By Fr. Lothar Gilde
Pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Imperial, Hispanic Ministry
Celebrations that involve the Blessed Virgin Mary grace numerous days of the liturgical year. Recently, we saw even the Sunday liturgy dedicated to Candlemas which is also known as the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple. Catholics reflect on this moment every time they pray the second Joyful Mystery of the rosary. In this encounter with the Holy Family, the virtue of obedience is overflowing, since they were brought to that moment due to their obedience to the Mosaic Law.
According to the testimony of Catholic Tradition, the obedience of Mary herself is already discovered at a very early stage of her life. A document from approximately 150 AD called the “Protoevangelium of James,” recounts that Mary, like Jesus, also was presented in the temple. However, it seems that unlike Jesus, Mary stayed in the temple possibly for nine years of her life. The Catholic Church memorializes this event every year on Nov. 21, unless it falls on a Sunday.
Imagine the implications of faith that come to light as a result of this event of Mary being presented in the temple. After all, our Catholic wisdom employs as one of its operating principles a Latin phrase that says, Lex Orandi Lex Credendi which literally translates as: “The law of prayer forms the law of one’s belief.” In other words, the way we are taught to pray will guide and influence the way we think and believe things to be.
While living in the temple for nine years, who would Mary have seen every day? Take the word of Luke’s Gospel (2:37) about a woman, Anna, who lived in the temple until she was 84 years old and who never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer. The amount of overlapping time Anna and Mary would have spent in the temple cannot but convince a person that Mary would have frequently seen the actions and example of Anna during her years spent in the temple of Jerusalem.
Mary had a kinswoman, Elizabeth, who lived in the hill country near Jerusalem (Luke 1:36). Elizabeth also happened to be married to a man, named Zechariah, who was a temple priest (Luke 1:5). A person can easily conclude that Mary would have often seen the various priests of the Jerusalem Temple, including Zechariah, carry out the temple sacrifices as well as the other activities of prayer and teaching during her temple life. If Mary ever took a short reprieve from the life of temple activities, it is not hard to imagine that she would have sought out the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth near Jerusalem.
A more mysterious figure who appeared in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the man, Simeon. Luke says, “[He] was righteous and devout.” Take some time in your mind to identify what kind of specific actions a “righteous and devout” Jew would be doing in Jerusalem; and once again, one’s conclusions return to the cultural scene around the temple area. Even today, if a person goes to his or her own church at the times of daily Mass or other devotions, he or she will likely discover that there are some routine souls who are attempting to live lives that are “righteous and devout.” With the premise that Mary lived in the temple for nine years, she probably also became acquainted with Simeon and the devotions he favored.
Now return to the Catholic celebration of the Presentation of the Child Jesus, and reconsider especially the figures of Simeon and Anna. They could have easily had memorable impressions of Mary, for it would have only been a few years previously that they had had interactions with her in her tender youth, mixed with so much piety that was infused with the fullness of God’s grace during inevitable interactions together that would have had occurred after living in the same location, the temple, for many years.
The Archangel Gabriel received in no uncertain terms that Mary planned to be an ever-virgin as she declared to him, “I have no relations with a man” (Luke 1:34). The origin of Mary’s intention to be ever-virgin was certainly due to God’s plan, but her own determination for such a course would most likely have been developed and decided upon within the prayers and reflections of her time in Jerusalem. Therefore, many within the temple environment would have learned of that particular course namely, virginity, that Mary had discerned for herself after years of reflection.
Granted, much of the thoughts above require speculation. Yet, at the same time, these particular conjectures are not simply derived from a vacuum, but rather flow from the wisdom given to us by both Catholic liturgical tradition as well as Gospel testimony.
If a person is willing to grant the conclusions already presented, then now weigh the reactions of Simeon and Anna, after again seeing Mary, who they had previously known with absolute confidence due to their experience, that she was truly a pious person, as well as a declared virgin. To their great astonishment they are seeing her now with a child in her arms. In their effort to reconcile their previous understanding of her character to the contrast of now seeing her with a child in her arms, their only recourse is to surrender to the Holy Spirit and acknowledge that miraculous events are at hand. Luke’s Gospel conveys well the wonder that fell upon Simeon and Anna after seeing the child Jesus with Mary.
Another mystery to marvel over concerning the life of Mary’s time in the temple is the realization that once again, the temple possessed the presence of the Ark of the Covenant. The general consensus was that the original Ark of the Covenant that had held the Ten Commandments was lost when Babylonia invaded and destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem in 586 BC. In the construction of the original Ark, not only were certain materials needed like acacia wood and gold, but also the dimensions also had to correspond to God’s design.
With Mary’s Presentation in the Temple, not only was the substance of her nature as “full of grace” entering the temple, but also her wisdom and knowledge were to be shaped, so as to achieve with precision God’s future desires for her.
Hispanic ministry has an important role in Imperial, Nebraska, and so it would be absurd not to employ the heavenly advocacy of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The most wonderful and consoling aspect of Our Lady’s image in this private revelation is how she is present explicitly as the New Ark of the Covenant. Since she is bearing Jesus in her womb, Catholics are able to realize the holiness of the mystery before their eyes. The Holy Ark of the Covenant is no longer constructed of inanimate objects, but of a woman who has sought to obey God’s every word.
We rejoice in the assistance of the Church as the Body of Christ that provides us with abundant liturgical celebrations that help keep present the mysteries of God’s goodness. Let us also confide in the assistance of the Blessed Ever Virgin Mary. Her intimate place within the plans of God encourages us also to respond as wholeheartedly as she did, especially since she has already known the achievement of victory and success through God’s grace all for God’s glory.
