«Lumen ad revelationem gentium: A light for revelation to the Gentiles».
The liturgy of today’s feast reminds us first of all of the words of the Prophet Malachi: «Behold, the Lord whom you seek shall enter His temple…, behold, He comes». In fact, these words become reality at this moment: He who is the Lord of the temple enters it for the first time. It is the temple of the Old Covenant which constituted the preparation for the New Covenant. God seals this New Covenant with His people in the One whom He «has anointed and sent into the world», that is, in His Son. The temple of the Old Covenant awaits the Anointed One, the Messiah. This expectation is, so to speak, the reason for its existence.
And behold, He enters. Carried by the hands of Mary and Joseph. He enters as a child of 40 days in order to fulfill the requirements of the law of Moses. They bring Him to the temple like so many other Israelite children: the child of poor parents. He enters, therefore, unnoticed and — almost in contrast with the words of the Prophet Malachi — no one awaits Him. «Deus absconditus: Hidden God» (cf. Is. 45:15). Hidden in His human flesh. Born in a stable near the city of Bethlehem. Subject to the law of redemption, as His Mother was to the law of purification.
Although everything seems to indicate that no one awaits Him at this moment, that no one notices Him, in reality this is not so. The aged Simeon goes to meet Mary and Joseph, takes the Child in his arms, and pronounces the words which are a living echo of the prophecy of Isaiah: «Now, Lord, You may let Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word: because my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all peoples: a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory for Your people Israel» (Lk. 2:29-32; cf. Is. 2:2-5; 25:7).
The light
Today the Church blesses the candles that give light. These candles are at the same time a symbol of another light, the light which is precisely Christ. He began to be this light from the instant of His birth. He revealed Himself as light to the eyes of Simeon 40 days after His birth. As light He then remained for 30 years in the hidden life of Nazareth. Afterwards He began to teach, and the period of His teaching was brief. He said: «I am the light of the world; he who follows Me does not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life» (Jn. 8:12). When He was crucified «darkness came over the land» (Mt. 27:45 and parallels), but on the third day this darkness gave way to the light of the resurrection. The light is with us!
In the arms of Mary
Finally, Simeon says to Mary, first looking at her Son: «This Child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign of contradiction». Then, looking at Mary herself: «And a sword shall pierce your soul also, so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed» (Lk. 2:34-35).
This day is His feast: the feast of Jesus Christ, at 40 days of His life, in the temple of Jerusalem according to the prescriptions of the law of Moses (cf. Lk. 2:22-24). And it is also her feast: Mary’s. She carries the Child in her arms. Also in her hands He is the light of our souls, the light that illuminates the darkness of conscience and of human existence, of understanding and of the heart.
The thoughts of many hearts are revealed when her maternal hands carry this great divine light, when they bring it close to man.
Hail, You who became the Mother of our light at the cost of the great sacrifice of Your Son, at the cost of the maternal sacrifice of Your heart!
(Excerpt from the homily of Saint John Paul II of February 2, 1979)
Source: Libreria Editrice Vaticana
