February 2, 2014 – Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Mal 3: 1-4; Ps 24: 7-10; Heb 2: 14-18; Lk 2: 22-40
The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord occurs 40 days after the birth of Christ. In Jewish tradition the parents of a baby were to “present” the baby at the temple on the 40th day after birth. This is a celebration that has occurred in the Church from the 300s.
More important to us, as reflected in the three readings today, is embracing the Lord as our Savior, acknowledging that He is both God and man, and striving as good stewards to be like Him in many ways. Notice how Simeon takes the Baby in his arms, holds Him, and declares, “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation.”
One of the difficult things for us is to see that same salvation and to go in peace. Stewardship is seeing the glory of our Savior and striving to live out our lives with total trust in Him. As Catholics we need not only to understand our callings, but also to live them out. St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, “Three things are necessary for our salvation: to know what we ought to believe; to know what we ought to desire; and to know what we ought to do.” Sharing our time, talent, and treasure with God and our parish is what we are to do.
