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| “Presentation of Jesus at the Temple” by Andrea Celesti, c. |
Reading 1: 1 John
2:12-17
I am writing to you,
children,
because your sins have been
forgiven for his name’s sake.
I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is
from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young
men,
because you have conquered
the Evil One.
I write to you, children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is
from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong and
the word of God remains in you,
and you have conquered the
Evil One.
Do not love the world or the
things of the world.
If anyone loves the world,
the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world,
sensual lust, enticement for
the eyes, and a pretentious life,
is not from the Father but is
from the world.
Yet the world and its
enticement are passing away.
But whoever does the will of
God remains forever.
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Commentary on 1 Jn 2:12-17
St. John addresses his audience
individually on sin and forgiveness using an interesting metaphor for the
trinity: children, fathers, young men. The believing community he addresses is
armed through faith against the evil one. He focuses in his last paragraph on
avoiding the secular world. He exhorts them to separate themselves from
“things” of the world, saying that they are of the world and therefore unworthy
of special care, leading the faithful away from God (see also John 17:9-26 and John 15:18-27).
CCC: 1 Jn 2:16 377,
2514, 2534
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm
96:7-8a, 8b-9, 10
R. (11a) Let the heavens be glad and the earth
rejoice!
Give to the LORD, you
families of nations,
give to the LORD glory and
praise;
give to the LORD the glory
due his name!
R. Let the heavens be glad
and the earth rejoice!
Bring gifts, and enter his
courts;
worship the LORD in holy
attire.
Tremble before him, all the
earth.
R. Let the heavens be glad
and the earth rejoice!
Say among the nations: The
LORD is king.
He has made the world firm,
not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with
equity.
R. Let the heavens be glad
and the earth rejoice!
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Commentary on Ps 96:7-8a, 8b-9, 10
While Psalm 96 is
a song of praise, the psalmist reminds us that even in praise we need to offer
what we have in gratitude. The structure is familiar: first we are given the
audience ("you families of nations"),
then the response ("bring gifts, and enter his courts"),
and finally praise as a response from God ("he governs the
peoples with equity").
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Gospel: Luke
2:36-40
There was a prophetess, Anna,
the daughter of Phanuel, of
the tribe of Asher.
She was advanced in years,
having lived seven years with
her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she
was eighty-four.
She never left the temple,
but worshiped night and day
with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that
very time,
she gave thanks to God and
spoke about the child
to all who were awaiting the
redemption of Jerusalem
When they had fulfilled all
the prescriptions
of 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 favor of God was upon
him.
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Commentary on Lk 2:36-40
Continuing the story surrounding
the presentation of Jesus, in this passage St. Luke describes the prophetess
Anna. This role, for widows to prophesy in the temple, was not uncommon. The
symbolism depicting Anna has clear linkage back to Old Testament events. It
begins with the number seven. Rabbinical literature recognizes seven as the
number of prophetesses: Sarah and Miriam in Exodus 15:20, Deborah in
Judges 4:4,
Hannah mother of Samuel in 1
Samuel 2:1, Abigail wife of David in 1 Samuel 25:32, Huldah
in 2 Kings 22:14,
and Esther. These women gave witness to God’s will, at least in their holiness,
and spoke in his name. Anna, in this prophetic role (Phanuel translates as
“face of God” and Asher as “good luck”), echoes the words of Simeon saying that
this young baby (Jesus) is the redemption of Jerusalem. The city, in this
instance, represents all of the elect.
The final verses provide a glimpse of Jesus’ necessary hidden life
in Nazareth. He grows in faith and stature in preparation for the mission
assigned to him.
CCC: Lk 2:38 711
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Reflection:
The timing of the first
reading from 1 John is very good. It is
almost a week since the great secular glut of commercial Christmas and its
aftermath, the post-Christmas feeding frenzy.
Just as we see the children tiring of their new toys and games and the
adults thinking about returning to the routines of making their way in the
world, the evangelist addresses himself to us.
He reminds us first about the meaning of the Nativity whose octave we
are still in: “…your sins have been forgiven
for his name’s sake.” He then goes on to restate the great
Christian paradox found in his own Gospel, to be part of the world but separate
from it.
The Evangelist warns us about
what we just went through, “…sensual lust, enticement
for the eyes, and a pretentious life,”
all part of the commercial Christmas. It
is so pervasive that in the U.S., even religious people of non-Christian
denominations gather and buy gifts with no attachment whatsoever to the birth
of the Savior.
These are not the things of
God but, as St. John says, things of the world.
The Christian must be in the world but stand apart from it. What is truly important is not how well we
did “under the tree,” but how well we did by the standards of him who loves us.
The Lord came as not just a symbol of love, but love itself into the
world. Even as we think about taking
extra good care of the new golf clubs or the new appliance, we should ask
ourselves what we are doing to take care of what is really important in ourselves.
Today we are reminded of our
Christian duty and the role we are called to play in God’s plan. He casts us into the world like seeds so that
we might transform it (not be transformed by it). Today our voices join with the Prophetess
Anna in thanking God for the gift of the Christ Child, and pledging to
rededicate ourselves to the cause which brought him into the world.
Pax
[2]
The picture is “Presentation of Jesus at the Temple” by Andrea Celesti, c. 1710
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the
Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This
re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
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