Sunday, December 31, 2017 Holy Family 1st Reading: Gen 15:1-6;21:1-3 2nd Reading: Heb 11:8, 11-12, 17-19 Gospel: Luke 2:22-40 or 2:22,39-40
When the day came for the purification according to the law of Moses, they brought the baby up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to God. And they offered a sacrifice as ordered in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
There lived in Jerusalem at this time a very upright and devout man named Simeon; the Holy Spirit was in him. He looked forward to the time when the Lord would comfort Israel, and he had been assured by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before seeing the Messiah of the Lord. So he was led into the Temple by the Holy Spirit at the time the parents brought the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law.
Simeon took the child in his arms and blessed God, saying,
“Now, O Lord, you can dismiss your servant in peace, for you have fulfilled your word and my eyes have seen your salvation, which you display for all the people to see. Here is the light you will reveal to the nations and the glory of your people Israel.”
His father and mother wondered at what was said about the child. Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, “See him; he will be for the rise or fall of the multitudes of Israel. He shall stand as a sign of con tra diction, while a sword will pierce your own soul. Then the secret thoughts of many may be brought to light.”
There was also a prophetess named Anna, daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. After leaving her father’s home, she had been seven years with her husband, and since then she had been continually about the Temple, serving God as a widow night and day in fasting and prayer. She was now eighty-four. Co ming up at that time, she gave praise to God and spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.
When the parents had fulfilled all that was required by the law of the Lord, they returned to their town, Nazareth in Galilee. There the child grew in stature and strength and was filled with wisdom: the grace of God was upon him.
DiGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
Simeon and Anna represent a generation expecting the fulfillment of God’s promise. We have here a perfect picture of a family with Jesus in the midst, surrounded by representatives of the community.
God’s presence and community involvement are two concurrent elements of an ideal family. A family that neglects God is far from perfect no matter how it serves the community. On the other hand a family that isolates itself from the community drives Jesus away. –(Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.
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