+It’s loud. It’s smelly. It’s crowded. There’s nothing about temple worship in the first century that would draw a small town family to undertake the two-day trip into the maze that is Jerusalem, other than duty. As an observant Jew in the first century it’s just what you did.
So, Joseph and Mary—on the 40th day after the birth of Jesus---travel to the temple so Mary can be “purified,” and Jesus, their first born son, can be presented to God.
They did what was expected, what was usual, what was normal.
But, once they got there, once they entered the temple, there was nothing expected, nothing usual, nothing normal, ever again.
Because, once they arrive at the temple, Jesus is recognized.
Not in the “ohmygoshMaryhelooksexactlylike your fatherdidasababy” kind of way…no Jesus is recognized for who he truly is:
A light to enlighten the nations, to bring glory back to the people of Israel. A savior. The Savior. The one Simeon had been waiting for. The one Anna had been waiting for. The one Isaiah longed for, the one Abraham was promised would come.
That one, the one was here!!
And good ol’ Simeon and nutty ol’ Anna saw him, recognized him and praised him.
Do we?
The Christmas story, in many ways, reaches it’s conclusion today.
Because today the story that began with Gabriel’s visit to Mary and then Joseph, the story of no room at the inn, the story of a choir of heavenly hosts shouting “Glory Hallelujah” to the shepherds tending their flocks in the fields at night, the story of that wild star guiding the magi from the far east to worship at the edge of the crib…that story, this story, our story reaches it’s conclusion….the birth narrative ends.
Christmas has left the building, one story ends and another begins.
Today, on this 40th day after Christmas, today, on this 17th day before the first day of Lent, today, just about two months before Easter we begin a new chapter in the story of who we are, of who we were born to be.
Today we take one more definitive step toward what Simeon was singing about in today’s Gospel: God’s love has come down to us in the person of Jesus Christ. Just as God had promised.
Today is all about recognizing the rest of the story.
Today is about recognizing that God came to live among us, as one of us, for us.
Today is about recognizing that choosing to follow this God in the flesh is not the easy choice.
Today is about recognizing that following Christ in all that we do, that seeking and serving Christ in all whom we encounter will, at times, pierce our heart.
Today is about recognizing that following Christ means we’ll be destined to do and say things that others will find disgusting, abhorrent and just plain wrong.
Today is about recognizing that loving God with all our heart, mind and soul is and will be messy, difficult and frightening.
Today is about committing ourselves to join Mary in walking out of this temple, noticing where Christ is at work in the world, and where Christ’s work is needed in the world.
Today is about noticing, recognizing, embracing and doing what needs to be done. Today it’s our turn.
The Christmas story is bookended by song. Mary’s Song and Simeon’s are similar in celebrating who Jesus is, what Jesus will become and how we are to follow Jesus into changing this world, one peaceful and loving encounter at a time into a place where the weak are strengthened, the lost are found, the lonely are embraced, the destitute are enriched and the hated are loved.
Today we are called to follow Mary and Joseph’s boy, to recognize Christ at work in the world, to be Christ at work in this world. Not just inside these familiar and comforting doors, but out there in the unpredictable and not always welcoming world.
You see, the world? The world doesn’t expect us to take the lessons we learn within these walls and carry them with us everywhere we go and in everything we do.
The world out there expects us to keep our faith, our worship, our Love of the Lord, encased.
In many ways, we aren’t that different from Mary and Joseph. There are things that we, as Christians, as people of faith, are just expected to do. We have our babies baptized, we have our loved ones buried, we donate our time our talent and our treasure to this place. We help out in the food pantries, we visit the sick, we pray for each other. And all of that, all of that is very good. And, frankly, it’s pretty safe. But today we are called to recognize that the work of Christ isn’t in here, it’s out there.
We’re at a turning point in our church life, in our diocesan life in our regional life. The Bishop preached about it on epiphany, he preached about it last week at the Cathedral, he wrote about it in his response to Ferguson, and in his joint pastoral letter with Bishop Malone. The message is clear: For the church to remain relevant in the 21st century, for the church to make a difference in the world today and tomorrow, for the church to fulfill the dream of God as given to us in the person of Jesus Christ, we, the church, must be willing to do something different. Something new. Something unfamiliar.
Today represents a turning point, not only in our church year, but in our church and faith life.
The trail, thus far has been sweet. We’ve had angels singing, sheep baaing and babies cooing. But today, if we choose to follow the trail of Mary and Joseph, of Anna and Simeon, of all the heroes of our faith, we’ll leave that all behind and set our eyes on all that we have left to do.
The journey we embark on today, the journey toward Calvary, the journey toward the cross, the journey into death and out again isn’t sweet and it isn’t easy…but, if we, like Simeon and Anna recognize Christ and if we, like the apostles, follow Christ then we, each and every one of us, will be set wonderfully and eternally free. Amen.
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