from the Gospel and the feast, if we look at the relationship between God and us through Jesus’ friendship with us and what the relationship of friendship means.
It is very often that we meet people who are friendly. It seems that many people are gifted for making friends easily by remembering people’s names and what they did. However, such skills are particularly vital for people who are in the hospitality businesses. We meet many of them on our daily activities, whether we buy something or try to solve our problem. Such encounters cannot be termed as friendship.
For entering a relationship of friendship, there is a mutuality of communication, of loyalty, of affection, of growth, and sometimes of argument and reconciliation. Being a friend with others is not an easy and smooth sailing. It is about faith and you invest yourself. That is why true friendship is rare and costly.
God wants to be friend with us. How He did it? In the Infancy Narratives in Matthew and Luke, we are told how God made Himself available on earth to be our friend through Jesus. In these narratives, there is a profound encounter with just how much God wants to be our friend and our companion.
He places all His or Her Divinity into the hands of Mary and Joseph and asks them in effect, ‘teach me how to be human’.” And so, there is an entranceway into the Infancy Narratives in which you suddenly realize God has placed the growing and formation of His Son in the very human hands of Mary and Joseph.
They had tradition, such as the one that we read in today’s Gospel. In this occasion, Joseph was in effect showing to Jesus: here is the law to be a good Jew. And in Mary, the presentation representing surrendering and ruminating on what Simeon said meant in her own heart. Thus, the Infancy Narratives are not strict history, but they are a faith reflection on the meaning of these two people in the formation of the gift of God to them, who is the Son of God, Jesus.
The Infancy Narratives, including the Presentation of today’s Gospel and the finding of Jesus in the Temple, are so important. In Latin Infans means “not speaking, not able to speak.” And that was God, not able to speak. He learned from Joseph and Mary. They were His companion. We should model after their friendship given to Him.
In watching the humanity of Jesus, and dwelling peacefully with the ramifications of His humanness, in hearing Him and seeing Him and touching Him, through prayers, we come to know Him as my brother and my friend.
Francois Mauriac wrote in his life of Jesus: “It is baffling to record that, for a period of thirty years, the Son of Man did not appear to be anything other than a man.” Those who lived with him thought they knew him. He fixed their tables and chairs. When he stepped outside the role they had fixed for him, they put him down as just a workman. Lord, there are depths in each of us, even those we think we know well, that only you can glimpse. Help me see others with your gaze. Amen.