Mal 3:1-4; Heb 2: 14-18; Lk 2: 22-40

Today in addition to our celebration of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Mass is also recognized in the Liturgical calendar as the World Day for Consecrated Life.  To consecrate by definition is to make or declare (i.e. church) sacred.  When we speak of a consecrated life in the church we recognize a vow to holiness in formal religious life and divine purpose.  “Lo, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me; and suddenly there will come to the temple the Lord whom you seek”.  Who is the King of glory mighty in battle who comes to the temple as our Lord?  He is a baby, one like us to share in our humanity in all things but sin, “that he may be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people”, the divine purpose. 

The presentation of the Lord in the temple does not just fulfill the Jewish Law of Moses, it fulfills the prophetic message of the coming messiah, the one through whom all consecration to the Lord will be fulfilled.  I find it significant that the child Jesus is brought to the temple after six days “for their purification to be consecrated”.  God created the world in six days and on the seventh he rested.  In the fullness of time, in God’s time salvation has come to the world.  Anna is also a mystical person, a prophetess married seven years, she shared the fullness of her lay ministry to her husband and for the rest of her life she consecrated herself to the divine life, “never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.” 

If you recall Mary with Jesus still in the womb visits Elizabeth her cousin and John in the womb of Elizabeth leaps for joy as Elizabeth declares Mary as the “mother of my Lord”.  John is consecrated by Jesus in the womb to the divine life that he may fulfill his divine purpose.  The child Jesus is presented in the temple not only fulfilling the law but with the power to consecrate the temple, to make it sacred so that through the temple and the priesthood in the laying of the hands a new royal priesthood is established in Jesus who is our High Priest.  The adult Jesus comes to John in the river Jordan to be baptized not for his sin but for ours that the new royal priesthood through the waters of baptism will cleanse us of our sins as the first sacrament to be given in the consecrated temple.  Jesus is establishing his kingdom and his church with himself as High Priest.  He is preparing his descendants to carry the keys to the kingdom not for itself but for “other”.  Jesus came not for himself but for other.  As other we too are called to share in the divine life, to be consecrated by our baptism as priest, prophet and king.  Like Anna we enter this world to live the fullness of the human life but also to fulfill our divine purpose.  It is a calling we must be attentive to daily because “suddenly the Lord whom we seek” may come to us calling.  How will we respond to his calling?  Are we prepared to be his messengers to prepare the way for “other” by living the sacramental life? 

Those who have responded to the priesthood heard the call and carry the cross with joy.  It is the joy of opening the gates of heaven to other in the sacraments.  The call is not only to the priesthood but to deacons, religious nuns and laity.  We all share in the calling to the divine life by our baptism.  We are members of the body, participants in the temple called to be consecrated in our state of life. 

Some time back I did the DNA testing and discovered that I was over 50% Native American, over 30% southern European and 1% Ashkenazi Jewish.  Ashkenazi Jews spoke Yiddish as a Germanic language with Hebrew used only as a sacred language.  Ashkenazi derives from the biblical figure Ashkenaz in Jeremiah 51:27.  Ashkenaz was the first son of Gomer, son of Japhet, son of Noah.  Gomer is rendered as Germania today’s Germany and northern France.  Before the Holocaust Ashkenazi Jews numbered 92% of all Jews but after the Holocaust they were only 3% of all Jewish survivors.  Ashkenaz is a Jewish diaspora community that was part of the Holy Roman Empire at the time of Jesus.  I can say my 1% traces to the blood of Jesus, a Jew and to Mary and Joseph.  Today we all are invited to receive the blood of Jesus in the Holy sacrament of the Eucharist, body and blood, soul and divinity.  Let us carry Him with us as we go forth from the temple as Mary and Joseph carried the child Jesus to the temple with love and devotion to live consecrated lives, lives of sanctity. 

Tomorrow 43 candidates will receive the laying of the hands to become permanent Deacons in the Catholic Diocese of Brownsville, to serve “other” and to present the Lord to the world in their witness and ministry.  Let us pray for them in the new consecrated life and for all our priests and Deacons to remain faithful to the Word and merciful in their witness.  Let us all fulfill with joy our divine purpose before God as we go forth each day to live the fullness of our consecration. 

Amen.