Today I received a truly inspiritive newsletter from EWTN about the Feast of Candlemas, where in Catholic tradition, we honour the Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple along with the Purification of Mary.

In some Christmas traditions, particularly those from the Germanic/Slavic lands of Central, South, East, and North Eastern Europe, this day signals the absolute completion of the entire Christmas period in the wider sense although the more precise liturgical season had already concluded. While in Ireland, the Epiphany is known as “Little Christmas”, in the lands of the North, “Little Christmas” coincides with Candlemas upon which traditionally all the Light from the candles of the Christmas Season is symbolically gathered up, formally blessed and used to bless the year ahead. What an amazing tradition!

And it is precisely the gathering up of all this Light from the Season of the Incarnation that further symbolizes the way in which Mary gathered up all that was foretold by Simeon and stored it all as Light within her own heart, sustenance for the great and arduous journey of Life ahead…..We are to ponder how these things foretold about her Son had simultaneously impacted her own experiences in a way that was all laid bare before her, laid out ahead in a mysterious intertwining with the “secrets” of her Son’s Passion. Yes, secrets Holy and True, for there are many instances in the Gospels where we witness Jesus insisting upon keeping ‘a lid on things’ as it were, for God’s time had not yet come for these things to be made known far and wide. This very astoundingly heart-wrenching experience of Mary’s during the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple, (sometimes referred to as Transverberation* ) was something of a foretelling concerning the Holy Burden that would be the Cross.

Let me now share with you some of the reflections contained in the beautiful EWTN newsletter I received this morning:

It begins with an amazing quote from St Karol Wojtyla……

In the mysterious encounter between Simeon and Mary, the Old and New Testaments are joined. Together the aging prophet and the young mother give thanks for this Light which has kept the darkness from prevailing. It is the Light which shines in the heart of human life: Christ, the Saviour and Redeemer of the world, ‘a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for the glory of his people Israel.

~ Pope St. John Paul II

Dear S.Y.

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord – also called Candlemas – which commemorates both the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and the Purification of Mary, which was required by the Mosaic Law 40 days after the birth of a child.

Forty days after Christ’s birth, the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple. St. Luke recounts that Simeon was a righteous and devout man who was looking for the consolation of Israel. The Holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon that he would not die until he had seen the Christ. On entering the Temple and seeing the Holy Family, Simeon – inspired by the Holy Spirit – proclaimed, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32). The Holy Family also encountered the prophetess, Anna, who was a widow.

We encourage you to read our special page dedicated to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, where we answer questions such as:

• Why is the Presentation of Jesus important?

• Who are Simeon and Anna in the Bible?

• Was Simeon a prophet?

• What does the Purification of Mary mean?

On the page, we also offer a free eBook, The Scriptural Rosary: The Joyful Mysteries, to help you meditate on the lives of Jesus and the Blessed Mother.

We hope this eBook and page will inspire you on this Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. May God bless you.

In Christ,

Your EWTN Family

Wow! Without meaning to sound hackneyed in my choice of words….SERIOUSLY…. that just blew my mind!!

So, the Prophetess Anna was a widow… And therefore, it would not be all that unreasonable to suppose from this then that the story Jesus told about the Widow’s Mite could very well have been centred upon the exemplary virtue of this amazing woman called Anna whom we learn surprisingly little on the one hand and yet from another angle, that little contains a gianormously HUGE amount of wisdom, wisdom that pours forth as though from her very own heart steeped in the wisdom of the Lord God Almighty, indeed, her shining witness and this coupled with, and from that day forward, cojoined with that of Mary’s own heart. In a way, it’s somewhat like how St Joseph is also portrayed in the Gospels. We hear very little about him and yet through what we do hear, we can still learn oh so much!

Thankyou for taking the time to read this post. May God bless you also and grant that from the seemingly small pearls in life sometimes given, an insurmountable abundance of His grace and wisdom will pour forth.

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Other References:

*https://youtu.be/7u8nY_bMt7w?si=a9mVT7u4xUNVRBbi

¹https://catholicharboroffaithandmorals.com/

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