“And suddenly there will come to the temple the LORD whom you seek.”

We heard this in our first reading from the prophet Malachi, and it’s very appropriate for today’s Feast Day, the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple. Because today we heard the story of when Mary and Joseph brought baby Jesus to the Temple for the first time in accordance with the Law, and so quite literally, the LORD came suddenly into the temple!

But I think in order to fully appreciate the weight of Malachi’s prophecy being fulfilled here, we need more context.

Because what Malachi is prophesying, if you were paying attention, is the RETURN of the Lord into the Temple. And for the Lord to return logically implies that the Lord had to first leave the Temple at some point.

We know that ever since the Exodus — when Moses led the people out of the Land of Egypt and into the freedom of the Promised Land — God’s Presence traveled visibly with the Chosen People. The LORD had manifested His Presence in the form of a towering pillar of cloud and fire — We call this the GLORY CLOUD — the “Shekinah: in Hebrew — and it guided the people on their way day in and day out. 

When Solomon built the first Temple in Jerusalem, this Glory Cloud came down and FILLED the Inner Sanctuary — the Holy of Holies — of the Temple. And throughout the Old Testament, whenever we read the phrase “the glory of the Lord” — what the Scriptures are very often referring to is precisely this… the Glory Cloud.

But at one point in Israel’s history — this Glory of the Lord — this Shekinah Cloud — actually picked up and LEFT the Temple.

This event is recounted by the prophet Ezekiel — where we hear that the Glory Cloud actually left! The Presence of God went away! It lifted up, and as the prophet describes… exited the Temple, and then passed through the Eastern Gate of the city.

But how on earth could this happen? Why would God leave the Temple?

Well, it was the consequence of Israel’s corruption and its refusal to repent of idolatry and sin…

And yet… and this is the important part… God also promises through Ezekiel that one day: This Glory of the Lord would return.

Which brings us to today’s wonderful Feast — the Presentation of the Lord

“And suddenly there will come to the temple the LORD whom you seek.”

That’s what Simeon and Anna were waiting for!

They knew that the Temple was still “empty.” That the Glory of the Lord was still, in fact, missing. We heard in the Gospel passage that Simeon was “awaiting the consolation of Israel” — Anna, we heard “never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.” 

In other words: They were eagerly awaiting the fulfillment of all the promises found in the prophets — the coming of the Messiah, the restoration of the Kingdom of God, and yes… the return of God’s glory, His living, breathing Presence in the Temple.

And so… the stage was set.

Until one day… the Lord suddenly appeared! Mary and Joseph bring Jesus into the Temple!

And when that happened, Simeon and Anna immediately could tell the difference. Something clicked. Something shifted in the spiritual atmosphere of that place. They could somehow sense that the true Glory of the Lord had all of a sudden… arrived!!!!

Now at this point, I’d like to just say something that I think a lot of people can probably relate to.

We don’t always get to feel or sense God’s presence, do we? In fact, sometimes it’s just the reality that God feels… kind of not there.

And that can be really hard!

People say things all the time like: “Father, I just don’t feel anything when I pray” or “I don’t get anything out of going to church on Sunday,” or “I don’t feel God’s love.”

And I think we need to remember first and foremost…that feelings are not necessarily reality. Feelings and emotions, while potentially helpful in letting us know what’s going on spiritually, should always be tested and investigated and discerned so that we can see whether or not they’re reliable and true.

But the fact is:

Even when we’ve repented of all our sins and we’re doing our absolute best (with the help of God’s grace) to live a holy Catholic life… Our relationship with God is still sometimes gonna feel kinda dry, sort of dark, and at times………just plain downright empty.

And so I just want to encourage you:

That’s ok.

In fact, it’s MORE than ok… because when we do go through those seasons of dryness and emptiness in prayer… when believing is extremely hard because we just don’t “feel anything”… God can even use THAT experience of darkness to bring us closer to Himself.

I was just reading something the other day where the author said: “It is in the ache of desire that God’s presence is disclosed.”

What does that mean?

Well, I think it means that very often, it’s in that experience of emptiness, dryness, and apparent “absence” that God’s presence is finally revealed to us. It’s when God is seemingly “not around” (even though that’s logically impossible) that we begin to truly ache for Him… that we really desire Him,  burn for Him with the level of intensity that He deserves.

It’s almost like God permits us to experience darkness, so that we ache for the light. And when the candle is finally lit… we rejoice even more in the light.

That’s how I imagine Simeon and Anna in our story today.

They felt that intense ache… they experienced the darkness — they felt that something — or rather Someone — was missing from the Temple.

But rather than allowing that experience to send them home disappointed and defeated…instead of them giving up hope and saying: “Well I can’t feel God so He must not be real” — this experience actually INTENSIFIED their desire for God. It INCREASED their expectation for the RETURN of God’s Glory!!!

So when it did finally did happen… when Jesus showed up and the Glory of the Lord finally did return to the Temple after hundreds of years… Simeon and Anna KNEW that something beautiful and new was happening. It was as if somebody lit a bright candle in a pitch-dark room.

This reminds me of when I first moved into the rectory here in Christiansburg. And I decided to convert one of the rooms into a chapel. And after asking the bishop for permission to reserve the Blessed Sacrament there, I said Mass and then placed the Holy Eucharist into the Tabernacle for the very first time, and I lit the Sanctuary Lamp. And all I can say is — something changed in that room. It was different now. The LORD was SUDDENLY now there in a particular way…

So Jesus comes into the Temple at the Presentation. God’s glory… God’s Presence ENTERS in…

And now, that same Lord wants to enter into YOUR temple… and change YOUR life forever.

In just a few minutes, Jesus will again offer up the one Sacrifice of the Cross in the Holy Eucharist. He will enter suddenly into this Sanctuary. It’s Jesus who is the priest. It’s Jesus who is the Sacrifice. It’s Jesus who is the New Temple! “Destroy this Temple! And in three days I will rebuild it!” …But he was speaking of the Temple of His Body! 

The Son of God comes and shares in our flesh and blood, as our second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews put it, He “tabernacles” among us and in so doing… the Glory of the Lord enters into and FILLS the Temple of the Human Body!

He wants to do that in each one of us. 

That’s why He gives us the Eucharist. 

That little tiny Host you receive is the Glory of the LORD entering into the temple of your body, your heart, your soul! Your lips are the gate through which the Glory Cloud enters into you!

So as our psalm today said “Lift up, O gates, your lintels; reach up, you ancient portals, that the king of glory may come in!”

Open up, and LET THE GLORY ENTER.

That’s my prayer for all of us today: That the Glory of the Lord would enter and fill us.

In fact, the Lord placed on my heart just to invite the Glory to come here among us right now… and to give some time of silence for that to actually happen.

So, Lord, I ask that You would let Your Glory come here among us now. 

Let the Glory enter… in whatever way You want.

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of every people: a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel.