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February 2, 2011Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Mal 3:1-4Thus says the Lord God:Lo, I am sending my messengerto prepare the way before me;And suddenly there will come to the templethe Lord whom you seek,And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.Yes, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.But who will endure the day of his coming?And who can stand when he appears?For he is like the refiner’s fire,or like the fuller’s lye.He will sit refining and purifying silver,and he will purify the sons of Levi,Refining them like gold or like silverthat they...

February 2, 2008                                 Feast of the Presentation of the Lord       Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Mal 3:1-4 Thus says the Lord God:Lo, I am sending my messengerto prepare the way before me;And suddenly there will come to the templethe LORD whom you seek,And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.Yes, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.But who will endure the day of his coming?And who can stand when he appears?For he is like the refiner’s fire,or like the fuller’s lye.He will sit refining and purifying silver,and...

Feast of the Purification (Candlemas)        Today is a day of purification, renewal, and hope. On this day, exactly 40 days after Christmas, we commemorate Mary's obedience to the Mosaic law by submitting herself to the Temple for the ritual purification, as commanded in Leviticus 12:2-4: Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: If a woman having received seed shall bear a man child, she shall be unclean seven days, according to the days of separation of her flowers. And on the eighth day the infant shall be circumcised: But she shall...

Presentation of the Lord "Candlemas"Feast DayFebruary 2nd Presentation at the Temple by Giovanni Bellini - 1460-64 - Tempera on woodGalleria Querini Stampalia, Venice Nunc Dimmitis"Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word;for mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples,a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel." The Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord - From the Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy120. Until 1969, the ancient feast of the presentation of Our Lord, which is of Oriental origin, was...

CANDLEMAS The Encounter Between Chaos and Light Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger In everyday modern life we are hardly aware that on February 2nd we celebrate an ancient feast, common to the Church of both East and West, which used to have a great significance in the rural calendar: Candlemas. Tributaries from many historical sources have flowed together into this feast, with the result that it sparkles with many colors. Its immediate reference is to the event when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem forty days after his birth to perform the prescribed sacrifice of purification. The liturgy...