Feb 2nd Feast Day of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple

[No Swansong]

I found this Icon while searching around for information on the feast and thought I would share it with you. I would appreciate any reflections, sermons etc. dealing with the Feast

http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/catherines2-20.htm

 

[pmcleanj]

Or, as it is more commonly known in North America, Groundhog Day. We are being smug here because, while all the east-coast groundhogs saw their shadows and scurried back into their burrows for another six weeks of winter, our local prognosticator peered into the overcast dimness and decided things weren't all that scary after all. And sure enough, it's warm as springtime this afternoon and forecast to stay above freezing all night.

There's an intriguing balance -- or perhaps conflict -- between the two foci of this feast: The Purification of the Blessed Virgin, and the presentation of Christ in the Temple. The medieval cult of Mary tended to focus on the former, and at the same time placed a similar burden on then-contemporary mothers: if the Blessed Virgin needed purification how much more so would non-virgin latter-day women need purification? Synchronistically I fell into conversation today with a lady who recalled that in her long-ago days as a young mother in Wales, the priest who had "churched" her told her it was to obtain forgiveness for the sin of marital sex and childbirth. I was appalled. Here on this beautiful day that has been such a joyful festival for our family, I was hearing the hurt confusion of a woman who has been disgusted by that ugly misunderstanding for forty years!!! Yet the very Book of Common Prayer that he should have been holding in his hands at the time reads "Thanksgiving after Childbirth". The offering of those two small birds in the Temple, two thousand years ago, was a sacrifice of joy and thanksgiving!

Of course, the more important aspect of the feast is not the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, but the Presentation of Christ in the Temple: this is a festival of Our Lord, not of His mother. As such it takes precedence over other feasts, even Sunday. Yet, neither the church Dean and Anne worshipped at yesterday, nor the one Rachel and I worshipped at, so much as mentioned it; and we can't find any church in the city that is celebrating it tonight, either -- although the RC religious communities are having a reception and asking for prayers for vocations. Not sure how that fits.

Fortunately, we have a domestic liturgy for Candlemas so we don't have to rely on the church's having a worship service -- but I'd rather worship with the larger community.

 

[calluna]

I found this Icon while searching around for information on the feast and thought I would share it with you. I would appreciate any reflections, sermons etc. dealing with the Feast

The Collect

Almighty and everliving God, we beseech thy Majesty, that as thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in substance of our flesh, so we may be presented unto thee with pure and clean hearts, by the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

 

[No Swansong]

It amazes me Pamela that this is not more widely celebrated in the North American Anglican Communities. Indeed while all of the RC Churches here are celebrating this day, and all of the Orthodox here are also celebrating this feast, there doesn't seem to be a TEC Church celebrating it.

How about the Continuing Churches? Are any of you celebrating this feast today? I know it is on the calendar for the REC but I don't know if they actually celebrate the liturgy.

By the way thanks for sharing Pamela. I cannot imagine a priest telling a woman that marital sex and childbirth are a sin. It just boggles my unsophisticated mind.

 

[higgs2]

We celebrated it a day early, on Sunday. Told the story of the Presentation (and Anna and Simeon) in Godly Play, and blessed the candles and oil during the Eucharist. THe children brought up baskets of little candles to be blessed and then gave them out to the congregation at the Peace.

A Light to Enlighten the Nations!

We have celebrated Candlemas for years now, and much of the credit goes to Pamela.

 

[calluna]

There's an intriguing balance -- or perhaps conflict -- between the two foci of this feast: The Purification of the Blessed Virgin, and the presentation of Christ in the Temple. The medieval cult of Mary tended to focus on the former, and at the same time placed a similar burden on then-contemporary mothers: if the Blessed Virgin needed purification how much more so would non-virgin latter-day women need purification? Synchronistically I fell into conversation today with a lady who recalled that in her long-ago days as a young mother in Wales, the priest who had "churched" her told her it was to obtain forgiveness for the sin of marital sex and childbirth. I was appalled. Here on this beautiful day that has been such a joyful festival for our family, I was hearing the hurt confusion of a woman who has been disgusted by that ugly misunderstanding for forty years!!! Yet the very Book of Common Prayer that he should have been holding in his hands at the time reads "Thanksgiving after Childbirth". The offering of those two small birds in the Temple, two thousand years ago, was a sacrifice of joy and thanksgiving!

With all respect, that isn't quite true. The misleadingly named 'churching of women' is, as you so rightly say, actually a thanksgiving, a very good and appropriate one, imv (and for husbands, too), even in these days when childbirth is much more reliable than when the BCP was written. The view that it is something to do with purification from childbirth 'sin' is due to a somewhat profound misunderstanding of Leviticus 12. Even there, for the Israelites, it was not truly about sacrifice for sin regarding childbirth- though it was everything to do with sin- real, committed sin. But the coincidence of Mary's purification with Jesus presented at the Temple of the divine presence was culmination of wonderful divine providence. Here we had Jesus' parents offering two doves (showing their poverty, btw) for the blood that Mary had shed at childbirth, and also duly presenting Jesus, her firstborn. Now the significance of blood here is nothing to do with actual loss of blood at childbirth, but with belief about that loss, and also the loss of blood at death, death on the cross, in this case. It is blood that links the two events.

The ancients believed that shed blood from menstruation and childbirth was contaminated with evil, which belief of course contains no physical truth, but this belief was of significance simply because it was believed, if only in Egypt, Persia and Babylonia, though probably in Israel also. So blood that represented human evil in human minds required sacrifice made for human minds, for conscience' sake; hence the Levitical command for this. But of course the blood of animals was no salver of consciences, and it required the blood of one considered evil, yet was perfect, to cleanse consciences. And here at the temple was presented, as required by law, one who was circumcised under law, yet needed no circumcision; the very one who was to die 'to make the people holy through his own blood' (Heb 13:12). It's for this reason so very appropriate that the collect states that Jesus was 'presented in the temple in substance of our flesh'. Our evil, the sins of every mother's child of us, was loaded upon Jesus, who 'became sin' for our sakes. Paul was therefore able to write:

'When the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, so that we might receive the full rights of sons.' Gal 4:4-5

 

[No Swansong]

We celebrated it a day early, on Sunday. Told the story of the Presentation (and Anna and Simeon) in Godly Play, and blessed the candles and oil during the Eucharist. THe children brought up baskets of little candles to be blessed and then gave them out to the congregation at the Peace.

A Light to Enlighten the Nations!

We have celebrated Candlemas for years now, and much of the credit goes to Pamela.

I'm glad that your parish did celebrate it, but it bothers me that Churches have started to do this. This is a feast day, what is wrong (not meant for your personally Higgs) with going to an extra liturgy during the week? There are many Churches here that have 1 liturgy per week. Not just one day a week, but literally one liturgy per week.

 

[pmcleanj]

With all respect, that isn't quite true. ...

With all due respect, which part of what I posted isn't quite true? That the view existed that associated childbirth with sin? Or that such a view is appalling? Or that my friend had personal experience with that view as expressed by a priest of our church?

It seems to me that the content of your post largely agrees with the perspective I recounted. I don't see the disagreement that your opening phrase would imply.

 

[Secundulus]

It amazes me Pamela that this is not more widely celebrated in the North American Anglican Communities. Indeed while all of the RC Churches here are celebrating this day, and all of the Orthodox here are also celebrating this feast, there doesn't seem to be a TEC Church celebrating it.

How about the Continuing Churches? Are any of you celebrating this feast today? I know it is on the calendar for the REC but I don't know if they actually celebrate the liturgy.

We celebrated it Monday night.

 

[calluna]

With all due respect, which part of what I posted isn't quite true?

'The offering of those two small birds in the Temple, two thousand years ago, was a sacrifice of joy and thanksgiving!'

 

[No Swansong]

We celebrated it Monday night.

Excellent!

 

[higgs2]

I'm glad that your parish did celebrate it, but it bothers me that Churches have started to do this. This is a feast day, what is wrong (not meant for your personally Higgs) with going to an extra liturgy during the week? There are many Churches here that have 1 liturgy per week. Not just one day a week, but literally one liturgy per week.

We have 4 Eucharists a week normally. I don't think we'd get a big turnout for a Monday night Candlemas. It's a lot more fun to celebrate feast days when people come. We celebrate Epiphany on the Sunday closest as well. We have a big party, and it's a tradition that our parish enjoys.

 

[No Swansong]

We have 4 Eucharists

a week normally. I don't think we'd get a big turnout for a Monday night Candlemas. It's a lot more fun to celebrate feast days when people come. We celebrate Epiphany on the Sunday closest as well. We have a big party, and it's a tradition that our parish enjoys.

(emphasis mine)
I guess this is exactly my point. There should be a big turnout for a Feastday. That there isn't is what bothers me.

I think I will be posting on STR this year following the liturgical year and perhaps we can get to know it a little better and integrate it into our lives a little more through doing so.

 

[higgs2]

Ya gotta pick your battles I guess. I know what you're saying, but I'm glad to get a good Sunday turnout in a small parish like ours.

 

[Secundulus]

We have 4 Eucharists a week normally. I don't think we'd get a big turnout for a Monday night Candlemas.

Well, we have this in common. We generally get a poor turnout for any service other than on Sunday. The only exceptions are Ash Wed, Easter, and Christmas.

(emphasis mine)
I guess this is exactly my point. There should be a big turnout for a Feastday. That there isn't is what bothers me.

I fully agree. If you have any ideas on how to motivate everyone to attend the weekday feasts, I am eager to listen.

I think I will be posting on STR this year following the liturgical year and perhaps we can get to know it a little better and integrate it into our lives a little more through doing so.

This is an excellent idea. Even if we are not all using exactly the same calendar, there is something valuable to be learned on every feast day, whether it is a day of obligation or not.

 

[calluna]

there is something valuable to be learned on every feast day, whether it is a day of obligation or not.

What is a day of obligation?

 

[Secundulus]

What is a day of obligation?

That is a day that you are supposed to go to Church. In the 1928 BCP they are defined as follows.

A TABLE OF FEASTS,
TO BE OBSERVED IN THIS CHURCH THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
All Sundays in the Year
St. Bartholomew the Apostle
The Circumcision of our Lord Jesus CHRIST
St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
The Epiphany
St. Michael and all Angels
The Conversion of St. Paul
St. Luke the Evangelist
The Purification of the Blessed Virgin
St. Simon and St. Jude, Apostles
St. Matthias the Apostle
All Saints
The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin
St. Andrew the Apostle
St. Mark the Evangelist
St. Thomas the Apostle
St. Philip and St. James. Apostles
The Nativity of our Lord JESUS CHRIST
The Ascension of our Lord JESUS CHRIST
St. Stephen, Deacon and Martyr
St. Barnabas the Apostle
St. John. Apostle and Evangelist
The Nativity of St. John Baptist
The Holy Innocents
St. Peter the Apostle
Monday and Tuesday in Easter Week
St. James the Apostle
Monday and Tuesday in Whitsun Week
The Transfiguration of our Lord JESUS CHRIST

 

[No Swansong]

Ya gotta pick your battles I guess. I know what you're saying, but I'm glad to get a good Sunday turnout in a small parish like ours.

A difficult tightrope I agree Higgs.

 

[No Swansong]

Well, we have this in common. We generally get a poor turnout for any service other than on Sunday. The only exceptions are Ash Wed, Easter, and Christmas.

I fully agree. If you have any ideas on how to motivate everyone to attend the weekday feasts, I am eager to listen.

This is an excellent idea. Even if we are not all using exactly the same calendar, there is something valuable to be learned on every feast day, whether it is a day of obligation or not.

Well I guess the emphasis would have to come from the leadership of the Church first of all. Emphasizing the importance of celebrating Feastdays and following the Calendar would be good starting points. It won't however succeed without getting the laity involved and excited. We have a larger turn out for the blessing of the animals every year than we do for Good Friday.

My Calendar is based upon the Roman Calendar and is somewhat specific to Old Catholics why don't you and I work on this together? I'll send you a PM later today.

 

[calluna]

That is a day that you are supposed to go to Church. In the 1928 BCP they are defined as follows.

What were the days of obligation before 1928?