What child is this?

On Sunday 2nd February the Church celebrates the Presentation of Christ or Candlemass.

The time came for Joseph and Mary to perform the ceremony of purification as the Law of Moses commanded. So they took the child to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord: "Every firstborn male is to be dedicated to the Lord." At that time there was a man named Simeon living in Jerusalem. He was a good, God-fearing man and was waiting for Israel to be saved. The Holy Spirit was with him and had assured him that he would not die before he had seen the promised Messiah. Prompted by the Spirit, Simeon went into the Temple. When the parents brought the child Jesus into the Temple to do for him what the Law required, Simeon took the child in his arms and gave thanks to God: "Now, Lord, you have kept your promise, and you may let your servant go in peace. With my own eyes I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples: a light to reveal your will to the Gentiles and bring glory to your people, Israel". Mary and Joseph were amazed at the things Simeon said about him. Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, "This child is chosen by God for the destruction and the salvation of many in Israel. He is destined to be a sign that is rejected - and a sword will pierce your own soul too." (Luke 2:22-35)

On the face of it, this is a passage which is hard to relate to our own lives, and not apparently of much importance to us, individually. Indeed, only St Luke bothers to mention it in his Gospel - the other three writers do not refer to it at all.

This story is about obedience, gift, faith and reward. It is also a story about our own Baptism, but I will come to that later.

Imagine, for a moment, that you are Simeon ….. You are an old man now, and it is some years since the conviction came to you that, one day, you would see with your very own eyes, the Saviour and Messiah for whom your people had been waiting for centuries and centuries. You know, absolutely, that this will be a reality: you will not die until you have held that baby in your own arms. One day, out of the blue, you have an idea - a clear prompting by the Spirit - to go to the Temple. Now, imagine the scene: what are you wearing? It is a hot day, the streets are dusty and noisy, there is a smell of spice in the air and the Temple is reasonably busy with many comings and goings. Out of the crowd there comes a young couple - the girl can't be more than about sixteen years of age, and she is with her husband. The girl carries in her arms an infant and, all of a sudden, your heart and soul are filled with the light of conviction that this is the Child for whom you have been waiting. "My God! … the premonition is coming true. Here is God-made-man, the Creator, a small and helpless baby and I have the opportunity and honour of seeing and holding Him. My life is overwhelmingly blessed. What can I say - no words can adequately express how this moment feels. But, I have a word of warning for this beautiful young girl. How shall I break it to her that her beloved and treasured little son is going to have to suffer greatly and that this in turn will cause her to suffer far beyond what she - or any mother - should have to suffer? Perhaps if I tell her now, it will come as less of a shock…."

How does this relate to me? The key is in the words "prompted by the Spirit". Simeon was very clearly a man who allowed himself to be led by the Spirit, that very same Spirit which was given to you and to me at our Baptism. Simeon said 'Yes' to the promptings of the Spirit and was amply rewarded.

We need to ask ourselves: "Do I listen carefully enough to the Spirit within me? To the beautiful Spirit of Truth, Love, Joy, Wisdom, Patience, Goodness, Kindness, the Good and Holy Spirit who would lead me through life in order that I, too, will encounter the living God? Where and how will I encounter God?" The Spirit which led Simeon will also lead us to encounter God firstly in the depths of our hearts and instincts, and also in those around us: we meet God in our everyday life. Simeon's recognition of the presence of God in the child Jesus is a call for us to seek out and recognise His presence in those around us.

Now, let's look at this story from Mary's perspective and see what she would tell us. Mary has a tremendously strong sense of obedience: obedience to the Laws with which she has grown up, and obedience to the God who invited her to become the mother of His child. In her obedience she has already been blessed with the gift of her son, and also in her obedience she has come to the Temple today to present that son, to give him back to God. As she enters, an old man appears from the Temple, a complete stranger, who seems to recognise her and her baby. He introduces himself as Simeon and asks to hold the baby. He is a lovely and kindly old man so she doesn't hesitate. With what love this stranger holds her baby and then, how suddenly, his look of wonderment and fulfilment turns to sadness. What is he seeing? Tears come into his eyes as he tells her about her own son's future and something of her own. These words are going to be at the back of her mind always … what can they mean?

Of any child - ourselves and our own children - we may ask: "What child is this?" We can never know the mystery of another's journey and future. All we can know for certain is that we are all called by God to something. God has a plan for each of us and it is for us to co-operate to ensure that his plan unfolds in whatever way that may be.

Mary brought her child before God in order to return him to the God from whence he had come and to whom he would eventually return. This is our lot too. Our parents presented us to God at our Baptism when we were babies, and we had no say in the matter. In due course we too are destined to return to God. Imagine, for a moment, that you do have a say in your own Baptism….

v Would you want to present yourself to God?
v What are you offering to Him?
v What is He offering you?

I guess that your answer to the first question will very much hinge on how much you understand of your Baptism. Baptism was the point at which you became a true and full child of God; heir to the Kingdom of God and a promise given of an eternity spent in His presence. It is the point at which the third part of the Trinity - the Holy Spirit - was poured into your heart, never to depart. Of all the good things that your parents have done for you, their presenting you for Baptism was, by far, the most valuable and important. By regularly giving thanks for this gift you continue to 'present' yourself to God, which brings us to the next question….

What are you offering to God? If you think that the answer to this is to offer Him all your natural and innate gifts and talents, you are wrong, because these belong to Him already. They are not yours to give! The only thing that you can give to Him that is of any value at all, is yourself. I don't know about you, but when I cast a critical eye over myself, I think was a terrible, shoddy and defective gift this is: a sad and broken one and apparently of no great value. But …. it is all that I have and, thank God, it is all that God wants. The very fact that it is all that I have makes it an extremely valuable gift indeed, broken or not.

What is God offering me? I am not sure that I know where to begin in answering this. I guess that if God is Perfect Hope, Encouragement, Faith, Trust, Joy, Peace, Patience, Goodness, Kindness, Mercy, Tolerance, Protection and Love, and that He is All-powerful, All-knowing and Ever-present …. that He is offering me everything that I could ever need in every and all circumstances. Ultimately, He offers me an eternity spent in His overwhelmingly beautiful presence - what more could I possibly ask for?