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Institute for Homiletics

A Collaboration of The Catholic Foundation and the University of Dallas

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

The Presentation in the Temple

Look at me. The skin on my hands is so thin that I can see my  veins and my bones. My feet shuffle so slowly that everyone rushes  past me in the street. The ache in my back never stops. Isn’t it enough  already, you who have been our hope for ages past? Long ago, you  said that you would not take me to you until I had seen your Messiah.  I felt then that it was a wonderful promise. But extreme old age is a  burden heavy to bear. All that I love is gone. I have waited so long.

What’s that? This is the day? Go to the temple? 

Look at her. Her cheeks are fresh, gleaming with joy, as she holds  that boy. She is young. Yet a sword will pierce her heart. The babe  is light in her arms. She doesn’t know how heavy it will be to hold a  lifeless child. The man stands behind her, a holy family. She doesn’t  know the hole left in your heart when your spouse dies. O Lord, I  have seen too much. The heaviness of earth weighs me down. 

What’s that, you say? This is the One? The child? 

Look at him. His tiny head nestles in the crook of my arm. His  eyes briefly open. His eyelids flicker as he looks into my eyes. This,  this is the one who will set your people free? Joy rises within me.  We your people have waited so long. This baby so small will be our  hope for years to come? My ribcage swells in jubilation. My aches  are gone. I feel like dancing! 

Now, Master, please, set me free. Let me come to you in peace.  You have fulfilled your promise! Bless you, bless you, my God! 

Consider/Discuss 

  • God works miracles through the very old. Abraham and Sarah, Simeon  and Anna—they were faithful for so many years. The Lord’s promises to  them were fulfilled. How have you seen the beauty of God through eyes of  those who have lived long? 
  • God works miracles through the very young. The Holy Family is a sign of  promise for years to come. How have you seen the beauty of God through  the lives of those who are very young? 

Living and Praying with the Word 

God of the heavens, you asked Abram to count the stars, to trust  you for descendants. You asked Simeon to trust that the Savior of  the world would come. You ask us to trust that you do fulfill your  promises. You came to us within a human family. So this day, we  entrust our families and all those we love to you to hold and keep  safe. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, pray for us!

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Scripture Study for

A major theme in Malachi is God’s apparent inattention to injustice. Immediately before the reading, God notes that the people have demanded, “Where is the just God?” (2:17). God responds that soon the messenger of the covenant will appear in advance of the one whom they seek. It is not clear from the biblical text who this messenger is or how the messenger relates to God. Understood eschatologically, it refers to the figure who will come to be known as the Messiah. In any case, the advent of this figure will bring about the justice the people seek, beginning with cleaning up corrupt priests (Levites) and their worship. 

The focus of the reading from Hebrews is on the fact that Jesus shared our human nature (flesh and blood) precisely so he could deliver us from the fear of death. It is this fear, and not death itself,  that holds us in bondage to the devil. In a time of persecution, it is fear of suffering and death that the author sees as potentially leading his audience into infidelity (3:1—4:14). Thus, the message: they have nothing to fear from death, because Jesus has endured it and come out the other side. Because he acts now as high priest, merciful and faithful, those who die have nothing to fear. 

The Torah prescribes that a newborn son be circumcised, marking his acceptance into the covenant community, and that the mother should be ritually purified (Leviticus 12:1–5). This gesture of obeying the Torah indicates the larger Gospel theme that Jesus himself will perfectly fulfill the Law. More than that, with Jesus’ advent God is fulfilling covenant promises to Israel, and ultimately to all nations.  Thus, inspired by the Holy Spirit, Simeon announces that in Jesus  God has brought consolation and salvation—a gift that some will oppose (“contradict”). The widow Anna also recognizes Jesus, and likewise announces the good news of the redemption of God’s people. 

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Faith—Assurance That God Is at Work

Have you ever met someone who is really old and really wise? I  have met several such men and women, mostly at daily Mass. Their eyes are gentle. Smile lines are etched into the wrinkles of their faces. In some, a lifetime of generosity is written into their bodies, as though their hands reach out to hug you, even when they have not moved. Others are quieter, but their faces radiate peace. Kindness and holiness have become a way of life for them. 

Simeon and Anna are the first-century equivalent of those saints whom you and I have met. These two pray. They pray a lot. Simeon  is described as “upright and devout.” When he sees the child, he believes. He believes! An eight-day-old baby is being presented to the Lord. And Simeon sees in that child the Savior of the world. How does that work? Something must have moved within him. 

Faith is an inner assurance that rises within us to convince us that  God is at work. That belief, at that moment, is a gift. Anna has prayed night and day in the temple for years and years and years. Many of us have tasted the seasoning of the Spirit. But there are saints who have tasted of the pure Spirit, as though it were something they drank straight. Anna seems to be one of those people,  those who live on the borderline between God and the world.

You might just be one of those people. If you are, thank you for your life of holiness. If you are not, then like me, let’s keep working to drink deeply of God’s Spirit, day after day. God is real, at work at all times. Faith is a gift, an inner assurance that this is so. 

Consider/Discuss 

  • Think about those moments when you have been gifted with an inner certainty about God’s movement or action in your life. It could be a delicate touch or an overwhelming conversion experience. Share that story with someone this week. 
  • Sometimes we start to think and act as though the living God were just an idea. If God is real, at work at all times, what does that mean for how we listen, how we are attentive? What does that divine presence mean for how we live our lives day after day? 

Living and Praying with the Word 

On this day of presentation, God of glory, we present ourselves to  you. Purify us to become more holy. We see in others what beauty a  lifetime of grace can create. We want to be like that. Lead us in your  everlasting way.

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Faith—Assurance That God Is at Work

Have you ever met someone who is really old and really wise? I  have met several such men and women, mostly at daily Mass. Their eyes are gentle. Smile lines are etched into the wrinkles of their faces. In some, a lifetime of generosity is written into their bodies, as though their hands reach out to hug you, even when they have not moved. Others are quieter, but their faces radiate peace. Kindness and holiness have become a way of life for them. 

Simeon and Anna are the first-century equivalent of those saints whom you and I have met. These two pray. They pray a lot. Simeon  is described as “upright and devout.” When he sees the child, he believes. He believes! An eight-day-old baby is being presented to the Lord. And Simeon sees in that child the Savior of the world. How does that work? Something must have moved within him. 

Faith is an inner assurance that rises within us to convince us that  God is at work. That belief, at that moment, is a gift. Anna has prayed night and day in the temple for years and years and years. Many of us have tasted the seasoning of the Spirit. But there are saints who have tasted of the pure Spirit, as though it were something they drank straight. Anna seems to be one of those people,  those who live on the borderline between God and the world.

You might just be one of those people. If you are, thank you for your life of holiness. If you are not, then like me, let’s keep working to drink deeply of God’s Spirit, day after day. God is real, at work at all times. Faith is a gift, an inner assurance that this is so. 

Consider/Discuss 

  • Think about those moments when you have been gifted with an inner certainty about God’s movement or action in your life. It could be a delicate touch or an overwhelming conversion experience. Share that story with someone this week. 
  • Sometimes we start to think and act as though the living God were just an idea. If God is real, at work at all times, what does that mean for how we listen, how we are attentive? What does that divine presence mean for how we live our lives day after day? 

Living and Praying with the Word 

On this day of presentation, God of glory, we present ourselves to  you. Purify us to become more holy. We see in others what beauty a  lifetime of grace can create. We want to be like that. Lead us in your  everlasting way.

Written by

Scripture Study for

A major theme in Malachi is God’s apparent inattention to injustice. Immediately before the reading, God notes that the people have demanded, “Where is the just God?” (2:17). God responds that soon the messenger of the covenant will appear in advance of the one whom they seek. It is not clear from the biblical text who this messenger is or how the messenger relates to God. Understood eschatologically, it refers to the figure who will come to be known as the Messiah. In any case, the advent of this figure will bring about the justice the people seek, beginning with cleaning up corrupt priests (Levites) and their worship. 

The focus of the reading from Hebrews is on the fact that Jesus shared our human nature (flesh and blood) precisely so he could deliver us from the fear of death. It is this fear, and not death itself,  that holds us in bondage to the devil. In a time of persecution, it is fear of suffering and death that the author sees as potentially leading his audience into infidelity (3:1—4:14). Thus, the message: they have nothing to fear from death, because Jesus has endured it and come out the other side. Because he acts now as high priest, merciful and faithful, those who die have nothing to fear. 

The Torah prescribes that a newborn son be circumcised, marking his acceptance into the covenant community, and that the mother should be ritually purified (Leviticus 12:1–5). This gesture of obeying the Torah indicates the larger Gospel theme that Jesus himself will perfectly fulfill the Law. More than that, with Jesus’ advent God is fulfilling covenant promises to Israel, and ultimately to all nations.  Thus, inspired by the Holy Spirit, Simeon announces that in Jesus  God has brought consolation and salvation—a gift that some will oppose (“contradict”). The widow Anna also recognizes Jesus, and likewise announces the good news of the redemption of God’s people. 

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