Candlemas – 31 January : Luke 2.22-40
Candlemas: Also called Presentation Of The Lord, or Presentation Of Christ In The Temple, or Hypapante,
In the Christian church, festival on February 2, commemorating the occasion when the Virgin Mary, in obedience to Jewish law, went to the Temple in Jerusalem both to be purified 40 days after the birth of her son and to present Jesus to God as her firstborn (Luke 2:22–38).
If you’ve come to church this morning feeling a little flat or fragile then
you've come to the right service. Of course it wouldn't be surprising if
you felt a little low this morning. We have well and truly lost sight of
Christmas. The weather keeps changing. We are still in winter with its threats
of colds coughs and worse. And ahead of us is Lent. Ah Lent! No sweets or
chocolate (or worse if we have chosen to take fasting more seriously) and
on-going guilt about good intentions to pray more and not quite achieving
it. And the themes 
Well whether that's true for you or not this is a turning point. Candlemas which falls on Tuesday was the last feast in the Christian year that was dated by reference to Christmas; subsequent moveable feasts are calculated with reference to Easter. i.e up to now we have looked back to the birth of Jesus; from now on after Candlemas we look forward to his death and Resurrection. Under Jewish law of the time as found in the Torah, a mother who had given birth to a male-child was considered unclean for 40 days. Not yet able to carry out household duties fully or take part in religious ceremonies. Candlemas therefore corresponds to the day on which Mary attended a ceremony of ritual purification. That was followed by Jesus' presentation in the Jerusalem temple.
And of course it was in the Temple that Simeon and Anna met Mary, Joseph and Jesus. Jesus was 6 weeks old. And as he is brought to the Temple, the old man Simeon, guided (Luke tells us) by the Holy Spirit, recognizes in this child what he had been praying and hoping for all his life. 'My eyes have now seen your salvation. Here is Israel's glory, and here is God's light for those outside Israel, the Gentiles.' And that's why this is Candlemas. God's light has come into the world.
The term "Candlemas" refers to the practice found in former Roman Catholic churches in the first centuries whereby a priest on February 2 would bless the candles for use during the coming year. I said at the beginning that this is a festival for the fragile, for those who feel frail. As the light of the candle flickers you may wonder if it will go out; that fragility can represent the fragility of our faith and hope. Luke seems to present it like that. In their own way, each of the characters in this drama is fragile It is as though he invites us to identify with them. Yes, God's light, His Salvation has come into the world but at any point it could have been snuffed out.
Let's look in turn at why each of the players around Jesus in our gospel reading is, like us, frail and fragile. Joseph we know little about. He almost comes across as a supporting act; bemused by all that has happened since Mary conceived. He is open to hear the angels’ message to stick by Mary and he does. But what does he make of all that he is witnessing? Does he wonder if he can provide adequately for his wife and child? Have I really heard God correctly? Have I made the right decision to stand by her? And what about Mary? Young Mary. Fragile in so many ways. Conceiving before marriage and facing judgment from many. Having come through the risk of childbirth she was now facing the demands of motherhood with limited means. She knew God's hand was on them, but like Joseph, she was amazed at what Simeon and Anna were saying about her son.
Like her husband she is open to hear from God even though the message is not comfortable: 'A sword will pierce your own soul too', Simeon tells her. Sometimes God's word does not tell us what we want to hear. Now Simeon, probably an old man, though Luke doesn't say so, for he blesses Mary and Joseph and talks about being ready to depart. He was one of a small number in Israel who quietly trusted the ancient prophets and believed that God would honour His promise to send an anointed One. Not for Simeon the taking up of causes, seeking to overthrow the Romans, and usher in God's rule for Him. Maybe others had mocked him for this. You can hear them saying, "It's all very well praying and waiting Simeon, but God expects us to act as well - he can't bring about change without us." And maybe others were fed up of waiting and stopped believing. "Simeon old chap, God hasn't sent us prophets for 400 years. I admire your sincerity but you're a bit out of touch with reality." 'The Son of Man comes at a time you least expect." So Simeon's quiet trust was rewarded.
And lastly there is Anna. Married for only seven years before her husband died. Fragile through her gender, vulnerable through her circumstances, but like Simeon devoted to prayer and worship. And like all the players in this drama, open and obedient to the Lord. Willing to be shown what He is doing. And here is the key for us I would suggest. It is not our circumstances which give us the cue for trust. Faith is not about being invulnerable and sure. It is about trusting the One who has spoken. How is it that the writer of Hebrews puts it in chapter 11? 'Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.'
We all know at times how our faith feels fragile, like the candle flame. But let's remember too what Candlemas says to us. It says that God trusts fragile people. He brings about His will and purpose through human beings who are vulnerable, weak and needy. All he needs is an openness to Him and a willingness to be guided by Him. We often make faith sound too complicated. It isn't. It can be exercised by the simple, by the young, by the old and frail, by the broken. So as we offer our prayer and seek to put our trust in Him afresh, let's remember that He places His faith in us! He trusts us with His message of salvation. 'My eyes have seen your salvation… a light to reveal you to the Gentiles.' We have now been entrusted with carrying the Word of God, as Mary once was.
One final point. What is this Word? What is its message? It is above all things good news for the poor. Mary and Joseph cannot afford to bring a lamb and a pigeon to offer at the Temple. They bring two pigeons, the offering of the poor. 'Though he was rich yet for our sakes he became poor.' Yes, that refers to heavenly riches but not only that. Jesus identified himself consciously with the poor, the needy, those on the edge and often neglected by the rest of society. As His followers, that is our starting point, not an added extra. So as Jesus was presented in the Temple, we present ourselves to Him. First we do so in prayer; then, we present ourselves at the altar, for Him to meet us there and feed us. As we do both those let's be honest about how fragile we are and how frail our faith, but let's too come with the trust that we do have an openness to hear from Him and to receive from Him and so, most importantly of all, to be used by him.
©2010 Mark Bridgen