†  Heart to Heart Chat – February 5, 2023

My dear friends,

As we celebrated the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple, I would like to reflect on the life of this holy man Simeon, who held the baby Jesus in his hands. “St Simeon, long venerated through out the Church, is sometimes styled “God-bearer” or “God-receiver” because he was one of the first to hold the infant Jesus in his arms.” He should have been aptly named as God-recognizer as he recognized Jesus among hundreds of babies he must have seen presented to the Lord in the temple.

Simeon could recognize Jesus right away because he was filled and led by the Spirit to the temple at the very moment when Mary and Joseph were offering him in the temple. He could hear and believe that he is the messiah through many years of prayer, study, and passionate longing for the coming of the messiah. As he held Jesus in his hands, St. Simeon’s heart was filled with profound gratitude and recited one of the beautiful prayers: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples.”

St. Simeon reminds us of the need of living in the Spirit of Christ and being led by him every day. Our daily practices of Christian Spirituality of prayer, study, and yearning for the coming of the Lord in our life become a reality only when we are led by the spirit. Simeon also exhibits a powerful Christian virtue that we should never grow weary or tired of waiting for the Lord. He may walk into our lives at any time. He may come to us through any person or event that we should be open and willing to receive him joyfully.

St. Simeon held Jesus in his hands. Don’t we hold Jesus in our hands every time when we go to the communion. In fact, we receive Jesus more intimately than Simeon did. We consume his very body and find a closer communion with Jesus than many other people. In this way we truly become God-receivers.

As our Church is entering into the Eucharistic Revival, let us focus on what we receive and how this Lord can transform us profoundly. Let us never stay away from the Eucharistic Lord for silly reasons that we are enriched with a personal and intimate communion with the Lord of life.

Your Brother in Christ,
Fr. Xavier Ilango