Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:25-36)

Thirteenth Day of Advent

Luke 2:34-35 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."

As Jesus is taken up to the temple in Jerusalem, to be dedicated to God, we meet Simeon and Anna. Simeon has been waiting for the consolation of Israel and, of late, has been praying simply that God will let him live long enough to see the Messiah. This would imply that he is very old. And Anna’s old too, at least 84. And these two old people just hang out at the temple most of the time, apparently unwilling to spend their declining years merely declining.

Now, Anna is a prophetess, which means she’s given to speaking a word of Godly wisdom from time to time. She spends her days fasting and praying and, upon seeing Jesus, just overflows with good and Godly things for anyone who’ll listen, especially those who, like Simeon, are looking for God to do something new and great. And Simeon has a blessing for this new little family, and a particular word for Jesus’ mother, Mary.

Today I celebrate my 60^th birthday, and I believe Simeon and Anna have a word of Godly wisdom for me and others like me. I’m approaching old age; not there yet, mind you, but I can certainly see it from here. And, should the Lord bless me with a few decades more, I need to know what kind of old man I’m preparing to be.

Waiting

When I am old I’ll hang out in the temple,

Or anywhere God’s hanging out,

Hoping he’ll do something… anything,

Talking the ears off the people I meet about what I have seen.

I’ll watch, mostly, for new things that no one expects,

Hoping for things that can’t happen,

Believing and longing for things that can’t be,

And telling the children not to be practical,… safe,

And not to believe that God’s done with his world.

I’ll tell them of how I’ve been waiting since I was a child.

Waiting for God, and waiting for them.

And, like Simeon, I will give each one a blessing.

I will not pretend, or deflect, or conceal.

I will help them to see what is coming of sorrow and pain,

And to trust in the God who will meet them in darkness, and met them in me.

I will teach them to rest in the tempest,

And pray in the garden, and wait at the tomb.

And perhaps they will, someday, though fainting or falling,

Find strength in the memory of one who had waited since childhood,

Watching and hoping, believing and longing

To bless them, and tell them of how he’d been waiting

For God and for them.

Artwork - Presentation in the Temple - Rembrandt 1627