Giotto (Giotto di Bondone), Presentation of
Jesus at the Temple (1266-1336)
The Gospel appointed for the Feast of the Presentation
in the Temple (Luke 2:22-40) contains one of the more beloved passages in the Christian
scripture. The words are spoken by Simeon, a man upon whom the Holy Spirit
rested, a righteous man who awaited what the writers of Luke called “the
consolation of Israel.” These beautiful words reflect the heart of a patient,
devout servant of G-d:
"Lord, now you are dismissing your servant
in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which
you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the
Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel."
A Long, Patient Wait
Simeon lived in a Judea occupied by Roman
invaders. Like many of his countrymen and women, he had long awaited a savior,
the one who would save the people of Israel from the domination of the hated
Romans. From the context of this statement attributed to Simeon, it is fair to
assume that this was not his first time in the Temple. Simeon’s devotion to
Israel had no doubt brought him here many times before this day.
But this day was to be different from those that
came before. This day, Simeon’s most fervent prayer had been answered. The One
he had patiently awaited for so long was here, before him.
It is hardly surprising that his first response
was one of astonishment and gratitude. That gratitude is expressed in his
recognition that his prayers had been answered, that he was now relieved of his
calling to the Temple to prayer for salvation. And that calling had not been in
vain.
“For my eyes have seen your salvation….”
Sack of the Temple, Arch of Titus, Palatine
Hill, Rome
It’s important to note that this salvation - and
the way that word is ordinarily used in the Gospels - does not refer to
individual souls nor is it connected to an afterlife in heaven. Salvus,
the Latin root of this word, means health, wholeness. In Simeon’s use of this
word, he refers to the entire people of Israel, not to any given individual. He
also points toward the restoration to wholeness of an occupied people right here
and now, not in the next world.
Simeon’s dreams have come true. And thus flow
forth these beautiful words, as only the lyrical gospel writer Luke could
produce them, that are so familiar to all of us in the Anglican tradition.
Choral Evensong,
Westminster Abbey
Those of us who have sung in choirs or spent
much time in our daily offices of Morning or Evening Prayer recognize these
words from the Canticle we call alternatively the Song of Simeon, honoring its
source, or the Nunc Dimittis, the Latin words for “now dismissed.” For
those who love the choral evensongs of our tradition, the Magnificat or the
Song of Mary precedes the Gospel reading and the Nunc Dimittis follows.
It is a beautiful tradition, one of the many treasures
of Anglicanism.
A Chilling Prediction
It is hardly surprising that words directed to
Mary also play an important part of this gospel reading. Mary is present for
Simeon’s prayer along with Joseph and her newborn son. Mary has dutifully reported
for the ritual purification that Hebrew women are required to undergo after
giving birth. The couple is also there to offer the sacrifice of turtle doves their
tradition requires to dedicate the first born to the Lord.
Once Simeon is finished with his prayer, he
turns to Mary and gives her a chilling prediction:
"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 revealed-- and a sword will pierce your own soul
too."
Imagine for a second being the mother of a
newborn, a child she already knows is special, different from the others in her
village, and now hearing this prediction. The last line is terribly troubling:
“And a sword will pierce your own soul too…”
Roberto Ferruzzi, Virgin Mary and
Child Jesus Christ (1897)
We who know the rest of the story know
that Simeon proved prescient. This is a Mother who would be forced to watch as
her child was betrayed by one of his own disciples, tortured and killed by the
Roman occupiers who, worse yet, were working in concert with the religious
leaders of the very Temple in which they were now standing.
It is an unspoken law of nature that children
should always outlive their parents. And most parents who have endured the loss
of a child will readily say that watching their child die before them is the
most painful experience a human being could have.
A Mother Weeps for Her Child
I think have a little insight into that reality.
In August of 1985 I traveled with my husband and my family to Europe. One of
our stops was the Vatican. Once inside this cavernous facility, bustling with
tourists, we decided it was best to separate, see the things we wanted to see
and reassemble at the steps in an hour.
I had found a group of German tourists saying
mass before the high altar so I joined them. Afterward I did the tourist bit,
taking photos of the Baldacchino and the many beautiful sculptures. As the time
to meet my family drew near, I made my way back to the front of the basilica. Over
in the corner of the entry way I saw a group of people gathered. Ever the
curious one, I went to see what had captivated them.
It was the Pieta, Michelangelo’s
magnificent statue of a sorrowful Mary holding the broken, bleeding body of her
crucified son. It is an enormous piece of sculpture, its size alone
overwhelming the visitor standing at her feet.
But it is the subject matter of this work - whose
name means alternatively piety as well as pity - that Michelangelo had depicted
so poignantly that most overwhelmed any visitor who knew the story. In my eye,
I could hear whispered the words from Luke’s Gospel:
“And a sword will pierce your own soul too…”
Simeon’s words had, indeed, proved prescient. A
sword had, indeed, pierced Mary’s very soul. And the grief of that moment that Michelangelo
had so ably captured began to overwhelm the audience around me.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a woman
openly weeping. Trying not to stare, I turned to look at her. It was only then that
I realized the woman was my own Mother. And it was at that moment that the
unspeakable pain of a Mother watching her oldest child suffer became very real
to me.
Some of us know what that suffering feels like
because you have been parents. And some of us, like myself, know how hard it is
to watch your own parent suffer because of the way you have been abused by
others because of your sexuality – or anything else that makes a child different.
The sword of fear and loathing is a very
powerful weapon indeed. No heart stands much chance against being pierced in
its advance.
Saints Worthy of Veneration
There is a reason that we venerate Mary. She was
a brave woman, a teenage unwed mother of a special child. She would watch with
awe as her child grew up to be the revealer of the Holy here and now. And she
would watch with horror as that beautiful child was stripped of his clothing, his
dignity and crucified publicly on the edge of a trash heap in the capital city of
her homeland.
And yet, it is Mary who says to the archangel
Gabriel, “Be it unto me according to thy will.” And it is Mary who will
dutifully remain at the foot of the cross until her son takes his final breath.
This is a saint worthy of our veneration, and -
if we are courageous enough - our emulation.
It is hardly surprising that Christians have
prayed to Mary over the years to intercede for them. The theologian Henri
Nouwen observes in his work The Wounded Healer that it is those who have
themselves suffered who are best able to enter into the suffering of others.
Little wonder the prayer “Ave Maria!”, “Hail, Mary!”, ends with the
words “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of
our deaths.”
This day I am grateful for the witness of two
courageous souls, two devout servants of the Holy One. Let us give thanks
this day for the life and examples of Simeon, a patient man who saw his prayers answered in the coming of Jesus, and Mary, a devoted Mother whose heart would
be pierced by that very same coming.
A homily preached at St. Richard’s Episcopal
Church, Winter Park, FL, 5 PM service, February 2, 2020
Harry Scott Coverston
Orlando, Florida
If the unexamined life
is not worth living, surely an unexamined belief system, be it religious or
political, is not worth holding. Most things worth considering do not come in
sound bites.
For what does G-d
require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with
your G-d? (Micah 6:8, Hebrew Scriptures)
Do not be daunted by the
enormity of the world's grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly
now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to
abandon it. - Rabbi
Rami Shapiro, Wisdom of the
Jewish Sages (1993)
© Harry Coverston,
2020
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