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When Mary was 4 years old, her parents, Anna and Joachim, dedicated her to service in the Temple in Jerusalem. As members of the local Essene community, this was a profound blessing upon the family. The Essenes were a Jewish sect that existed around the me of Jesus. The Essenes are thought to have led a monastic lifestyle, focusing on piety, communal living, and strict adherence to religious purity laws. Essenes believed that their being called back to the Temple was God’s way of saying, “I have returned to you.”
The Essenes were settled just outside the walls of Jerusalem between the Israel pool and the sheep pool, right below the Temple walls. Like Mary, many young girls, ages 4 – 12, lived in the Temple in this way, serving God and caring for the sacred space. In exchange, they were fed and cared for, kept safe and given a place to sleep. They were even taught to read and spent me every day memorizing scripture.
When Mary was living and working in the Temple, the high priest was a man named Simeon. He was an Egyptian immigrant from Alexandria and was sympathetic to the Essene community. At the age of 12, Mary left the Temple and her life took a different direction. Her choices would have been to marry or to take a vow of prayer and celibacy.
While Mary chose prayer and celibacy, her father was concerned about who would care for her in her old age. Mary was an only child and therefore, would have no nieces or nephews to fulll those familial dues. And so, Joachim, Mary’s father who was a carpenter, arranged for Mary to wed a fellow carpenter named Joseph.
Now, Joseph was a widower left caring for four children. He was a faithful man, a Nazorean, descended from the line of David, and he promised Joachim he would respect Mary’s wishes to remain celibate. Joseph would take care of Mary and she would raise his children.
But we know what happened next, Mary became pregnant and gave birth to Jesus. Eight days after he was born, Jesus was circumcised according to the Jewish traditions, and he was named “Jesus” because that’s what the Angel foretold. Twelve days aer Jesus was born, the Magi visited.
And, 40 days after Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph took him to the Temple to be presented to the Lord. That’s what we are celebrang today. The Feast of the Presentation or Candlemas. Mary and Joseph arrive on the Temple grounds, carrying the infant Jesus and two young turtledoves for their sacrifice of thanksgiving. They were following the Jewish laws, traditions of their Essene community. This trip to the Temple was to dedicate Jesus as holy to the Lord.
For Mary, this was a homecoming! She was returning with this miraculous baby to a place where she had spent the majority of her life thus far. I imagine she was excited to be going to see the young girls whom she had lived and prayed with.
As a biblical scholar and learned person, she would have firmly grasped the importance of dedicating her child to the Lord and likely reveled in the occasion. As they enter, they immediately see the Egyptian High Priest, Simeon, whom Mary had worked for as a child. I love to imagine this scene! I can almost picture Simeon and Mary smiling at one another and delighting in their reunion. But then….
Then, Simeon sees Jesus in her arms and his eyes light up even more. He knows immediately that this is the Messiah. He takes the child his his arms and begins to praise God, saying:
Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of your people Israel.
Simeon has always known that he would live long enough to see the Savior and now, here he is, the newborn child, son of Mary whom he had raised in the Temple. His life is complete. Simeon blesses the child and then, tells Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel
and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealedand a sword will pierce your own soul, too.”
Simeon, the High Priest and Prophet, utters words that likely stayed with Mary and haunted her in the years to come. They are ominous and foreboding, speaking of a life for this child that would be like no other. Simeon’s name means He Who Hears. The Holy Spirit rests upon Simeon and he hears God. Just as we read in the Old Testament that the Holy Spirit somemes comes upon prophets to accomplish parcular tasks for the Lord, so the Spirit rests upon Simeon for a very specic, prophetic purpose this day.
But Simeon wasn’t the only prophet to encounter Jesus in the Temple that day. There was another prophet named Anna. She was an 84-year-old widow who had been living in the temple since her husband died many years before. I imagine Mary would have known her as well. Anna spent her days fasng and praying. At the moment she laid eyes on the infant Jesus, like Simeon, she began to praise God.
What was it that allowed Simeon and Anna to see, to hear, and to know? Further more, what was it that enabled Mary and Joseph to comprehend this miracle? Obviously, there was something about Jesus. Even as a tiny infant: all of these people – his parents, the Magi, Simeon, and Anna – they knew there was something tremendously special. And, even more than that, their hearts were ready.
They are, each of them, people of tremendous faith and steadfast prayer. Mary, raised in the Temple as a biblical scholar and student of prayer. Joseph, a devout Jew of the Essene community. Simeon, an Egyptian immigrant who becomes high priest in the Temple – a man who hears God and speaks prophetically. And, Anna, a widow who has devoted her life to the spiritual practices, to prayer and fasting.Have you ever wondered how on earth Mary said “yes” to the Angel Gabriel? She was able to say “yes,” yes to bearing the Christ Child because of her profound faith and devotion. She was able to say “yes” because she knew the scriptures of the Old Testament and understood the way God works in the world – acting in and through regular human beings.
Joseph said “yes” to Joachim with regards to marriage to Mary. And he chose again to say “yes” when Mary became pregnant. And over and over again, as they fled to Egypt, returned, and raised Jesus, Joseph chose to say “yes” to this life and this calling. When faced with being a widow from a young age, Anna chose to dwell in the Temple alongside the High Priest and the young girls dedicated to its service. She spent her days in prayer and fasting. And when she was confronted with the Messiah in the form of an infant, she knew because her soul was ready.
Simeon – the center of our story today. Simeon – He Who Hears, spent all of that time waiting and listening to God and believing with his whole being that he would see the Messiah before his death. And, he did. That is why we sing and hear the Nunc Dimittis this day, as we remember the Presentaon of our Lord Jesus in the Temple. The Nunc Dimittis, also known as the Song of Simeon, is a canticle from taken from this gospel passage. It is signicant because it is a proclamation of fulllment and peace. Simeon sees Jesus and utters this song, expressing his readiness to depart in peace now that he has witnessed the salvaon prepared by God.
The choir sang it at the beginning of the service. They sing it every single Sunday at Evensong. And, if you pray the service of Compline at the end of day, you say it there too. The “Nunc” as the choir likes to call this prayer, symbolizes the completion of the day and a peaceful transition into rest. It is also a reminder of the revelation of Jesus as a light to the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. It is my hope that your rhythm of prayer is preparing your heart for whatever may come.
Each week at Evensong, the presider says beautiful words about the intentions of that service upon your heart. Those words are true whether we are talking about the experience of Evensong or just prayer itself. They say, “It is our hope that you are released from that which causes anxiety, division, and strife
into a place where love abides releasing into your heart an abundance of patience, peace, and joy” for this is why we pray.
This canticle – Simeon’s Song – is about the steadfastness of our faith and the ways in which prayer prepares our souls for this life and the life to come.
Lord, you now have set your servant free *
to go in peace as you have promised;
For these eyes of mine have seen the Savior, *
whom you have prepared for all the world to see:
A Light to enlighten the nations, *
and the glory of your people Israel.