Today, February 2, we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple.
Biblical Foundation
We can read the account of this mystery in the life of
Our Lord in the Gospel of Saint Luke (Chapter 2: 22-40). Forty days after the
birth of Our Lord, the Virgin Mother Mary and Saint Joseph brought the baby
Jesus into the Temple in obedience to the Law of Moses. It was likewise the
time for Our Lady, the Blessed Virgin Mary, to undergo a ritual purification
after giving birth to her first and only child (Leviticus 12; Exodus 13:12-15).
For Today
For us Christians, both in the Western and Eastern
Churches, we continue to remember this great event in the life of Our Lord in
the fourth joyful mystery of the Holy Rosary and as we gather here to celebrate
the Most Holy Eucharist.
Today, we brought candles to be blessed. These candles, that will be lit, symbolize Christ, the light of the world, who shines forth as he was presented to the Temple.
Today, we brought candles to be blessed. These candles, that will be lit, symbolize Christ, the light of the world, who shines forth as he was presented to the Temple.
The light of Christ was seen most especially by the two
heralds of God: the Prophet Simeon and the Prophetess Anna, who waited for a
long the time for the coming of the Messiah. This was manifested when Prophet
Simeon, while holding the baby Jesus, said (Luke 2: 26): “Lumen ad revelationem
gentium” -A light for revelation to the Gentiles: Jesus is our light and our
life.
As we gather today in this Eucharistic celebration, holding
our lighted candles, let us remember our own baptism when Christ, our light, shines
on us the radiance of faith, hope, and love.
These candles that we hold will be holy and must be given the due
respect when we return to our homes. Each candle will be a sacramental: a
symbol of the presence of the sacred, that whenever darkness hover our homes
and our lives, we light them so that the light of Christ will triumph.
A Day for Consecrated Life
Like Jesus, all of us were presented to the Church when
we were baptized. It is the moment when our parents desired to consecrate our
life to God that led us to the prime vocation of everyone: To be Holy.
The Vocation to Holiness is a call to everyone. Some were
called to enrich this vocation through Holy Orders, through Religious and
Consecrated life, and through Married life.
Today, coinciding with the Feast of the Lord’s
Presentation and Consecration, we celebrate the World Day for Consecrated Life,
initiated by Blessed Pope John Paul II. In this Eucharistic Celebration, let us
remember the Religious Men and Women and Consecrated Lay People who professed
to follow Jesus: the obedient, chaste, and poor one, through the evangelical
counsels or vows of obedience, chastity, and poverty. In a special way, let us
pray for them that they may always have the strength from God to fulfill their
profession and to continue spreading the love of Jesus by proclaiming the Word
of God in various nations and races.
Prayer
Before we start our Eucharistic Celebration, may we
invite everyone to please kneel and, together, with Our Holy Father Pope
Benedict XVI, offer a simple prayer for all Religious and Consecrated Men and
Women:
O, Mary, Mother of the Church,
we entrust all consecrated people to you,
that you may obtain for them the fullness of divine light:
may they live in listening to the Word of God,
in the humility of following Jesus, your Son and our Lord,
in the acceptance of the visit of the Holy Spirit,
in the daily joy of the Magnificat,
so that the Church may be edified by the holy lives
we entrust all consecrated people to you,
that you may obtain for them the fullness of divine light:
may they live in listening to the Word of God,
in the humility of following Jesus, your Son and our Lord,
in the acceptance of the visit of the Holy Spirit,
in the daily joy of the Magnificat,
so that the Church may be edified by the holy lives
of these sons and daughters of yours,
in the commandment of love. Amen.
in the commandment of love. Amen.
