Reading
22 When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you may now dismiss your servant in peace.
30 For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and the glory of your people Israel.”
33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
36 There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.
39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.
Meditation
Luke's Gospel opens with a chorus of prophecies about the child Jesus, before hinting at his hidden life in Nazareth and making him reappear at the age of twelve to discuss with the doctors in the temple. The fulfillment of the promises made by God to Israel is announced by Simeon and Anna on the occasion of the purification of Mary and the consecration of Jesus to the Lord as the firstborn.
According to the Mosaic law (Lev 12:7-8), the woman who had given birth to a child was not supposed to touch anything sacred or enter the temple for forty days, because of her ritual impurity. At the end of this period, the law prescribed the offering of a one-year-old lamb as a sacrifice to be burned and a turtle-dove or a young dove in atonement for one's sins. Women who could not afford a lamb had to offer, as in the case of Mary, two young doves. The law also provided for the consecration of every firstborn to the Lord (Ex 13:2-12).
The birth of Jesus fulfills the hopes of devout Jews, who awaited the Messiah announced to Israel. The Canticle of Simeon, called Nunc dimittis from his first two words in the Latin version, seems to come from the Judeo-Christian environment, as well as the Magnificat and the Benedictus. It is perfectly in tune with the proclamation of the universal character of salvation that the Gospel of Luke passes through. For all three canticles, it is specified by the evangelist that who pronounced them was moved by the Holy Spirit.
The first to recognize the advent of the Messiah are humble, poor people, without positions of particular importance in the society: Mary and Joseph, Mary and Joseph, spouses of modest conditions from the village of Nazareth; Elizabeth; Simeon, a "righteous and devout" man (v. 25). In taking Jesus in his arms, Simeon finds the joy and peace that not only make him feel fulfilled the expectations of Israel but give fullness and meaning to his entire existence: "Sovreign Lord [...] you may now dismiss your servant in peace" (v. 29).
In the encounter with the incarnate Son of God, we discover a peace that not only pervades our life but also comforts us in our death. The encounter with Jesus fills the deepest expectations of man; this is the etymological meaning of "salvation" sung by Simeon: "to make whole", to add to the building of our existence that cornerstone (Mt 21:42) which gives it stability and perfection. "All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing" (Eccl 1:8); until he sees Christ. Like Simeon, holding that child in his arms, placing our gaze on him, we can find in his tenderness the merciful face of God.
The last of the prophecies presented at the beginning of Luke's Gospel sees as protagonist Anna, an elderly widow, a prophetess we are told, who leads an ascetic life without ever leaving the temple. Her advanced age does not prevent her from serving God and the service that she renders to him is made up of fasting and prayer; two spiritual practices often overshadowed in our day, in favor of activism that risks not only imprisoning the perspective of the church in a purely "horizontal" dimension but also relegating to the realm of uselessness those who cannot exercise an active ministry, for old age or other limitations.
Anna's prayer, her fast, continued for so many years since her widowhood, themselves become a prophetic sign of the primacy of God in relation to everything else; they testify the perseverance in waiting for and invoking the Messiah, an appeal that turns into praise and proclamation at the moment in which the longed-for meeting takes place: "she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem" (v. 38). Literally, the Greek text speaks of "ransom" (lutrósis). Jesus is in fact the lamb sacrificed for our salvation, the one who is erected on the altar of the heavenly Jerusalem.
Like John the Baptist, Anna interprets the prophecies of the Old Testament, acts as a "bridge" between them and the new covenant in Christ; reminding us, with her vigils and fasts, the only necessary, "the better part" (Lk 18:41-42) which reveals itself to the humble, to the "poor in spirit", because theirs is the kingdom of heaven ( Mt 5:3).
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, who submitted yourself to the law to give us the freedom of the children of God, grant us to lay our gaze on you, to contemplate the fulfillment of our expectations. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
