21st November, Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
When we hear the word ‘presentation’ in a religious context, we tend to think of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, the fourth joyful mystery of the Rosary. The church celebrates the feast of the presentation of Jesus on the 2nd of February. The church also celebrates the memorial of the presentation of Mary, on this day, 21st November. This memorial has been kept in the church since at least the eight century. It commemorates the consecration of Mary’s life to God. In the first reading today, God calls on the city of Jerusalem, the daughter of Zion, to sing and rejoice because he is coming to dwell in the midst of them. These are words that could easily be addressed to Mary. She too can sing and rejoice because the Lord came to dwell in the midst of her, in her womb. Indeed, according to Luke’s gospel, she did sing and rejoice in response to this good news, in her prayer that has come to be known as the Magnificat. We too can sing and rejoice that the Lord has come to dwell within Mary, because through the Lord’s dwelling within her, he has come to dwell in the midst of us all. It is through Mary that God became Emmanuel, God with us. The Lord was able to dwell within Mary because, in the words of the gospel reading, she was someone who did the will of God the Father in heaven. She was completely given over to doing God’s will, to allowing God to do his will in and through her. This is the aspect of Mary’s life we are celebrating today, her giving over of herself to God and to God’s purposes. Through Mary, God has come to dwell among us in the person of Jesus, now risen Lord. Mary shows us how to respond to that wonderful initiative of God towards us. Like her, we are to give ourselves over to doing God our Father’s will, as that will has been revealed to us by Jesus.