Jesus Was Ritual Participant and Innovator

The Presentation    February 2, 2014

Malachi 3:1-4   Ps.84:1-6

Heb. 2:14-18    Luke 2:22-40

Lectionary Link

   In ordinary time in most years, this would have been the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany but because a Feast of our Lord falls upon Sunday, this feast takes priority and so this Sunday is the Feast of the Presentation, which ironically is also a feast for the mother of Jesus, since it is forty days after the period of "ritual impurity" following the birth of a child and according to rules she could re-enter the Temple and the public community with accompanying ritual offerings.  The 1928 Book of Common Prayer retained nuances of this in the Rite called the Churching of Women, which thankfully now is just Thanksgiving on the birth of a Child, since even the slight suggestion of impurity about the post-partum days is rather repugnant to us.    This day is also  called Candlemas, representing that Simeon referred to the Christ child as a light to enlighten the nations, a main theme of Epiphany.  It is a day when candles were traditionally blessed in the church.   I guess we today could have you bring your LED light bulbs to be blessed as a modern day counter part.
  It just so happens that today is also the day of two secular feasts, known as Super Bowl Sunday and Ground Hog Day.  Super Bowl Sunday is not an official Feast of the church, though it does affect attendance.  Ground Hog Day is an American folk holiday derived from Pennsylvania Germans and shows the genius of male lodging drinking behavior logic.  It has become a tourist event for Punxsutawney and if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, then winter will be long. Preacher Phil got out of bed this morning and saw his shadow; does that mean that Lent will now 60 days this year instead of 40?
  I would like to make a ridiculous link between the cult movie Groundhog's Day and the Feast of the Presentation.  Jesus of Nazareth manifested his solidarity with human by being a completely ritual participant.  Jesus was circumcised on the 8th Day, he was presented on the 40th Day, he went to Temple and Synagogue, perhaps when he was mistakenly left in the Temple as a young boy, he was talking with the rabbi in preparation for something like a bar mitzvah, and we know that Jesus was baptized and we know that he attended synagogue and he observed the Passover meal.  Jesus was a ritual being.
  You may remember the plot of the movie Groundhog's Day.  Phil, the loud mouth weatherman gets trapped in Punxsutawney by bad weather while he's there to cover the "rat."  Strangely, Phil suddenly wakes up each day and is faced with reliving the exact events which happened the day before.  But something strange happens; Phil learns through being forced to repeat the same events.  He is able to begin each repeated day with a cumulative foreknowledge and he becomes someone who finally learns through repetition such that he wins the love of a colleague who had previously thought that he was a real jerk.  The moral of the story.  We have to repeat lots of things in the life and we are given repetition so that we can finally get it right.
  Life provides us only so many totally new happenings.  Life involves the repetition of things that happen over and over again.  Life is not a straight line, it is a spiral  so every morning we return to getting up and completing the same routines.  One of the purposes of repetition is the continual practice to do thing better.  And if we get good at something, like brushing our teeth, we don't even think about the repetition anymore; we have it on automatic redundancies and so we able to turn our attention to learn new things through repetitive learning.
  Positive repetition might be called good habits; negative repetition might be called bad habits or even addiction.
  How does human community inform and teach the best habits of human repetition in our behaviors?
  One of the way we promote the best of human behavior is from the ritual life of the community of faith.  The ritual life involves putting in holy playful rites, a representation of the great insights which came to people like Abraham, Moses, David and the prophets.
   Rituals are special repetitive acts within the overall life of repetition of people.  The rites concentrate the essence of the faith events which are meant to dissolve like a sugar cube and affect the rest of the repetitions in our lives toward positive repetitions of love, kindness, justice and hope.
  Jesus participated in the ritual life of his Judaic context.  But the repetitions of the life and ministry of Jesus were so profound and unique that the church was inspired to add to our ritual life in order anchor our community identity upon these Jesus inspired events.
  The Feast of this Day involves the purification of Mary who was allowed to come out of post-partum hiding after 40 days and bring her child to present at the Temple.  It was the ritual representation of the Passover event; a gift of a lamb was offered in the place of the eldest son to redeem his life.  At the presentation Mary was there offering gifts to redeem her son Jesus with gifts of turtledoves, symbolically borrowing the life of the son whose life belonged to God.
  Our Christian life is organized around ritual behaviors.  These behaviors are not meaningless; they are special repetitions and are devoted to dynamically remember the reality of the presence of Christ.  In our ritual life, we renew our identity with Jesus Christ.
  Jesus lived his life totally presented to God as God's special child.  St. Paul said we should also live lives presented to God.  "Brothers and sisters, I urge you through the mercies of God to present your lives, bodies and souls, totally acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service, spiritual ritual, spiritual worship.
  We can learn from the ritual life practice of Jesus as we enter into the remembrance rites which were inspired by his witness.
  Today, again we present ourselves to God at this altar.  In the gifts of bread and wine, we offer and present ourselves, our souls and bodies.  And as a gift we receive a renewal in the presence of Christ, signified in the partaking of the bread and the wine.  How close does the bread and wine get to us?  It becomes us, signifying how Real the presence of Christ is within us.
  The life of Jesus was completely presented to God; let us follow Christ in living lives fully presented to God.  Amen.

Sunday School, February 2, 2020, The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

Sunday School Themes for the Presentation

Have the class speak about important personal and family events like birthdays, wedding anniversaries, weddings, baptism, confirmation and graduations.  We celebrate important events in our lives.

Forty days after Jesus was born, the parents of Jesus followed the important family customs of the Jewish religion.  Jesus was presented to the priest in the Temple in Jerusalem.  His Mother Mary, who had spent forty days of special care for her baby Jesus came out into public for the first time.  Mary and Joseph present Jesus in the Temple.  Why?  They were giving thanks to God for giving them such a special child.  They also were presenting him to God and admitting that Jesus belonged to God as God’s son.

We in our church have something like the Feast of the Presentation.  We have a special service for parents to come to church with their new babies and give thanks to God for their new babies.  We also baptize new babies and when we do, we present them to God as a child of God, and as one who has Jesus as a big brother.

Remember Jesus and his Mother presented themselves to God with thanksgiving.  We too have been presented to God and we should live our lives as though we belong to God as sons and daughters of God.

Jesus was a human child but he was the special Son of God.  We are human children, but in our baptisms we celebrate that Jesus presents us to God the Father as God’s children too.

The Presentation    February 2, 2020

Malachi 3:1-4   Ps.84:1-6

Heb. 2:14-18    Luke 2:22-40

  Today we are still in the season of Epiphany but we also have a special day called the feast of the Presentation.

  If you are counting, it is now forty days from Christmas.  So it is fort days after celebrating the birth of Jesus.

  When Jesus was a baby, each mother had were required to take at least forty days of maternity leave from going into the public for worship.  It probably is good to give moms at least forty days to have some private time with their new babies.

  But after forty days, the mothers and fathers would bring the baby to the temple, and if the oldest baby was a boy, then the boy had to be presented to God at the Temple.  The mother would bring an offering to give thanks for the birth and safety of the child.

  The offering was supposed to be a lamb.   A long time ago when Moses was in Egypt many of the oldest sons were dying and God told Moses to tell the families to prepare a lamb to eat and this lamb would be a substitute offering in place of their sons.

  We don’t understand God in the same way today.  But because of this Moses story, the people of Israel had this custom to offer a lamb when they presented their old son to God in the Temple.

  Mary and Joseph did not present a lamb for their son Jesus; they gave turtle doves because they were poor.

  When Mary and Joseph presented Jesus at the Temple, something wonderful happened.  An older man named Simeon saw Jesus and he blessed the baby Jesus with a song.  And he made a prediction about Jesus.  He said that Jesus would be like a light to the entire world.  He said that Jesus would be a Savior.

  This story about the presentation of Jesus teaches us some lessons.  It tells us that after Jesus became very famous and after many people began to know Jesus as their Savior, the church told the story of the greatness of Jesus from the very beginning of his life.

  This story of the presentation is also about you and me.  Jesus was presented to God as a Temple.  You and I are presented to God in our baptisms.  When we are baptized we celebrate that we are sons and daughters of God and so we belong to God.

  And we promise to live our lives as sons and daughters of God.  And so we promise to love and care for each other and to care for this world which belongs to God.

  Today, let us remember that Jesus was presented to God in a very special way by his parents.  But let us also remember too, that you and I are presented to God as well because God receives us as sons and daughters.  So let us remember to live our lives as sons and daughters of God.  And let us remember to honor and obey our parents too, because God has given them a special role in helping us to live as sons and daughters of God.

  Say with me today:  I am a child of God.  I belong to God.  And I present myself to God again today.  Amen.

Intergenerational Service with Holy Eucharist

February 2, 2020: The Presentation

Gathering Songs:

 Hosanna, Hosanna; I Come with Joy; May the Lord

Liturgist: Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit

People: And Blessed be God’s Kingdom, Now and forever. Amen.

Liturgist:  Oh God, Our hearts are open to you.

And you know us and we can hide nothing from you.

Prepare our hearts and our minds to love you and worship you.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Song: Hosanna, Hosanna in the Highest! (Renew! # 71)

1          Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest!  Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest!  Lord we lift up your name with hearts full of praise; Be exalted, oh Lord my God! Hosanna in the highest!

2          Glory, Glory, glory to the King of kings! Glory, Glory, glory to the King of kings! Lord we lift up your name with hearts full of praise; Be exalted oh Lord my God! Glory to the King of kings!

Liturgist:         The Lord be with you.

People:            And also with you.

Liturgist:  Let us pray

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Litany of Praise: Chant: Alleluia

O God, you are Great!  Alleluia

O God, you have made us! Alleluia

O God, you have made yourself known to us!  Alleluia

O God, you have provided us with us a Savior!  Alleluia

O God, you have given us a Christian family!  Alleluia

O God, you have forgiven our sins!  Alleluia

O God, you brought your Son Jesus back from the dead!  Alleluia

A Reading from the book of Malachi 

Thus says the Lord, See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight-- indeed, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?  For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.

Liturgist: The Word of the Lord.

Peope: Thanks be to God

Let us read together from Psalm 24

Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, O everlasting doors; * and the King of glory shall come in.

"Who is this King of glory?" * "The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle."

Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, O everlasting doors; * and the King of glory shall come in.

"Who is he, this King of glory?" * "The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory."  

Litany Phrase: Thanks be to God! (chanted)

Litanist:

For the good earth, for our food and clothing. Thanks be to God!

For our families and friends. Thanks be to God!

For the talents and gifts that you have given to us. Thanks be to God!

For this day of worship. Thanks be to God!

For health and for a good night’s sleep. Thanks be to God!

For work and for play. Thanks be to God!

For teaching and for learning. Thanks be to God!

For the happy events of our lives. Thanks be to God!

For the celebration of the birthdays and anniversaries of our friends and parish family.

   Thanks be to God!

Liturgist:         The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke

People:            Glory to you, Lord Christ.

When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, the parents of Jesus brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord"), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."  Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, "Master, 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." And the child's father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "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." There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.  When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Liturgist:         The Gospel of the Lord.

People:            Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Lesson – Father Phil

Children’s Creed

We did not make ourselves, so we believe that God the Father is the maker of the world.

Since God is so great and we are so small,

We believe God came into our world and was born as Jesus, son of the Virgin Mary.

We need God’s help and we believe that God saved us by the life, death and

     resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We believe that God is present with us now as the Holy Spirit.

We believe that we are baptized into God’s family the Church where everyone is

     welcome.

We believe that Christ is kind and fair.

We believe that we have a future in knowing Jesus Christ.

And since we all must die, we believe that God will preserve us forever.  Amen.

Litany Phrase: Christ, have mercy.

For fighting and war to cease in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For peace on earth and good will towards all. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety of all who travel. Christ, have mercy.

For jobs for all who need them. Christ, have mercy.

For care of those who are growing old. Christ, have mercy.

For the safety, health and nutrition of all the children in our world. Christ, have mercy.

For the well-being of our families and friends. Christ, have mercy.

For the good health of those we know to be ill. Christ, have mercy.

For the remembrance of those who have died. Christ, have mercy.

For the forgiveness of all of our sins. Christ, have mercy.

Youth Liturgist:          The Peace of the Lord be always with you.

People:                       And also with you.

Offertory: Song during the preparation of the Altar and the receiving of an offering

   All Things Bright and Beautiful    

Doxology

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below.

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Prologue to the Eucharist

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, for to them belong the kingdom of God.”

All become members of a family by birth or adoption.

Baptism is a celebration of birth into the family of God.

A family meal gathers and sustains each human family.

The Holy Eucharist is the special meal that Jesus gave to his friends to keep us together as the family of Christ.

The Lord be with you

And also with you.

Lift up your hearts

We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to God.

It is right to give God thanks and praise.

It is very good and right to give thanks, because God made us, Jesus redeemed us and the Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts.  Therefore with Angels and Archangels and all of the world that we see and don’t see, we forever sing this hymn of praise:

Holy, Holy, Holy (Intoned)

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of Power and Might.  Heav’n and earth are full of your glory.

Hosanna in the highest.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 

Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna in the Highest.

All may gather around the altar

Our grateful praise we offer to you God, our Creator;

You have made us in your image

And you gave us many men and women of faith to help us to live by faith:

Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachael.

And then you gave us your Son, Jesus, born of Mary, nurtured by Joseph

And he called us to be sons and daughters of God.

Your Son called us to live better lives and he gave us this Holy Meal so that when we eat

  the bread and drink the wine, we can  know that the Presence of Christ is as near to us as  this food and

  drink  that becomes a part of us.

And so, Father, we bring you these gifts of bread and wine. Bless and sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Sanctify us by your Holy Spirit so that we may love God and our neighbor.

On the night when Jesus was betrayed he took bread, said the blessing, broke the bread, and gave it to his friends, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper, Jesus took the cup of wine, gave thanks, and said, "Drink this, all of you. This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Father, we now celebrate the memorial of your Son. When we eat this holy Meal of Bread and Wine, we are telling the entire world about the life, death and resurrection of Christ and that his presence will be with us in our future.

Let this holy meal keep us together as friends who share a special relationship because of your Son Jesus Christ.  May we forever live with praise to God to whom we belong as sons and daughters.

By Christ, and with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory

 is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

And now as our Savior Christ has taught us, we now sing,

Our Father: (Renew # 180, West Indian Lord’s Prayer)

Our Father who art in heaven:  Hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done: Hallowed be thy name.

Done on earth as it is in heaven: Hallowed be thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread: Hallowed be thy name.

And forgive us all our debts: Hallowed be thy name.

As we forgive our debtors: Hallowed be thy name.

Lead us not into temptation: Hallowed be thy name.

But deliver us from evil: Hallowed be thy name.

Thine is the kingdom, power, and glory: Hallowed be thy name.

Forever and ever: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Amen, amen, amen: Hallowed be thy name.

Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant:       Alleluia! Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.

People:           Therefore let us keep the feast.  Alleluia!

Words of Administration

Communion Song: I Sing the Mighty Power of God,  

Post-Communion Prayer

Everlasting God, we have gathered for the meal that Jesus asked us to keep;

We have remembered his words of blessing on the bread and the wine.

And His Presence has been known to us.

We have remembered that we are sons and daughters of God and brothers

    and sisters in Christ.

Send us forth now into our everyday lives remembering that the blessing in the

     bread and wine spreads into each time, place and person in our lives,

As we are ever blessed by you, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Closing Song: May the Lord (Sung to the tune of Eidelweiss)

May the Lord, Mighty God, Bless and keep you forever, Grant you peace, perfect peace, Courage in every endeavor.  Lift up your eyes and seek His face, Trust His grace forever.  May the Lord, Mighty God Bless and keep you for ever.

Dismissal:   

Liturgist: Let us go forth in the Name of Christ. Alleluia!  Alleluia!

People: Thanks be to God!  Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Nunc Dimittis: Origin Rhetoric for Gentile Christianity

The Presentation    February 2, 2014

Malachi 3:1-4   Ps.84:1-6

Heb. 2:14-18    Luke 2:22-40

Lectionary Link

  Today is a day which has many calendar designations.  In the regular church year, this would be the 4^th Sunday after the Epiphany, but it is also the 40^th day after Christmas on which falls a major feast of our Lord and when a major feast of our Lord falls on a Sunday, it takes precedence over the regular propers for the Sunday.

  On the folk ethnic calendars February 2^nd is known as Groundhog Day.  On this day we believe that an over-grown rodent can become an accidental weather prognosticator for predicting the duration of the cold of winter.  I guess the liturgical counter part of Paxsutawney Phil would be that if Preacher Phil comes into the pulpit and sees his shadow then Lent is going to last 14 weeks instead of 7 weeks this year.  And I do see my shadow since the house lights are on.  Sorry.

  But on the perhaps the most revered calendar of the American culture, the Super Bowl falls on this day this year.  And unfortunately for many, the Super Bowl is the feast of feasts and takes precedents over everything else on this day, which is why a priest once told me that he always prayed that his home team did not make it to the Super Bowl because he desired to have at least some church attendance on Sunday.

  With all of the calendar conflicts of this day, we can return to some reflection upon the feast of the Presentation.  The events of this day have brought about some interesting practices as well as historical adjustments.   But beyond the liturgical minutiae there is perhaps a profound message embedded in the song of Simeon which proves to be a rhetoric of origin for the greatest early paradigm shift in the practice of the Christian church.

  On the fortieth day after Christmas, the birth of Jesus, Mary, the mother of Jesus reached her days of required segregation from the Temple due to the ritual impurity that was believed to be incurred by women during child birth.  This notion of Mary’s ritual impurity was unthinkable for those who later came to hold that Mary was perfect and without sin, that she was immaculately conceived and that she was perpetually a virgin, in that there is a branch of the church who do not believe that Jesus had biological brothers and sisters.  So why would perfect Mary have to re-enter the community in fulfilling a purification rite?  Well, she didn’t have to, but just like Jesus was circumcised and was baptized by John and didn’t need to repent of any sins, so Mary fulfilled the liturgical rites as an expression of her full solidarity with humanity.

  For a long time, churches had their parallel rite for the re-entry of the mothers into the church after child birth.  For those of you old enough to remember the former Books of Common Prayer, you perhaps remember the pastoral rite entitled, The Thanksgiving of Women after Childbirth commonly called The Churching of Women.  The rubrics actually specified that women were to present offerings for the occasion for the priests and wardens to be used for distressed women.  While the Jewish rite implying the impurity of women during child birth is rather repugnant to us today as well as even the hint that women had to be “churched” again after child birth, we perhaps need to exercise some interpretation charity in appreciating the high infant mortality in the not so distant past as well as the high rate of mortality of women in child birth.  Such a birth event with high negative probability could account for corporate liturgies with non-scientific and liturgical superstitious connections being honored as a way  for communities to deal with this major rite of passage for child and mother.  Modern non-religious folk do far crazier things to guarantee that their favorite team will win.  We could also regard this as a societal recognition of a 40 day maternal leave for mothers to bond with their babies.

  This feast is called the feast of Presentation because of another ancient rite with a history.  The Passover Lamb was the ritual decree that God gave through Moses when there was an indiscriminate killing of all first born sons who lived in Egypt during the time of Moses.  Moses gave the people of Israel inside information; “If you will sacrifice a spotless male lamb in place of your son and sprinkle the blood on the door, then your son will be spared death but you will also know that your first born son will belong to the Lord and so you must ritually present him to the Lord.”  And this of course was the basis for the church at various times in history requiring that first born sons be given to the church for the priesthood.  It also meant that if first born sons belonged to the church, so did their inheritance because all of the “worldly” possession of the priest belonged to the church under the rubric of the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.

  This day is also called Candlemas and has been a liturgical event for churches to bless candles.  The Song of Simeon, states that the infant Jesus would be a “light to lighten the nations.”  So Christ as the Light of the world makes the feast of the Presentation consistent with the basic theme of the season of the Epiphany.

  I apologize for all of the secular and ecclesiastical liturgical minutiae; presented for context if not just a chuckle.  However, I think that this feast is significant in reinforcing the main theme of the Epiphany, which is the Manifestation of the light of Christ to the world.

  And so I would like for us to turn to the significance of Simeon and the famous Song of Simeon, which is included in Daily Office of Evening prayer known under it famous Latin designation the  Nunc dimittis.

  The Gospel of Luke is the first half of a larger work sometimes referred to as Luke-Acts.  And while it would seem that the events of the life of Jesus occurred chronologically before the birth of the church, the writing of Luke’s Gospel actually occurs after the church was already an established reality.  Why?  Because history is always written in hindsight.  We only are interested in what came before after something significant has happened.

  Why do we have countless millions of people who have made the pilgrimage to Bethlehem and nobody making a pilgrimage to Swedish Covenant Hospital, in Chicago.  Why, because I was born at Swedish Covenant Hospital, and nobody rightly gives a rip about my birth place.

  The Acts of the Apostles was penned by Luke.  It is a chronicle about the success of the church through mission of the apostles, Peter and mostly St. Paul.

  St. Paul is responsible for presiding over the most significant paradigm shift in the history of the church.  Although, Paul visited the synagogues in the Jewish Diaspora in various cities of the Roman Empire, he found that the success of the message of the Gospel was embraced by more non-Jewish persons.  So there was an incredible dilemma; here these non-Jewish persons wanted the message of the Gospel.  They received it and they changed their lives.  They devoted themselves to these new Christ communities.  Paul had a dilemma; how do you tell someone who has embraced the message of Jesus Christ that he had to become circumcised, he had to quit eating pork, and he had to observe all of the feast days on the Jewish liturgical calendar?  The Jewish ritual practices were impractical and inaccessible to so many who were having their lives transformed by the Gospel and who were forming these early churches.

  St. Paul saw the evidence of the message of Jesus Christ; he also recognized that the Jewish rituals were inaccessible to the people who were receiving the message.  He made a theological decision; he became the theological architect and ecclesiastical Pope for the “seamless” inclusion of the Gentiles into the greater River of Salvation history which had Judaism as a major tributary after the age of Abraham.

  Jesus himself was not the conscious architect of the church or its separation from Judaism.  So Luke had a writing goal which needed to be achieved.  How could the true Jewish roots of Jesus of Nazareth be upheld but be presented with subtle hints toward the reality of what eventually happened within the Pauline churches and in Christianity?

  And so we have the infancy narratives, the Christmas Stories, in Matthew and Luke.  Some scholars believe these narratives were the last to come to textual form in how the Gospels were comprised. 

  How was the Gentile mission of the Gospel foretold in the life of Jesus?  Well, magi, foreigners or Gentiles visited the Christ Child and paid him homage.  And Simeon, this very old man, symbolizing the antiquity of the Jewish tradition sees the baby Jesus at his presentation and what does he say, “ I have waited my whole life to see this.  I have waited to see how our tradition is connected with the lives of the rest of the people in our world.  Because I now see with my own eyes the Savior.  And the whole world is now prepared to see the Savior.  His time is ripe.  This baby will be the light to enlighten the Gentiles or the nations.  But it will not be a diminishing of Israel; it will in fact be Israel’s glory because this baby will universalize Israel to the entire world.”

  And so you see how Luke uses the Song of Simeon as a rhetoric of origin for why the Pauline churches happened; it happened because it grew out of and was predicted by the salvation history which began in creation, flowed in a definitive way through the people of Israel, but now has come to the entire world.

  This is why Paul wrote that in Christ there is no Jew or Greek, no male or female, no slave or free but a new creation.

  The Song of Simeon was Luke’s literary pilgrimage to the origin of the success of the message of Christ to the entire world.

   You and I can embrace the light of Christ as a light to the world.  Christ can still be light to this world of non-Christian people because his message of love and hope is universal to all.  We do not have to think that the Christian churches of the world exhaust the relevance and the message of Christ as light to this world.  We can be completely committed to this light even as we don’t need to be chauvinistic about our church or Christianity.  We can be humble about the relevance of the Light of Christ to all and know that where people practice love, justice and forgiveness they are in fact, joined with the light of Christ.  Amen.