Meeting Of The Lord In The Temple

At the recent feast of our Lord Jesus Christ, we witnessed him submitting to the Law and being circumcised in the temple of God at eight days of age. His parents fulfilled the law of the Covenant and they probably were not certain He is the physical manifestation of the covenant of God made thousands of years earlier. But St. Paul reminds us, "No matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. The infant that Joseph held during the ritual circumcision was the very "Yes" of God to the promises of the covenant being symbolized. Not only did this ritual fulfill the requirement of our Creator that the Chosen People be physically different because of their relationship with him, He also expects that our second dimension, our soul, the first of the duality in which we are created, is also different.

So today we come to the second portion, according to the Old Covenant requirement, a woman was to wait thirty three days after circumcision before offering the first born son at the temple. "...and then she shall spend thirty-three days more ... and shall not enter the sanctuary until the days of purification are fulfilled" Leviticus 12: 4. In speaking to Moses, our God said, "Consecrate to me every first born that opens the womb among the Israelites ... for it belongs to me" Exodus 13: 2. The redemption of this first born male was to be a reminder that "...the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his mighty hand" Exodus 13: 16. So from the very beginning of his earthly life among us, the Lord is already participating, even if only in a ritual way, in the continuing redemption of his creation.

Mary and Joseph out of obedience to the command of God, journey once again to Jerusalem and its glorious temple. Like all devout Jewish parents, they present their infant to the Lord to participate in sacrifice and redemption. Once again the passion of the Cross is made manifest in his destiny. They thus symbolize in a living way the act of giving him up literally saying, "He is yours, 0 Lord and we return him to you." Then they would immediately redeem him or, in effect, buy him back by offering the prescribed yearling lamb for the holocaust and if a family of lesser means, two pigeons or two turtle doves was given.

Few teachings are more important and consistent in God's revelation to us than the doctrine of redemption. The Hebrew word is padhah, meaning to "to redeem by paying a price." The New Testament tells us Christ came to fulfill for us by his life, the very rite Mary and Joseph observed as they brought Christ to the temple on the fortieth day. St. Paul teaches us, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace" Ephesians 1: 7. He draws a parallel from a Jewish perspective of our entrance into the family of God. We are thus considered adopted sons and daughters of our heavenly Father. What was true in a tangible sense after the birth of a Jewish son is true of us