2 February: The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
Christ, the Light of the World
The Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, 40 days after Christmas. The feast is better known as the Feast of the Candelora (Candlemas) or the Festival of Lights, because it is inspired by a verse from the Gospel of Luke (2:22-40), in which Simeon prophesies that Jesus is “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel”.
The feast also coincides with World Day for Consecrated Life, a moment of thanksgiving and renewal for all consecrated people.
Established 29 years ago by Saint John Paul II, World Day for Consecrated Life is an invitation to rediscover the beauty of consecrated life as a gift for the Church and the world.
The Church of Jerusalem celebrated the Feast of the Presentation on 15 February, 40 days after the birth of Jesus, because his birth was celebrated on 6 January in the East. When the feast spread to the West in the sixth and seventh centuries, it was moved to 2 February, because Jesus’s birth was celebrated on 25 December.
According to Mosaic Law, Mary had to undergo a rite of purification after her delivery, (Leviticus 12:8), and the firstborn of the family had to be offered to the Lord (Exodus 13:12). The Law required a period of 40 days between the birth of a child and the mother’s purification. The Presentation marks the beginning of the mystery of Mary’s suffering, which reached its peak at the foot of the cross.
During the Presentation at the Temple, the elderly Simeon, who is the first to recognize Jesus as the light of the world, tells Mary that a sword would “pierce her soul”. The cross would be that sword.
The readings of the day encourage us to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit and to welcome Christ into our lives.
Simeon’s authentic and trusting encounter with God, brings him peace and reassures him of his love. The liturgy invites us to join this journey and to go towards the encounter with Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, so that when our time comes to leave the world, we too, like Simeon, will be able to say, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples”.
The feast was officially liked to the Purification of the Virgin Mary in 1372. It was celebrated in the West with a procession of torches, as a symbol of light.
The torches were replaced by candles in Churches, which were blessed and kept lit, symbolizing Christ, the light of the world, and warding off evil, storms, and death.