HOMILY OF 4TH SUNDAY, THE PRESENTATION OF THE LORD

HOMILY OF 4TH SUNDAY, THE PRESENTATION OF THE LORD — YEAR C

HOMILY THEME: HAVE YOUR EYES SEEN SALVATION?

BY: Fr. Isaac Awe

Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40

Canon 1752 specifically states: “The salvation of souls, which must always be the supreme law in the Church, is to be kept before one’s eyes.”

This canon emphasizes the fundamental principle that the ultimate goal and guiding principle of all actions, decisions, and laws within the Church is the salvation of souls. It underscores that every aspect of Church life, including its governance, sacraments, teachings, and pastoral care, should be directed towards facilitating the spiritual well-being and eternal salvation of its members and all people.

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In essence, Canon 1752 serves as a foundational reminder to clergy, religious, and laity alike that the Church’s primary mission is to lead people to Christ and to help them achieve their eternal destiny. It encourages a focus on spiritual growth, evangelization, and service, ensuring that all activities and decisions within the Church are aligned with this supreme law of salvation.

However, today, we commemorate the presentation of Christ by his parents, Mary and Joseph, in the Temple at Jerusalem, exactly forty days after his birth. They held the customary sacrifice of two turtle doves. In the Temple Christ was carried in the arms of the righteous Simeon and watched over by the prophetess Anna. This feast is yet more proof that the son of God truly became man. Today an infant, not a spirit or an angel, is brought to the temple.

God comes to us in the mundane and true spirituality is being able to find him there: that God doesn’t want to take us out of our lives into a spiritual realm but wants us to find the spiritual realm in our everyday lives. Sometimes, we are so busy looking for God over there that we forget how to find him over here. Sometimes, we are so busy looking for the miraculous and the supernatural, that we miss the miraculous and the supernatural in our midst: the miraculous gift of salvation in the ordinary things of life. We need to develop spiritual insight like Simeon recognizes God in the simple things in life and to find our salvation there.

Is our lives in tune with the Holy Spirit? Simeon was a man who was just towards others and devout towards God. He gladly accepted the mission God called him to perform with much fervent prayer and with patient expectation. His whole life was in tune with the Holy Spirit. He was found daily in the temple in prayer and worship and in humble and faithful expectation for the day that the Lord would comfort his people. As the days and months grew into years he never lost hope. When Joseph and Mary presented the child Jesus in the temple, Simeon immediately recognized the Lord’s presence in his temple. Through eyes of faith he say the infant Jesus as the fulfilment of all the messianic prophecies, hopes, and prayers of the people of Israel. Inspired by the Holy Spirit he prophesied that Jesus was to be “a revealing light to the Gentiles”. Jesus came not only as “light and salvation” for the people of Israel, but for all nations as well.

Nevertheless, in Simeon and Anna, we have two sides of the same coin represented. In Simeon, we have a metaphor for us finding contentment in our own salvation and the knowledge that we can die in peace because we have met Saviour. In Anna, we have a metaphor for the need for us to share the good news of salvation with others so that they too may be drawn to Christ -child. Simeon represents to us confidence in our personal salvation. Anna represents to us the evangelical spirit to which we are all called. So, at this feast of the presentation of the lord, we can rejoice in our own salvation and we can commit ourselves to the task of evangelism.

PRAYER: Lord, may we recognize your visitation and be prepared for your action today, just as Simeon was prepared and ready to respond to your visitation and action in his day. Amen

Happy Sunday!

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