RECOGNIZING THE EXTRAORDINARY
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Gather as a family/ community; create an environment appropriate for prayer (dress appropriately - switch off your phones...).
We are conscious that Christ is present not only in the Blessed Sacrament but also in the Scriptures and in our hearts. Even when we are on our own, we remain part of the Body of Christ.
Place lighted candles, a crucifix, and the Bible on a covered table. These remind us of the sacredness of our time of prayer and could help us feel connected with our local worshipping communities.
You may sing or play an appropriate hymn. For instance:
The Sign of the Cross
Greeting and Introductory Words
L: The Lord invites us to the table of his Word: let us bless him for his goodness.
A: Blessed be God forever.
L: Today we celebrate the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple. Simeon and Anna recognized Jesus as the long-expected hope of Israel. They recognized the extraordinary in the ordinary-looking child with ordinary parents.
We pray that we recognize Jesus when we encounter him in ordinary people and in the ordinary events of our lives.
Penitential Rite
L: For the times we have failed to recognize Jesus in the ordinary and have waited for the spectacular, we ask his mercy.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you share in our blood and flesh:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, your parents presented you to the Lord with the offering of the poor:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you give yourself to us in ordinary bread and wine:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
Gloria
Opening Prayer
L: God of power and majesty,
your only begotten Son,
having taken upon himself our flesh and blood,
was presented this day in the temple;
bring us also into your presence
with hearts that are cleansed and purified.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
A: Amen.
THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
Readings
The readings are those assigned for the day in the Lectionary.
Preferably use a Bible/ Lectionary for reading.
Reading 1 Malachi 3:1-4
Psalm Psalm 24:7, 8, 9, 10
Response Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!
Reading 2 Acts 10:34-38
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
A light of revelation to the Gentiles,
and glory for your people Israel.
Gospel Luke 2:22-40
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are in the Temple in Jerusalem. What are your thoughts and feelings when you see a couple bring in a child “to perform the custom of the law in regard to him”; when you hear the words of Simeon and Anna?
Sunday Snippets
In November 2003, Elizabeth Gibson noticed a painting between garbage bags set out for collection. Ms Gibson, who knew little about modern art, said she took it home because “even though I didn’t understand it, I knew it had power.” That painting was Rufino Tamayo’s abstract masterpiece “Tres Personajes” which had been stolen twenty years earlier. On 20 November 2007, Sotheby’s auctioned it for more than one million dollars. Several people must have seen the painting (and one even trashed it) but only Ms Gibson recognized the extraordinary.
Something similar happened a couple of millennia ago in Jerusalem.
The busy temple of Jerusalem must have been filled with hundreds of people—priests and scripture scholars, pilgrims and worshippers… and many of them must have seen an infant with his parents. Only two senior citizens—Simeon and Anna—recognized the extraordinary in the ordinary infant and his ordinary parents who made the ordinary offering of the poor.
Simeon and Anna were the “anawim” who had neither power nor prestige but had deep faith. Simeon was “righteous and devout… and the Holy Spirit was upon him” and Anna “worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer”. This rootedness in God and their faith enabled them to recognize the extraordinary in the ordinary and the divine in the human.
Each one of us is ordinary; yet, we have in us the extraordinary and the divine. Do you and I recognize the extraordinary and the divine in ourselves and in others? Or do we treat ourselves and others as trash?
May the Spirit in us and our eyes of faith help us recognize the extraordinary and the divine in us!
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: Name some of God’s messengers today and in the recent past. Would you put the following in the “messengers” category: Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Pope John XXIII, Pope Francis? What about poets, writers, artists, theologians, musicians? Who speaks to me of God? Am I a messenger?
Reading 2: “Because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.” Does this mean that Jesus understands every human pain and suffering? How do I feel about this?
Gospel: How/why did Simeon and Anna recognize Jesus as the “light for revelation to the Gentiles”? Did they listen to the Holy Spirit? Were they ready to see beyond the ordinary? What about me?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: On this Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, we join with the prayer of Jesus, Mary and Joseph presenting our prayers and ourselves to the Lord, as we pray: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: that the Light of Christ may shine through our lives and reveal God to all who are searching for meaning in their lives, we pray…
R: For the leaders of nations: that God may help them to see the value and dignity of human life and work tirelessly for peace, we pray…
R: For parents of infants: that God may guide them in caring for and nurturing their children that they may grow to their potential and be a blessing for the human family, we pray…
R: For members of religious communities: that the Spirit may renew them and empower them to give faithful witness to Christ who is the centre of their lives, we pray…
R: For all who are called to be prophets: that God may give them a clear insight into the truth and convincing words to touch hearts about God’s salvation, we pray…
R: For living out our responsibility as stewards of creation: that we may strive to understand the rhythms of nature and work to preserve the riches of the earth for future generations, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that we may recognize Christ in all the ways that Christ is present in our lives, particularly through our relationships and the ordinary events of our day, we pray…
L: Almighty Father, you have given us Jesus your Son, the light of the world. May we always walk in his light and live by his truth. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
The Lord’s Prayer
Spiritual Communion
A: Jesus, I know and believe in your real presence in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. It is you I desire to love and receive above all things. As I am unable to receive your sacramental presence now, come and be with me in heart and soul. Let my entire self be united with you as I welcome you again and know your loving embrace. Amen.
Post Spiritual Communion Reflection
“The Lord whom you seek will soon come to His Temple.”
Lord,
this prophecy of Malachi was fulfilled
when you entered the Temple of Jerusalem.
You came, not in power and pomp,
but as a powerless infant with the offering of the poor.
Simeon and Anna,
led and guided by the Spirit,
recognized you as the light to the Gentiles.
Lord,
may we allow your Spirit to work in us
that we may recognize you
in the ordinary ways in which you come to our “temples”.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: Lord God, our Father,
you have spoken your word to us
and there is light in our minds and hearts.
Guide us to spread this light
and let it shine in our words and deeds,
that it may brighten the footsteps
of all people in search of the truth.
Through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
Blessing
L: The Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and lead us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
L: Go in the peace of Christ.
A: Thanks be to God.
Conclude with a hymn. For instance:
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