Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Today is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. The Law of God commands that the firstborn son must be taken to the temple and offered to God, and so in obedience, Joseph and Mary do this with Jesus. It is interesting to consider that since Jesus is God Incarnate, before his Incarnation, he was present in the temple accepting the offerings of the people that they brought each day, including the offerings for firstborn sons. Now that he is incarnate, and the firstborn son of Joseph and Mary (though God the Father is his Father, and Joseph is his foster father), he is brought to the temple by two human beings and presented to God as an offering.
This offering, this presentation, is a foreshadowing of the Eucharist in which he definitively offers himself for the forgiveness of sins. The difference is that he has not yet undergone his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, which is his complete self-offering for our sins, and for our entrance into eternal life. However, his passion is present in Simeon’s prophecy that he is destined for the fall and rise of many, and that a sword shall pierce the heart of his Virgin Mother. In the Eucharist, we offer this same sacrifice that Jesus makes on the Cross for us as we offer the bread and wine that is transubstantiated into the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. In addition, we should always remember that because we share in this Holy Communion and so are united with Christ in the Mystical Body, we too are placed on the altar and offered with him. This is the acceptable sacrifice that God has desired from all eternity (see Eucharistic Prayer IV).
Reflection by Fr. Aquinas Keusenkothen, OSB
Posted in Articles for Ordinary Time, Daily Reflections