On February 2, the Church celebrates the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. In our church there are two windows illustrating this event, each with a different emphasis. One is beside the Mary altar and is the first of the Seven Sorrows of Mary depicted there. The other is in the God the Son Rose Window. In accordance with Jewish Law, Mary and Joseph took Jesus, their firstborn son, to the Temple to consecrate Him to the Lord. They took with them, the offering of the poor, two doves or pigeons which would be sacrificed to God. In both windows, Joseph is holding this offering.
In the Temple they met Simeon, “…a righteous and devout…” man (Lk 2:25) who through the power of the Holy Spirit, recognized Jesus as the long awaited and promised Messiah. Simeon took Jesus in his arms, praised God and spoke about what this child would be. In both windows, Simeon can be seen holding Jesus.
In the Mary altar window his right hand is raised in a blessing and the fingers of his hand are extended with three up and two down. This is a symbolic hand gesture in Christian art. The three fingers represent the three persons of the Holy Trinity and the two represent the two natures of Jesus, that he is true God and true man, joined together in one Person. Simeon’s human understanding probably did not understand this, but the artist is expressing the reality of what he perceived in Jesus.
Simeon also utters a prophesy that Mary will suffer; for this child “…will be a sign that will be contradicted and you yourself a sword will pierce…”. (Lk 2: 34-35). This prophesy is why the Presentation in the Temple, although seemingly a time of rejoicing, is considered the first of the Seven Sorrows of Mary. Joseph is looking up at Simeon, but Jesus’s hand and gaze extend to his mother as she hears this prophesy for she will accompany him through his Passion and receive his body when it is taken down from the cross. Mary’s gaze is toward the ground and her arms seem to fold around herself in protection.
The Rose Window pane depicts this prophesy more boldly. The sword piercing a heart can be seen over Simeon’s shoulder. Mary’s face looks troubled and her hand is raised over her shoulder as if to ward off the blow of the words she hears.
In Old Testament times, the Temple was the place where sacrifices of animals were continually offered by the priests for the forgiveness of sins. But this Feast of the Presentation celebrates Jesus as the New Temple. He offers the sacrifice of His own Body, as a Priest, and through His Resurrection breaks the power of sin and death forever. May we ask God to help us live in the hope that this reality brings us.