Reflections on St. Simeon
February 3rd is Saint Simeon’s feast day. Simeon was the "just and devout" man of Jerusalem who, according to Luke 2:25–35, met Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus as they entered the Temple to fulfill the requirements of the Law of Moses on the 40th day from Jesus' birth at the presentation of Jesus at the Temple. Sometimes the oddest things are captured in the New Testament stories. I am a bit flummoxed by what the prophet Simeon (whose name means to listen) had to say directly to Mary.
Behold, Simeon said, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed (or as the Diaglot says -- a Mark of contradiction) and a sword will pierce even your own soul -- to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
It just seems odd to announce to a new mother that her newborn son would somehow cause a sword to pierce her own soul. And then for her to hear that the purpose of his birth was so that “thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” Somehow, I think Mary would have rather heard that her baby would grow up to be admired by many, considered a great leader by history, and have a profound impact on the well-being of his people. And yet, the heart of the prophecy seems centered on the prediction that this baby is appointed for “a sign to be opposed”. What an odd thing to say. The Dialgot translation is equally enigmatic describing it as a mark of contradiction.
What could this possibly mean? How is this mark of contradiction—the Christ— supposed to reveal the thoughts of the heart? What evidence is there to this prophecy?
At least in the Christ story, the mark of contradiction appears to be everywhere. It occurs in the contradiction between the manger and the star, between the shepherds and King Herod, between the magi and the traditional religious leaders, between the lowest and the highest, between the most unlikely and the most revered. The revelation of the Christ to the world occurs in the dissonance; in the mark of contradiction, in the koan of the Christ. I am struck with the prophecy that the power of the birth was in the one-hand-clapping-sound of the Christ and that this contradiction would incur a revelation of the heart.
For, as Simeon said, many shall rise and fall upon this contradiction. Those who stumble will miss the power of the understated exaltation of the manger and the star. For those who look where they would expect to find a King will find only the rococo but those who are open to the most unlikely of birth places will find the remarkable gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense, as well as the shepherds and the angels.
We have many unlikely places in our lives for this birth of the Christ to occur. It could be our jobs, where we live, what our roles are perceived by others to be but nonetheless, many places for the birth to occur. The revelation of the thoughts from the heart must be an extremely significant event given the great toll it took on the life of Jesus. That said, perhaps there could be no more potent power for the human than this revelation of the heart and no greater birth than to that which would cause that revelation to occur.