HOMILY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE LORD — YEAR C

HOMILY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE LORD — YEAR C

HOMILY THEME: DESTINY—GOD’S PLAN AND OUR CHOICES

BY: Bishop Gerald Mamman Musa

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

In the bustling streets of a Nigerian town, an elderly woman named Maryam was known for her wisdom. She often told stories to children about destiny and choices. One day, she gathered them around and spoke about two brothers—one who embraced his gifts and another who ignored them. “God gives each of us a path,” she said, “but we must choose to walk it.”

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Her story mirrors the life of Jesus, whose destiny was foretold by Simeon in the temple. Though destined for greatness, Jesus made choices that aligned with God’s will. Like Jesus, we too have a destiny shaped by our decisions. God’s plan for us unfolds through faith, choices, and cooperation with divine grace.

The Church celebrates February 2nd as the World Day for Consecrated Life because it coincides with the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. On this day, Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple and dedicated him to God, symbolising a life wholly given to divine service. This feast highlights the call to holiness and total self-giving, which is the essence of consecrated life. By choosing this day, the Church invites religious men and women to renew their commitment to God, just as Jesus was presented in the temple. It is a moment to appreciate the contributions of those who dedicate their lives to prayer, service, and the mission of the Church, reflecting the light of Christ in the world.

Mary and Joseph must have wondered about the potential of their infant Jesus. When they went to the temple to dedicate him to God by the Jewish law, something remarkable took place. Two elderly people, Simeon and Anna, came to share their joy with Mary and Joseph. Simeon, a righteous and devout man, came into the temple took the child into his arms and expressed thanksgiving to God for letting him see the Messiah. Simeon prophesied about the future of the child, saying: “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted…” After Simeon spoke, Anna, an eighty-four-year-old woman, who was renowned for a life of prayer and fasting, stepped forward and gave thanks to God and spoke about the child. The author of the Gospel does not tell us what Anna said about the Child, but we assume her words were similar to Simeon’s.

The prophecy of Simeon
I would like to underscore some words of the elder Simeon: “This child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel.” Simeon spoke about the destiny of the child and the parents wondered about the meaning of this prophecy. His prophecy was about God’s plan for the child. The prophecy of Simeon declares the greatness of Jesus who is to be light for all Gentiles and the glory of Israel. The prediction about the greatness of Jesus was written in the book of Malachi, which describes him as the messenger of the covenant who will be a refiner and purifier (cf. Malachi 3:1-4). The other part of Simeon’s speech seems to be a contradiction to the first part, but we need to understand the depth of his thoughts. Simeon presents the destiny of Jesus as a paradox because He (Jesus) was to bring about the rise and fall of many in Israel. This means that His powerful message to the world will produce a consequence with double-effect to those who listen. Those who accept the message with open hearts will rise and soar high like eagles and those who close their hearts and oppose the message will fall. Therefore, He became a stepping-stone to those who trust in him (Isaiah 28:16) and a stumbling block to those who oppose his message (Isaiah 8:14-15).

If Simeon pronounced the destiny of Jesus to his parents, how can we interpret the meaning of destiny? Christian teaching about destiny can be summarized this way: God has a plan for each individual, but each one has a role to play in making this plan come true. For example, David was aware of God’s plan for him when he said: “Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16). Some people think of destiny as predestination and as resigning to fate and not having control over anything. In as much as God designed a plan for each person, he also gave people the gift of freedom and intelligence to make choices in life. In making choices we can go our own way, go in opposition to God’s ways, or go in the path that God has created for us. We can realize God’s plan for us when we cooperate with his will.

The prophecy of Simeon about Jesus could not have been realized if Jesus made the wrong choices. For example, Jesus had moments when he had to make some crucial choices. After his 40 days of fasting in the wilderness, he was tempted to seek worldly power and money, but he bluntly chose not to succumb to these. On another occasion, after feeding the crowd with bread they wanted to crown him as king, but he chose not to go by popular demand. He exercised his free will and remained focused in doing the will of his father and this was the reason why he realized his destiny. Therefore, to realize our destiny means cooperating with Divine grace and providence.

Another way of explaining destiny, according to Christian understanding is to think of the first-born son of a king who is a crown prince who is destined to inherit power from his father. Everyone is certain he is destined to be king because of his privileged position as prince and as first son. However, his destiny can suffer a setback if he chooses to be rebellious and disobedient, and refuses to co-operate with the father in building the kingdom. History gives us examples of people whose destinies change in the course of life. Your destiny is indeed in the hands of God, but it is also in your hands as you make different choices and decisions in life. Destiny is in our hands and as Charles Reade says: Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act, and you reap a habit; Sow a habit, and you reap a character; Sow a character, and you reap a destiny

Destiny is about God’s beautiful plan for each of us the words of Jeremiah tell us about our destiny: ‘For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.’ (Jeremiah 29:11). Destiny is a chance provided by God’s grace and providence; destiny is also shaped by the choices we make.

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