The Meeting of Christ in the Temple: Fulfillment of the Law

In this sermon, Fr. Nicholas reflects on the Feast of the Meeting of Our Lord in the Temple, exploring its deep theological meaning and how it marks the fulfillment of the Old Covenant. We delve into the iconography of the feast, the prophetic words of St. Simeon, and the transformation of temple worship in Christ. Join us as we uncover how this moment foreshadows the Cross and calls us to a deeper encounter with our Savior.

Transcript

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, today we are celebrating one of the 12 major feasts of the liturgical calendar: the meeting of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the temple. Or you may also hear it titled The Encounter of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the temple, or maybe the Presentation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the temple, and finally the Dedication of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the temple. In the West, this feast is known as Candlemas, for traditionally on this day they bless the supply of candles for the sanctuary, and families have the devotional candles for their homes blessed. Today, this feast brings us to the end of the Nativity liturgical feast cycle that began on November the 15th. We read in the Gospel reading, Luke 2:22-40, that the parents of Jesus, following Mosaic law, bring their firstborn son to be dedicated to God in the temple at Jerusalem 40 days after his birth. We pray in the hymnography of the feast: the Creator of the law fulfills the law.

According to the Mosaic law recorded in Exodus, the firstborn of every observant Jew should be dedicated to God in the temple of Jerusalem 40 days after his birth, where the mother would also complete her ritual purification. In the icon of the feast, we see the parents of Jesus offering their child, the 40-day-old Christ child. The Theotokos, her head bowed, holds her hand in offering as she dedicates herself along with her son to God. This hand gesture should be familiar to us; we see it in most of the icons of her and Christ throughout her life and throughout eternity. In all humility, she deflects her gaze towards her son. Behind the Theotokos stands Joseph, his hands are covered, indicating his humility and reverence before God. Most icons of the meeting of Our Lord also show him holding sacrificial turtle doves or young pigeons as required by the law. In Leviticus, it states that 40 days after the birth of the firstborn son, the mother must bring a lamb and a turtle dove to the priest as a burnt offering, and if she is not able to bring a lamb, that is, if she is too poor, then she may bring two turtle doves or two young pigeons, one as a burnt offering and the other as a sin offering. Joseph is shown with the two turtle doves, reinforcing the humble background into which Christ was born. He carries the turtle doves on behalf of Mary, the mother, which reminds us that despite the doubts described in the Nativity icon, Joseph is finally reconciled to his betrothed and trusts the Infant Jesus to be truly the Messiah.

St. Simeon is central to the icon along with the Christ child. The elderly St. Simeon, described in hymns as a priest, is inspired by the Holy Spirit to take up the Christ child in his arms. His recognition of the Christ child as the Messiah is shown in his deep reverence, bowing low, and in reverence, his hands are covered as he receives the Christ child. He receives the awaited child, holding him as if on a throne. He offers a prophetic canticle: "Lord, now let your servant depart in peace according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation," the Nunc Dimittis, which we sing at every Vesper service. Following the canticle, Simeon blesses the parents of the child and, turning to Mary, he pronounces curious, ominous words, not of joy and gladness, but of coming conflict and suffering. In conclusion, still addressing the Virgin Mother, he states, "And a sword will pierce through your own heart also" (Luke 2:35). This represents the first prediction the Evangelist makes concerning the Lord's coming passion. "And a sword will pierce your heart, O pure Virgin," Simeon foretold to the Theotokos, "when you shall see your son upon the cross, to whom we cry aloud, O God of our fathers, blessed are you."

From Matins, "O Theotokos presents a son in fulfillment of the obligation to make an offering of her firstborn male child." The deepest sense of her offering, intimated by Simeon's prophetic words, points to the cross and to the victory to be achieved through sacrificial death. Thus, Ode 9 of the feast declares, "The pure dove, the ewe who without blemish brings the lamb and shepherd into the temple." The verses of Great Vespers proclaim the meaning of the sacrifice accomplished by the holy mother and awaited by her son. "Now the God of purity, as a holy child, has opened a pure womb, and as God, he has brought as an offering to himself, setting us free from the curse of the law and granting light to our souls." In the icon, the canopy behind the Theotokos, Simeon, and our Lord depicts the altar of the temple. Simeon, together with the prophetess Anna, who stands behind him, represents all that is good and God-seeking in the Old Testament. They have been awaiting the Messiah for many years. It was promised that Simeon would not die before seeing the Messiah. He has devoted his life to God and has allowed the Holy Spirit to guide his life. On this day, he has been led by the Holy Spirit to the temple. His body is bowed, and his hands are covered in reverence, recognizing whom he holds. This is the defining moment in his life in salvation history. As recognizing the Messiah, he reaches for the infant. The Old Testament covenant is now fulfilled, and the New Testament covenant begins. The prophetess Anna looks on. She is identified as a prophetess by the scroll that she holds in her hand. The scroll can be rolled up or unrolled with the following writing visible: "This child has established heaven and earth," and also immediately recognizes Jesus as the Christ, the awaited Messiah. In scripture, we read that she spoke of him to all those who look for redemption in Jerusalem. She is an eager evangelist, pointing all to Christ, just as all the Old Testament prophets did. This is indicated by her hand pointing to Christ, to the Christ child in Simeon's arms, who will be a light for revelation to the Gentiles. Righteous Simeon and Anna awaited the Messiah, praying and dedicating their lives to God. This allowed them the vision to see what others could not. The Messiah had come. As we contemplate this icon, we pray that we might dedicate our lives to God and open ourselves to the promptings of the Holy Spirit as they did, so that our eyes may be opened to see his presence in all around us.

Christ himself, even though only 40 days old, is shown wearing a liturgical tunic, indicating that he is our high priest and is actively blessing with his right hand those present, appearing as Lord and Savior rather than a helpless babe in arms. In iconography, Christ is never represented as a helpless babe, for he is God-man. He always has manly features. For example, in the Nativity icon, his face has manly features. The nimbus, the halo, surrounds his head and bears a cruciform containing the Greek letters for "I am he who is," the name of God as declared by God in the burning bush to Moses in Exodus 3:14. Outside the nimbus, the halo, are the Greek letters ΙΣ ΧΣ, the Christogram, an abbreviation of Jesus Christ. The scene in the icon takes place in the temple of Jerusalem, which was not merely the main temple of Judaism but the only temple of the Jewish faith. As is normal for classic iconography, the scene appears to occur in the open, not enclosed by walls, with the outside of the temple shown in the background. The icon of the presentation is dominated by a four-pillar dome, which was an architectural feature of the inside of the temple. It is a ciborium, a canopy contained in the sanctuary. Before the building of the temple, from the time of Moses, the Hebrews had the tabernacle, which contained the Ten Commandments given to Moses, the manna from heaven, and an altar. This portable structure was the holy place in which the presence of God was manifest. After the nation of Israel was established, King Solomon built a temple to house the Ten Commandments and the other contents of the tabernacle. A permanent tabernacle was created within the temple, the sanctuary, and this is what is depicted as a ciborium. But the ciborium in the icon is not the tabernacle of the temple in Jerusalem, which was destroyed within 50 years of Christ's dedication there. The altar in the icon is behind two gates, reminiscent of the royal doors. Upon the altar are not the stone tablets of Moses but a gospel book that contains the New Testament. Sometimes the altar cloth is conspicuously decorated with the Christian cross, reminding us of the real significance of the event: not the observance of the old Mosaic law but the fulfillment of it in Christ's incarnation. The ciborium itself was a common feature of first-millennium churches, covering the altar and having curtains to veil the consecrated host at a particular time of the liturgy. The icon of the presentation is therefore clearly and consciously depicting the temple of Jerusalem as a Christian church, though this is sometimes lost today when ciboria are not as common in church architecture. With this transformation in mind, it is no coincidence that the infant Christ appears to be handed to St. Simeon over the altar. Just as the stone tablets are transformed in the icon into a gospel book, so too is the heavenly manna of the Jewish tabernacle transformed into the life-giving Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, a food also of divine origin but inexhaustible, alive, and granting eternal life. Here, the references to St. Simeon as priest are entirely appropriate, regardless of his actual role at the temple in Jerusalem, as in the icon he receives the Infant Jesus as a life-giving sacrificial offering at the Christian liturgy.

At the Theophany, we learned that Jesus did not need to receive the baptism of repentance from John in the River Jordan. Christ willingly did this to purify the waters, nature, and the ritual of baptism itself. Likewise, Christ did not need to be offered to God, who begot him, nor did any sacrifice for purification need to be given for him who is spotless. Jesus entered the temple not to be purified but to purify others: St. Simeon, Anna, and the whole system of Jewish worship. The passing away of animal sacrifices, the Mosaic law, and Jewish temple worship were all heralded with Christ's dedication 40 days after his birth. This feast usually occurs close to the beginning of Lent, when the pure sacrifice of a contrite heart is required of us rather than the burnt offerings done away with at the advent of Christ. One commentator states, "Yet this is why we celebrate this meeting in the temple as a great feast to the church. The lamb and shepherd brought as an offering to himself comes in our liturgical worship to meet not only Simeon but us as well. He meets us there where we are, in the midst of our own suffering and our own longing to behold and to taste God's victory on our behalf. Like Simeon, we can receive and welcome him, and like Simeon, we can hold him in our hands as Eucharistic bread and consume him as nourishment for eternal life. Lord, now let your servants depart in peace, for your infinite grace and compassion, our eyes have seen your salvation. Amen."