Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on February 15: history, meaning and signs
Posted: Mon Feb 17, 2025 3:13 am
RIA Novosti’s material is about the church holiday of the Meeting of the Lord, as well as what can and cannot be done on this day.
On February 15, the Orthodox Church celebrates the great feast of the Meeting of the Lord. This is a permanent feast, meaning that in Orthodoxy it is celebrated on this day. "Meeting" in Church Slavonic means "meeting". Meeting is a time point where the Old and New Testaments, the ancient world and Christianity meet. More details about the feast are in the RIA Novosti article.
History of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Photo - © Mediastok.rf
On the day of the Meeting of the Lord, Orthodox Christians remember the events described in the Gospel of Luke. They took place 40 days after the Nativity of Christ.
In ancient times, the Jews had a tradition: if a boy was guatemala mobile database born into a family, he had to be brought to the temple for a rite of dedication to God. It was also necessary to take two sacrifices with you - either two doves, or a dove and a lamb. Since Joseph and Mary were not rich, they took two doves and headed to the temple.
After the ceremony over Jesus, the Holy Family was already heading for the exit, when an old man, perhaps the oldest man in Jerusalem (according to tradition, he was over 300 years old), approached them. His name was Simeon. He took Jesus in his arms and joyfully said: “Now, Lord, lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people: a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32).
Simeon found himself in the temple for a reason. The thing is that many years ago he was translating the book of the prophet Isaiah, and there he came across unusual words: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son." But how can a "virgin" (that is, a virgin) give birth? Simeon wanted to correct "virgin" to "wife" (woman), but an angel appeared to him and told him that he himself would see this for himself one day, and until then he would not die.
And so Simeon takes Jesus, born of the Virgin, into his arms, that is, the words of the angel turned out to be true. The prophecy came true, and the old man can now die peacefully. The Church called him Simeon the God-Receiver and included him in the list of saints.
But this was not the only meeting that took place that day. In the temple there was also Anna the prophetess, whom the townspeople called so for her speeches about God. She worked hard at the temple. Anna approached Jesus, bowed to him and left the temple, bringing the news of the coming of the Messiah to the people of Jerusalem.
On February 15, the Orthodox Church celebrates the great feast of the Meeting of the Lord. This is a permanent feast, meaning that in Orthodoxy it is celebrated on this day. "Meeting" in Church Slavonic means "meeting". Meeting is a time point where the Old and New Testaments, the ancient world and Christianity meet. More details about the feast are in the RIA Novosti article.
History of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
Photo - © Mediastok.rf
On the day of the Meeting of the Lord, Orthodox Christians remember the events described in the Gospel of Luke. They took place 40 days after the Nativity of Christ.
In ancient times, the Jews had a tradition: if a boy was guatemala mobile database born into a family, he had to be brought to the temple for a rite of dedication to God. It was also necessary to take two sacrifices with you - either two doves, or a dove and a lamb. Since Joseph and Mary were not rich, they took two doves and headed to the temple.
After the ceremony over Jesus, the Holy Family was already heading for the exit, when an old man, perhaps the oldest man in Jerusalem (according to tradition, he was over 300 years old), approached them. His name was Simeon. He took Jesus in his arms and joyfully said: “Now, Lord, lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people: a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32).
Simeon found himself in the temple for a reason. The thing is that many years ago he was translating the book of the prophet Isaiah, and there he came across unusual words: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son." But how can a "virgin" (that is, a virgin) give birth? Simeon wanted to correct "virgin" to "wife" (woman), but an angel appeared to him and told him that he himself would see this for himself one day, and until then he would not die.
And so Simeon takes Jesus, born of the Virgin, into his arms, that is, the words of the angel turned out to be true. The prophecy came true, and the old man can now die peacefully. The Church called him Simeon the God-Receiver and included him in the list of saints.
But this was not the only meeting that took place that day. In the temple there was also Anna the prophetess, whom the townspeople called so for her speeches about God. She worked hard at the temple. Anna approached Jesus, bowed to him and left the temple, bringing the news of the coming of the Messiah to the people of Jerusalem.