The Meeting of the Lord , also the Meeting ( Greek συνάντησις “meeting” [1] ), Bringing to the Temple ( Greek Ἡ απαπαντὴ τοῦ Κυρίου , Latin Praesentatio Domini “representation of the Lord”) is a Christian holiday celebrated in some religions in the churches 2] . Bringing baby Jesus Christ to his temple in Jerusalem by his parents took place on the 40th day after Christmas and on the 32nd day after circumcision . In the temple of Jerusalem, the Holy Family was met by Simeon the God-Receiver .
| Meeting of the Lord | |
|---|---|
 Duccio . "Candlemas". The Maesta , fragment, 1308–1311. Museum Del Opera Del Duomo, Siena | |
| Type of | Christian holiday |
| Set | bringing to jerusalem temple baby Jesus Christ by his parents |
| date of | Orthodoxy - February 2 (15) Catholicism - February 2 |
| Associated with | Merry christmas |
In Orthodoxy, it is one of the twelfth holidays . The Jerusalem , Russian , Georgian , Serbian Orthodox churches , as well as the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (within Ukraine ), the Old Believers and some others [3] celebrate the Meeting on February 2 (15) according to the Julian calendar (in the XX — XXI centuries February 2 according to the Julian calendar corresponds to February 15, according to New Julian and Gregorian).
In Catholicism, it is celebrated on February 2 according to the Gregorian calendar. The Greek Orthodox Church and a number of other local Orthodox churches are also celebrated on February 2, but according to the New Julian calendar ; Armenian Apostolic Church - February 14 .
Content
- 1 Holiday Story
- 2 Feast in worship
- 2.1 History of the celebration
- 2.2 Orthodoxy
- 2.3 Catholicism
- 3 See also
- 4 notes
- 5 Literature
- 6 References
Holiday History
(Novgorod icon of the late 15th century)
According to the Gospel of Luke ( Luke 2: 22-40 ), on the fortieth day after the Nativity of Christ and the fulfillment of the days of legal cleansing, Mary and Joseph came from Bethlehem to Jerusalem to the temple of God, bringing the forty-day-old baby Jesus . According to the law of Moses ( Exodus 13: 1-2,11-16 ), parents were supposed to bring their first-born (that is, first sons) to the temple on the fortieth day after birth [4] . At the same time, it was supposed in gratitude to God to make a sacrifice. In pursuance of this law, Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple of Jerusalem , and brought two pigeon chicks for the sacrifice.
The Slavic word “meeting” is translated into modern Russian as “meeting”. The Meeting is a meeting of mankind in the person of Elder Simeon with God. Simeon the God-Receiver was a righteous and pious man - according to legend, one of the seventy-two learned interpreter-translators whom the Egyptian king Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285-247 BC) instructed to translate Holy Scripture from Hebrew to Greek . When Saint Simeon translated the book of the prophet Isaiah and read the words “Behold the Virgin will receive and bear the Son”, he thought that this was a clear typo and instead of “Virgin” should be “Wife”, and considered it his duty to correct the text. But the angel of the Lord stopped the hand of St. Simeon and assured him that he would not die until he was convinced of the truth of the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah.
Simeon waited a long time for the fulfillment of the promise of God - he lived, according to legend, for about 300 years. And on this day, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he came to the temple. And when Mary and Joseph brought the Baby Jesus, Simeon took Him in his arms and, praising God, said:
| Now you will release Your servant, Lord, according to Your word, in peace, for My eyes saw Your salvation, which You have prepared before all nations, the light for the enlightenment of the Gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel. ( Luke 2: 29–32 ) |
These words of the righteous Simeon became a prayer, called the “ Song of Simeon the God-Receiver .” It has an important liturgical significance and is sung twice: at the end of Vespers (both small and great during the All-Night Vigil ) and at the “Thanksgiving Prayers for Holy Communion” at the end of the Divine Liturgy .
Joseph and Mary were surprised by these words. Simeon blessed them and, turning to Mary, predicted to Her about the Baby:
| And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His Mother: Behold, This lies on the fall and on the rebellion of many in Israel and in the subject of bickering, and Your very soul will pass through your soul - may the thoughts of many hearts be revealed. ( Luke 2: 34–35 ) |
These words formed the basis of the iconography of the image of the Virgin " Softening of evil hearts ."
Immediately, in the temple, there was a pious widow Anna the Prophetess , eighty-four years old, who served God with fasting and prayer day and night all the long years of her widowhood. And she recognized the Savior and, coming up, glorified the Lord and spoke of Him to everyone in Jerusalem.
Feast in Worship
Celebration History
The feast of the Meeting arose in the church of Jerusalem and appeared on its liturgical calendar in the 4th century. Initially, it was not perceived as an independent holiday, but as a day ending the 40-day cycle after the Epiphany holiday [5] .
The oldest historical evidence of the holiday is Itinerarium Aetheriae, a pilgrimage report to the Holy Land of Egeria dating from the 4th century.
| The fortieth day from Epiphanius is celebrated here with great honor. On this day there is a procession to Anastasis, and everyone is marching, and everything is done in order with the greatest triumph, as if on Easter. All the elders preach, and then the bishop, always talking about the place of the Gospel where Joseph and Mary brought the Lord to the Temple on the fortieth day, and Simeon and Anna saw the prophetess, daughter of Phanuel, and about the words that they said, having seen the Lord, and about the offering that the parents brought. And after that, having sent everything according to the usual order, they celebrate the Liturgy, and then it is released [5] . |
The tendency to expand the liturgical glorification of the events of the earthly life of Jesus Christ was developed after the Council of Chalcedon in 451, at which Monophysitism was anathematized. As an independent holiday of the annual calendar, the Meeting was established in the Roman Church at the end of the 5th century, and in Constantinople in the first half of the 6th century.
Orthodoxy
The Meeting is one of the Lord's holidays [6] dedicated directly to Christ, but in its liturgical content it is exceptionally close to the Mother of God holidays . Therefore, the liturgical features of the Meeting are inherent in the Mother of God holiday with elements of the Lord's holiday, in particular, the Antiphons are pictorial in the Liturgy, but there is an input verse: “The Lord Said His Salvation, Before Languages Reveal His Truth”. And in ancient times, in its appearance, it was considered as a holiday dedicated to the Mother of God . On the holiday icon, the images of Christ and the Mother of God are equal in significance: the Infant Savior, sitting in the arms of the God-Receiver Simeon, receiving the Savior in his arms and representing himself as if an old world filled with the Divine, and the Mother of God who went out on the Way of the Cross - giving His Son to save the world. And the whole icon in its construction expresses this dual nature of the holiday, the joy of the Meeting and the Passion of grief, that which is contained in the words of Simeon the God-Receiver , the prophetic meaning of the words of the elder: “Behold, This lies on the fall and on the rebellion of many in Israel and in the subject of bickering” ( Luke 2:34 ). These words are full of eschatological meaning pertaining to the entire service of the Savior, filled with the insights of the end of time and the aspirations of the coming Judgment and the Future Age.
| Church Slavonic (transliteration) | In Russian | In Greek [7] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Troparia , voice 1 [8] | Rejoice, gracious Virgin Mary of the Virgin, from you bo ascension the Sun of Truth - Christ our God, enlighten creatures in darkness. Have fun and you, an elder righteous man, accepting the resurrection of our souls in the arms of the Savior, giving us the resurrection. | Rejoice, blessed Mother of God the Virgin, for the Sun of truth has shone from Thee, Christ our God enlightening those who are in darkness. Have fun too, you righteous elder, who has taken into the arms of the Liberator of our souls, who gives us the resurrection. | Χαῖρε κεχαριτωμένη Θεοτόκε Παρθένε Εὐφραίνου καὶ σὺ Πρεσβύτα δίκαιε, δεξάμενος ἐν ἀγκάλαις τὸν ἐλευθερωτὴν τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν, χαριζόμενοςἈῖλ |
| Kondak , voice 1 [8] | Blessed the womb of Devic with your Christmas and Simeone the Ruthenian, blessed as you please, God has saved us now, but die peace and strengthen the people, even loved Him, the One Humane. | He consecrated the womb to Maiden by Your Birth, and blessed the hands of Simeon, who beforehand, as was appropriate, and now You have saved us, Christ God. But protect the world in the midst of wars, your people and strengthen those whom you have loved, the One Humane. | Ὁ μήτραν παρθενικὴν ἁγιάσας τῷ τόκῳ σου, καὶ χεῖρας τοῦ Συμεὼν εὐλογήσας ἔ ἔπρεπε, προφθάσας καὶ ῦῦςἔἔἔἔἔἔἔἔ Ἀλλ 'εἰρήνευσον ἐν πολέμοις τὸ πολίτευμα, καὶ κραταίωσον Βασιλεῖς οὓς ἠγάπησας, ὁ μόνος φιλάνθρωπος. |
| Zadostnik | Chorus: Theotokos Virgin, Christian hope, covered, keep and save those who trust in you. Irmos 9 songs, voice 3. In the law of canopy and scriptures, we see the image, faithfulness, every man’s gender, a fake false open, holy to God. Thus, the First-born Word, the Father is Initial, the Son, the First-born of Matter is unskilledly, magnified. | Chorus: Virgin Mary, hope of Christians, cut, keep and save those who hope in you. Irmos 9 songs, voice 3. In the shadow of the Law and the Scriptures, we see the image that is true : every male being who opens the womb is dedicated to God. Therefore, the First-born Word of the beginningless Father, the Son, the first-born of the Mother who did not know her husband, we magnify. | Chorus: <...> Irmos 9th ode of the canon: Ἐν νόμῳ, σκιᾷ καὶ γράμματι, τύπον κατίδωμεν οἱ πιστοί, πᾶν ἄρσεν τὸ τὴν μήτραν διανοῖγον, ἅγιον Θεῷ · διὸ πρωτότοκον Λόγον, Πατρὸς ἀνάρχου Υἱόν, πρωτοτοκούμενον Μητρί, ἀπειράνδρῳ, μεγαλύνομεν. |
| Magnification | We magnify Thou, the Liver of Christ, and honor the Most Holy Mother of God; now, according to the law, thou hast come to the temple of the Lord. | We praise you, the Giver of Life, Christ, and honor Your Most Holy Mother, whom You were legally brought to the temple of God today. | <...> |
The Meeting symbolizes the meeting of the Old and New Testaments. Bishop Theophan the Recluse wrote: “In the person of Simeon, the entire Old Testament, the unredeemed humanity, peacefully departs into eternity, giving way to Christianity ...”
If the Meeting falls on Monday of the first week of Great Lent , which happens very rarely, the festive service, according to the Charter, is postponed to the previous day - February 1, Forgiving Sunday .
On the feast of the Presentation of the Lord, before the Divine Liturgy, at the end of the order of 6 hours, on the pulpit before the Royal Doors, the consecration of candles takes place, and their subsequent distribution to believers.
Catholicism
In the Catholic Church, the Meeting has a holiday status lower than “triumph”; celebrated on February 2 . Other names for the holiday: “Cleansing Mary” and “Candle Day”, as candles are blessed on this day [9] .
The liturgical vestments of the priests on the feast of the Meeting are white, as in other festivals dedicated to the Savior and the Virgin.
Before the Mass itself, on the day of the Presentation, a ceremony of blessing candles and a procession with candles are held. The ritual of blessing begins with the fact that all those present at the service light candles to sing antiphon . After the opening text, the priest passes through the temple, sprinkling the worshipers with candles in their hands with blessed water . After that, the priest also takes the candle prepared for him and begins a procession with the words: "Let us go in peace to meet the Lord." During the procession, a hymn is sung to the words of Simeon the God-Receiver , uttered by him during the Meeting. After the procession, believers return to their places in the temple, extinguish candles, and the mass continues in the usual manner.
The liturgical chants of this day are dedicated to the events and symbols of the holiday.
See also
- Simeon the God-Receiver
- Meeting in the Slavic tradition (Thunder)
Notes
- ↑ Dyachenko G. M. Complete Church Slavonic Dictionary . - 1899. - S. 655.
- ↑ In particular, in Lutheranism .
- ↑ See Old-Church Churches .
- ↑ Bible Encyclopedia. - 3rd ed. - M.: LOKID-PRESS, 2005 .-- 768 p.: Ill. - (Library of Encyclopedic Dictionaries) (unavailable link from 06/14/2016 [1205 days])
- ↑ 1 2 Ruban Yu. I. The Meeting of the Lord. (Experience in historical and liturgical research). SPb., 1994
- ↑ Lukashevich A. A. Lord's Holidays // Orthodox Encyclopedia . - M .: Church Scientific Center "Orthodox Encyclopedia" , 2006. - T. XII. - S. 173-178. - 752 s. - 39,000 copies. - ISBN 5-89572-017-X .
- ↑ Service books in Greek. February Minea, day 2. (inaccessible link)
- ↑ 1 2 Orthodox calendar. February, day 2. // Orthodoxy.ru
- ↑ Holidays in the Roman Catholic Church
Literature
- Meeting of the Lord. Liturgical instructions for clergy / Comp. prot. Vitaly Grischuk. - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg Orthodox Theological Academy, 2014. (in iBooks format)
Links
- Simeon the God-Receiver
- The Presentation of the Lord on the site Orthodoxy.Ru
- The Presentation of the Lord in Russian painting and literature on the site "Russia and the Christian East"