The Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, or the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary or Candlemass. Three very distinct celebrations, the first two (the Presentation and the Purification intimate family events witnessed by two extraordinary characters (Simeon and Anna). � � Let’s work backwards; � � I spoke at some length last year about Simeon and Anna so we’ll park them for this year. � � Candlemass - there are a number of traditions and superstitions which surround Candlemass. The tradition of blessing candles on this day stems from ceremonies focused around light that fall in winter, and date from pre- Christian times. We are about half way between the winter soltice and the spring equinox (whatever they are) and so seeing light as a blessing, especially with the association of Christ with light, illumination, understanding, hope - contrasted with darkness, incomprehension, despair makes a great deal of sense. So much meaning can be found when we light a candle for someone we care about who is in a dark place. Praying for the light of Christ to be with them and help them find a way out of their darkness. � � The commemoration of the purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary has it’s roots in the Jewish purification rites which are still be observed today in orthodox communities as they may be also but very less rarely be observed in the Church of England. The Churching of Women was a ceremony which a woman was expected to undergo before she was readmitted to Holy Communion and once again part of the church family. � �
We might find these rather oppressive and in some ways I think they are, or at least can be experienced as oppressive, it’s very easy to use the language of impurity and for that to have connotations of sinfulness and shame especially if that is coupled with a separation from the rest of the fellowship, but there are ways of redeeming these traditions and seeing them as celebrations, thanksgivings for the deliverance of the woman from what was a very dangerous event. Women can feel very isolated through childbirth and giving them the opportunity of marking and celebrating and acknowledging the return to the community can be helpful. � � I wanted really though to talk today about offerings. Don’t worry, you don’t need to reach for your wallets! � � The feast of the presentation was a ritual whereby the first born male child was brought to God because he belonged to God. An offering was made, whatever the family could afford, to redeem the child. There is a sense of thanksgiving for the gift of this life, a recognition that it is owed to God and an offering made in appreciation of that gift. � � We don’t have a scheme of sacrificial offerings anymore, the destruction of the temple put paid to the practice in the Jewish tradition, and in the Christian tradition the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is seen to be the sacrifice to end all sacrifice. The ultimate offering, that we can never match. Nor do we need to try. Even before the temple was destroyed, long before Jesus was born, God had made it clear through the prophets that the only sacrifice that was acceptable to God was that of a humble and contrite heart. � �
Yes the church needs your offerings, but God wants your hearts. The first born males in the Jewish tradition took there turn at serving God in the temple. Taking their turn on offering sacrifices on behalf of the people. It’s not hard to draw a parallel with serving time, giving what was due to God in order to maintain their liberty. � � We have to be careful that coming to church doesn’t become the same sort of cleansing routine that we rely on each week/once a month/High days and Holy days to wipe the slate clean. � � Hosea 6.6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings. � � Isaiah 1.11 � � What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the Lord; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats. � � 1 Samuel 15.22 And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. � �
Psalm 51.16-17 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. � � Romans 12.1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. � � We belong to God in so many ways, through the wonder of the gift of life itself that we have been given and the wonder of the created order in which we dwell, through the work of healing a reconciliation that Christ’s life, death and resurrection has wrought, through our Baptism and through that our dedication to following in the Way of Life. This is a call on our whole lives, not just on our Sunday mornings or on what we can spare from our wallets. � � At the feast of the presentation, the words of Simeon turn us from the celebration of the incarnation to look towards our journey through Lent to the cross. He recognises the light and hope of the nations in this child and the pain that this will bring to Mary and we are reminded that love and sacrifice are bound together, and inseparable. No one ever said that any of this was going to be easy. � � So as we celebrate this feast today there is that sense of our sharing in Jesus dedication to God and the responsibilities as well as the rewards that this brings. � � �
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