“Law abiding”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Friday, February 2, 2024
Luke 2: 22-40 (Forward, p. 4) CEV p. 1057
It is an interesting quirk and contradiction: in an era where many people want nothing to do with ‘religion’ but are intensively interested in something vaguely described as ‘spirituality’, that many of those that they hold up as models for imitation were resolutely dedicated to ‘religion’ and utterly faithful in its practice. In today’s passage from Luke, we see this illustrated in the lives of four people.
First off, we have Mary and Joseph. Repeatedly, we are told that they did ‘what the Law required’ (verses 22, 23 and 27). And, then with Jesus Himself, we are told that He consistently worshipped in the Temple and in the local synagogues. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that He also paid the Temple levy, even though He freely admitted that He didn’t ‘need’ to. So much for dispensing with ‘religion’.
And then, too, there are the two ‘ancient’ crones, Anna and Simeon. We are told that they too were exemplary in terms of worship and devotion, even, as in the case of Anna, spending her days in the Temple serving God by fasting and praying.
And then, there is the question of ‘place’: many today will say that they don’t need buildings, that they can worship God anywhere. (I often wonder whether actually do carry that out, however). The thing about buildings is that they offer a focus and a setting for worship, and an atmosphere that is more conducive to worship and allow a worshipper to be more intentional about it. And the fact that most religions also often particular times, seasons and occasions that are set aside for worship make it all the more amenable.
Certainly, ‘religion’ can be stiff and boring and stupefying, and even contrary to true worship on occasion, but that doesn’t mean that it should be discarded. We can be sure that Jesus was not always that ‘happy’ with it, but even so, He found benefit in it and continued faithful in it, no matter what. He had an open and receptive mind, and so was quite happy to get whatever benefit He could from it. He knew that God was there and was using it. May we, all of us, be of a like mind.
Forward notes: ‘There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher” (verse 36a).
Commemoration: Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
“I love the prophet Anna. This scripture captures one of those glorious moments in the Bible when a woman is honoured.
‘Our imaginations must fill in the blanks for much of her biography, but considering this is a woman in the Bible, we are given several important details. We know Anna’s tribe, that she is a woman of great faith who lives in the temple, that she is a widow, and that she is a prophet. Verse 38 says it was Anna who began to praise God and speak about the child to all of those looking for redemption. This feels like a foreshadowing of Mary Magdalene—a woman (dare we say apostle?) who names the saviour, names the Messiah, names the birth. Women surround Jesus and proclaim him throughout his life—witnesses to him even before his birth and through his resurrection.”
Moving Forward: “Call or write a letter to an important woman in your life.”