Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (2: 22-40) where Joseph and Mary travel to Jerusalem and present Jesus to the Lord.

Fr Paul says, today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus. On this day we celebrate the fact that the Virgin Mary, in obedience to Jewish law, went to the temple in Jerusalem both for her to be purified forty days after the birth of her son and also to present Jesus to God as her first born son.

Fr Paul explains that this festival was formally known in the Roman Church as the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, but it is now known as the Presentation of the Lord. The earliest reference we have to this celebration is from Jerusalem itself which is recorded to have taken place from the 4th Century onwards. As we hear at the end of this Gospel, having fulfilled all of the Law of the Lord required, Joseph and Mary then return home and care for Jesus until he grew to maturity.

Fr Paul suggests for our reflection today we might pray the ‘Our Father and Hail Mary’, asking the Lord and our Lady to be with us and bless us on this day.