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December 30, 2023The prophetess Anna in today’s Gospel passage is an example of someone who experienced the world around her and found it lacking. She lived seven years of life with her husband. In other words, she enjoyed the vocation to marriage. After the person she loved died, life probably lost its flavor and richness for her. We all experience the loss of people dear to us and seek to fill a void in our lives. Anna chose to focus her life on the Lord and devote herself to a life of prayer in God’s temple. However, there is more depth to Anna’s search for fulfillment than simply losing someone close to her and seeking consolation.
Anna represents all the people of Israel in their longing and desire for the coming of the Redeemer. The temple in which she has spent night and day for so many years is itself empty. It had been desecrated, looted, and left abandoned for so long. Faithful people rebuilt it and rededicated it to the Lord, but it was still empty. The Ark of the Covenant – the very cradle of the promise of salvation – was missing. And so, Anna and the temple share a similar plight: they have lost something very dear to them and look for the coming of the Lord to restore what has been lost.
When Jesus – God with Us – is presented in the temple, she recognizes that God has returned to his rightful place among his people. Anna speaks for all her people and for the temple itself that the time of salvation has dawned. And with the dawn of salvation, Anna confirms on a deeply personal level that all who have left this world are destined to experience that salvation in God, including the beloved spouse she lost so long ago.
We experience the joy of the Christmas Season, celebrating God’s saving presence among us. However, many of us face the season with voids in our hearts once filled with loved ones who have passed over to the peace of Christ. Anna is a witness to our faith and hope in God. She reminds us that our prayers to God are fruitful, regardless of how much time may pass between our petition and God’s response. Most importantly, Anna receiving the child Jesus is proof that God has kept his promise to us: He has come to us, dwells with us, and will continue to fulfill his covenant by drawing us all to himself on the last day.
