02 Feb – Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord is also called the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, and Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple. This Church feast of February 2 is in honour of the purification of the Virgin Mary, and commemorates the offering of the infant Jesus in the Temple. Popular in centuries past, candles were blessed and carried in procession, signifying the entry of Jesus as the light of the world.
- Patron Saint Index
___________________
Malachi 3:1-4
Look, I am going to send my messenger to prepare a way before me. And the Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his Temple; and the angel of the covenant whom you are longing for, yes, he is coming, says the Lord of Hosts. Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali. He will take his seat as refiner and purifier; he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and then they will make the offering to the Lord as it should be made. The offering of Judah and Jerusalem will then be welcomed by the Lord as in former days, as in the years of old.
___________________
Hebrews 2:14-18
Since all the children share the same blood and flesh, Christ too shared equally in it, so that by his death he could take away all the power of the devil, who had power over death, and set free all those who had been held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. For it was not the angels that he took to himself; he took to himself descent from Abraham. It was essential that he should in this way become completely like his brothers so that he could be a compassionate and trustworthy high priest of God’s religion, able to atone for human sins. That is, because he has himself been through temptation he is able to help others who are tempted.
____________________
Luke 2:22-40
And when the day came for them to be purified as laid down by the Law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, – observing what stands written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male must be consecrated to the Lord – and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is said in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons Now in Jerusalem there was a man named Simeon. He was an upright and devout man; he looked forward to Israel’s comforting and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had set eyes on the Christ of the Lord Prompted by the Spirit he came to the Temple and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the Law required, he took him into his arms and blessed God; and he said:
‘Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace,
just as you promised;
because my eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared for all the nations to see,
a light to enlighten the pagans
and the glory of your people Israel’.
As the child’s father and mother stood there wondering at the things that were being said about him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘You see this child: he is destined for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is rejected – and a sword will pierce your own soul too – so that the secret thoughts of many may be laid bare’.
There was a prophetess also, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well on in years. Her days of girlhood over, she had been married for seven years before becoming a widow. She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer. She came by just at that moment and began to praise God; and she spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.
When they had done everything the Law of the Lord required, they went back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. Meanwhile the child grew to maturity, and he was filled with wisdom; and God’s favour was with him.
____________________
I read from the testimonies of those that have near death experiences of the bright light that they experience in the darkness they witness as they hover in a dark void. This light is warm and draws them towards it. In the same way, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord is like this light that has been made manifest throughout the whole world.
The light that Christ may seem warm and welcoming but after experiencing it at some length; it begins to cut our hearts deeply for it cannot stand the darkness present in our hearts. It will force us to make the difficult decision to choose either God or the way of the world, resulting in the “secret thoughts of many [being] laid bare”. We read in the first reading that the Lord’s coming is similar to the refiner’s fire and fuller’s alkali. These fire and alkali are intense and concentrated substances that are meant to purify the impure metal ores. It is an analogy to the light of Christ who purifies our heart intensely to make it worthy to worship God.
This light was required to deliver Israel because it was stuck in the state of sin. Whilst economically prosperous, it was nevertheless suffering from spiritual decay because the worship offered to God was ritualistic with the incorrect intentions. God requires us to make a total and unconditional commitment towards him. When we ask Him to enter into our lives, we agree to let Him take over entirely and not partially. I invite the reader to examine in their hearts whether they have been guilty of committing this sin of indifference and lack of reverence and to ask the Lord to pierce their hearts so as to lay bare their secret thoughts to Him.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Nick Chia)
____________________
Prayer:
Lord, we pray for the courage to face up to our sins and allow us to offer them up to you when we are incapable of solving them. Amen.
We give thanks to the Lord for: The many people that bring light into our souls.
Upcoming Readings:
Sun, 03 Feb – Zephaniah 2:3, 3:12-13; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Matthew 5:1-12a; Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
————————
To subscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To unsubscribe to this mailing list, send a blank e-mail to this address:
Godismyoxygen-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
