Catholics celebrate the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple
08:07, 2 February
Photo: BELTA
The Catholic Church celebrates the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple today. On this day, the Mother of God brought the infant Jesus to the temple for the first time. According to tradition, parents were expected to bring their children to church at forty days of age to dedicate them to God.
- Share on Facebook
- Share on VK
- Share on Twitter
In the temple, Mary and Joseph were met by Saint Simeon, who had long awaited this moment. Tradition says that the elder was one of the 72 scribes who translated the Bible from Hebrew into Greek in the third century BC. While Simeon was working on the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, he saw the words, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son." He wanted to change "virgin" to "woman," but an angel appeared to him and forbade him to change the word, promising that he would not die until he had personally witnessed the fulfillment of the prophecy.
On the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, festive services are held in all churches in Belarus, and candles are blessed. Believers carefully preserve them throughout the year and light them when they pray to Christ during difficult times. Candlemas candles are also called Gromnichny candles, as they are lit during thunderstorms accompanied by strong winds, lightning, and thunderclaps, so that the Mother of God's protection will protect from the dangers of the elements. This is why the feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple received its second name — Gromnitsy.
