30th, December, WednesdayI. 1 John 2: 12-17
II. Lk 2: 36-40
Theme: Anna, the Messenger of Hope to those in Despair
Today we are in the sixth day of the Christmas week. Many of us might feel that all the display and merry time of the Christmas season has faded away. But we are reminded in today’s Gospel that the one who closely fixes his mind on the Lord will always remain patient, serene and joyful, be it Christmas time or a tiresome day, a blissful day, or a sorrowful day. For the one who is with the Lord “the joy of the Lord is his strength!” (Neh 8:10). We are introduced in few short verses in Lk 2:36-38, about a woman named Anna. There is nothing so glamorous about her life story she seems to have been of a great age having become a widow just after seven years of her married life. Her portrayal rather appears to be an unattractive and gloomy. Now the question is what has this widow to offer in this Christmas season? Is there anything outstanding in her fervent devotion to God despite her opposing life situations? We are told that she served God night and day with fasting and praying. What’s even more striking about her is after having witnessed the glorious arrival of the child Jesus in the temple, she felt within her a deep sense of joy. The gospel states that she communicated this joy by speaking of this marvelous child to all who awaited God’s mercy and power in their lives. And therefore, she is not simply an old, aged widow but she is rightly addressed as prophetess Anna. A messenger of hope to those in despair. Hope is something directed towards good which is hard but not impossible to attain says St. Thomas Aquinas. Though life was hard for Anna her perseverance in prayer seems to be the driving force of her hope. And as a reward for this hope, Anna in all her vulnerability encounters Jesus a vulnerable child. The Messiah comes sharing in human vulnerability. The promised hope of Israel and the entire world. If we are sad, grieving, aged, sickly or feel that God hasn’t been generous enough with us then each of us must imitate this model of serenity and hope in the person of Anna. As the psalmist says 37:4-5: “trust the Lord and do good, take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart, commit your way to the Lord trust him and he will act.”
Bro. Santhosh Prabhu
III BTH