Presentation of Our Lord
Grace be to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Joseph and Mary are coming into the temple to dedicate their child Jesus, to bring the sacrifices required under Jewish law, and to ask God’s blessing on their son. Simeon and Anna also come to the temple, in eager expectation of seeing God’s glory revealed.
Today’s psalm is a song of pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem, longing eagerly to arrive in God’s temple.
All this made me ponder the question: Why do we have temples or churches? Why do we come here week after week even though we know that God’s presence is with us wherever we are?
In this sermon, I am going to look at themes from these two readings and share the many ways in which the temple has been deeply meaningful to me.
Mary and Joseph bring their baby before God in the temple. They are there for a ritual that marks a milestone in their life: They are transitioning from couple to family, to being parents. Life is going to be different from now on. The ceremony expresses their hopes and fears, and God promises accompaniment as they journey into this new future.
I remember bringing my children to church for their baptisms. What a holy moment! Especially with the first one, it was such a blessing to be assured of God’s grace. To know that I wasn’t in it alone, to know that God’s Holy Spirit would guide and encourage me, to know that this child was God’s beloved no matter what I did or didn’t do as a parent – all that was truly lifegiving.
When we brought our children for baptism, the church was filled with people of faith. That’s another aspect in our gospel reading that I find very important: It’s not just Mary, Joseph, Jesus, and God. There’s also Simeon and Anna and who knows how many other people. They share in the holy family’s joy, help them mark this transition, and proclaim blessings on the child.
When my husband and I welcomed our three children, we were living in a rural part of Pennsylvania, at a distance from any family members. The people of God were our family. We were particularly blessed by the elders of the congregation. They graced us with their support, such as babysitting, and their wisdom. I still remember the day I arrived home after worship and the phone rang. It was a lady who had held my baby during worship. She said, “Your child has cradle cap. Do you know what to do about that?” I didn’t. She told me. It was because God had gathered us all for worship in church that such mutual caring and such passing on of wisdom could take place. Just like Anna and Simoen could pass their wisdom on to Mary and Joseph because they all gathered in the temple.
This is another blessing of being in church: All ages come together. That day in Jerusalem’s temple, you had at least three generations united in worship: the seniors Anna and Simeon, the young adults Mary and Joseph, and the baby Jesus.
There aren’t that many places left in society where all generations come together. Where those with long life experiences can share their wisdom with the young. Where the young can inspire the elders with their exuberance. Where whole families are doing something together. Here in God’s house, we still do that. And it is such a blessing.
When I serve communion, I rejoice in the people of all ages who come to God’s table to receive the bread and wine of blessing. This kind of holy togetherness awes me and fills my heart with gratitude. It makes me want to come week after week for more of such blessed community.
In the temple, Simeon and Anna proclaim blessings on the next generation. That, too, is a gift that is dear to my heart. I remember the people in my home congregation who shared that they saw the gifts for ministry in me. I remember, when I was just starting out as a pastor and was full of insecurities, the older colleague who greeted me after worship and said, “You’ll do well.” Affirmations we share, blessings we speak, can make a huge difference in the lives of others.
Not only affirmation is passed on, though; so is faith. Simeon and Anna proclaim their faith in what God is doing through Jesus Christ. They believe that in Jesus, God has come to redeem the world. They believe it, and they proclaim it; they share their faith so others can come to faith as well; so others can gain hope; so others can recognize the light Christ is bringing into the world.
As one commentator pointed out, this is Luke’s Epiphany story. Three weeks ago, we read Matthew’s Epiphany story about the wise men following the star and being led to the glory of God in Christ. Luke’s story is much less dramatic: two older people seeing Jesus in the temple and realizing how special this child is.
Much less dramatic, and at the same time something much more likely to happen to us. Few of us would notice a star. Few of us would have the time and resources to follow it who knows where. But being in church with elders who point out to us the glory of God, that we can relate to. That we have experienced.
In this house of God, people have shared their faith with us: in Faith Boosters, in catechism classes, during Vacation Bible School, at church camp, during Bibel study, at women’s retreats or men’s fellowship events, during casual conversations after worship or during coffee hour. People who recognized God’s glory shining into the world pointed it out to us so we, too, learned to see it; so we, too, could rejoice in God’s light that kindled our hope.
So many blessings come to us when we gather as the people of God in this holy house. Yes, we can worship anywhere, talk to God anywhere, feel the presence of God anywhere. And I am grateful that this is so. But gathering in church for worship adds countless additional blessings: community support, faith sharing across generations, passing on of wisdom learned over a lifetime, people of all ages adding their gifts to the life and work of the congregation, helping each other see the light of God shining into the world. No wonder we come here week after week to receive all these blessings.
It helps us understand the eagerness and longing for God’s temple expressed in our psalm today. The pilgrims singing this psalm on their way to Jerusalem are longing for God’s temple. They cannot wait to get there where they are sure they will enjoy the aura of God’s presence.
One verse in the psalm spoke to me particularly powerful: “Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.” This image of safety and comfort in God’s house is just lovely.
It was hugely important to me when I was a teenager. I was an awkward teenager. I did not fit in at all. I listened to classical music, not pop. I was interested in church and knitting and sewing, not parties and fashion. Talking about fashion, when I was in middle school, my grandmother died and because our family was tight financially, I wore my grandmother’s old clothes. Can you imagine? Due to all this, school was not a happy place for me.
The place where I found acceptance was church. The congregation loved me throughout my awkward years, encouraged me to participate in choir, band, and social ministry, let me slowly grow into leadership roles like teaching Sunday school and helping with church camp.
Even more important was the church’s youth group. They took in odd folk like me and just let us be us. When the world seemed like a judgmental place, I could find love and friendship and support and hope in the house of God.
I am once again at a time when I need love and friendship and support and hope; a time when the world seems judgmental; a time when I long to be in the comfort and safety and light of God’s house. I am sharing some personal worries with you; please don’t hear them as political statements, but simply as issues that weigh heavy on me personally.
Many of you know that my oldest child is transgender. On the first day of his new administration, President Trump decreed that there are only two genders. The state department is no longer issuing passports with the gender marker X. I am scared for the safety and mental wellbeing of my son and so many other LGBTQ+ people.
I am an immigrant. 34 years ago, I moved here from Germany where I still hold my citizenship. The current attitude and actions towards immigrants scare me, and they break my heart.
The withdrawal of the United States from the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Accord make me scared about the future of our planet and the next global pandemic.
Mary and Joseph come to the temple, giving thanks for the blessing of their child, and asking God’s accompaniment into a new and unfamiliar future, and there in the temple God’s light shines on them and God surrounds them with people of faith.
That’s what I long for now. That’s why I am here. Grateful for all God has done for me over my lifetime, looking forward into an unknown future, I come here where God’s light shines on us. Where you all surround me with your love and support. Where you point out to one another where you see God’s grace at work so we can all have hope. Where we encourage and bless one another. Where we help one another grow in faith. Where we hear from scripture that God is in our lives and in this world to redeem us. Where we are fed at God’s table and restored in spirit and then sent to be a light to the nations.
“A day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere,” says our psalm. So true! I am glad that we all are in the house of the Lord today. Thank you for adding your presence and faith to this holy community. May you sense the light of Christ’s love shining on you. Amen.