Untitled Sermon

250202 Candlemas Luke 2:22-40

andlemas

is a Christian festival celebrated on February 2nd that commemorates two significant events: the purification of the Virgin Mary after childbirth (according to Jewish law) and the presentation of Jesus Christ in the Temple[1][2][3]. The name “Candlemas” is derived from the Old English term “Candelmæsse,” which combines the words for “candle” and “mass”[1]. A key feature of this feast is the blessing and distribution of candles, symbolizing Christ as the “Light of the World” entering the temple[3][4]. This tradition of blessing candles, which began around the 5th century, gave rise to the English name for the feast[2][4]. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the festival is known as “The Meeting,” referring to the encounter between Jesus and Simeon in the Temple[4]. While Epiphany is now officially considered the end of the Christmas season, Candlemas is traditionally celebrated as the close of the Christmas cycle in some traditions[5].[1] Catherine Soanes and Angus Stevenson, eds., Concise Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

[2] Samuel Macauley Jackson, ed., The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge (New York; London: Funk & Wagnalls, 1908–1914), 379.

[3] Donald K. McKim, The Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, Second Edition, Revised and Expanded (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2014), 40.

[4] J. D. Douglas, Earle E. Cairns, and James E. Ruark, The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1978), 187.

[5] Edward Foley, Mark Paul Bangert, et al., Worship Music : A Concise Dictionary (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2000), 51.

Presentation in the temple

According to the biblical account in Luke, Jesus was presented at the temple in Jerusalem as an infant, in accordance with Jewish law[1]. This event, also known as the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary or Candlemas, is observed on February 2[2]. During the presentation, Mary offered a sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons” as required by the law[1]. At the temple, a devout man named Simeon, who had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Lord’s Christ before his death, took Jesus in his arms and blessed God[1]. Simeon’s words, known as the Nunc Dimittis, expressed his readiness to depart in peace, having seen God’s salvation[1][3]. The presentation in the temple was part of the Jewish custom for firstborn males and occurred 40 days after Jesus’ birth[4].[1] Ernest DeWitt Burton, A Harmony of the Synoptic Gospels for Historical and Critical Study (New York; Chicago; Boston: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1917), Lk 2:21–24.

[2] George Thomas Kurian, Nelson’s New Christian Dictionary: The Authoritative Resource on the Christian World (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001).

[3] Burton H. Throckmorton Jr., Gospel Parallels-NRSV: A Comparison of the Synoptic Gospels (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995).

[4] James Orr, “Jesus Christ,” in The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, ed. James Orr et al. (Chicago: The Howard-Severance Company, 1915), 1633.