Salesian Literature

6. The Presentation of Our Lady in the Temple

Sermon for the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lady, November 21, 1619, concerning Our Lady's continual obedience to the will of God, her offering of herself to God in the Temple, the giving of one's whole self to God through the religious vows, regular renewal of good purposes and vows, and total obedience to God's word.

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The Gospel proposed by Holy Church for today's feast [Lk. 11:27ff] is composed of two parts, both of which tend to the praise of the most holy Virgin whose Presentation in the Temple we are celebrating. The first part is that, while Our Lord was preaching, a woman began to cry out, speaking to Him in this manner: "Blest is the womb that bore You and the breasts that nursed You!" To which Our Lord replied; "Rather, blest are they who hear, who pay attention to, the word of God and keep it!" I shall dwell principally upon this latter because it is more to the glory of the most sacred Virgin. Our Divine Master teaches us this by His reply to this woman, for although the first praise was inspired by the Holy Spirit Himself, it was nevertheless pronounced by a creature. But since the Saviour wished to enrich rather than diminish the praise rendered His most holy Mother, He took up the canticle of respect intoned by St. Marcella in honor of Our Lady, saying; "That is true, but happier indeed is she for having paid attention to the word of My Father and having kept it. Without doubt it is a very great honor to have borne Me in her womb and to have nourished Me with the milk from her breasts—I who am the Food of angels and men on high in heavenly glory. That, however, is not the foundation of her beatitude. Rather, to have been always obedient to the will of My Father is." Felicity is not attached to dignity, nor is it given in light of it, but according to the measure of union we have with the divine will. Thus, if we could separate the dignity of the Mother of God from the perfect submission which that most sacred Virgin had to His holy will, she would have the same degree of glory and the same felicity which she now has in Heaven. But I say this only in passing.

 

Our Lady had three great privileges above all pure creatures. The first is that she was always most obedient to the will of God, that is to say, to His word, and this from the very instant of her Conception, without any variation or interruption, not even for a single moment. She was never subject to change and could never sever this first union and adherence which she then made of her will to God's will. This favor was not accorded to any other pure creature, not even to the angels, for they could change and abandon the grace they had received from the Divine Majesty at their creation. Lucifer's fall and that of his followers shows this clearly. As for man, who can be a man and not know that he is inconstant and fickle? We ourselves experience this every day. Who is always of the same humor? Now we want one thing; soon we will have no more of it, but desire another. Now we are happy, then sad. In short, there is nothing but constant change.

 

Our Lady could never fall from the first grace which she received from the Sovereign Majesty because she always adhered to the divine will, so that she merited new graces without ceasing. The more she received of them, so much the more was her soul rendered capable of adhering to God, so that she was ever more united and rooted in her first union with Him. If we can find change in the most holy Virgin, it is only that of a closer union and further growth in all kinds of virtue in order to render invariable the resolution which she had made of belonging wholly to God. For this reason she wanted to withdraw to the Temple, not that she had need of it for herself, but in order to teach us that we, being subject to change, ought to use every possible means to strengthen and preserve our good resolutions, as much interiorly as exteriorly. As for her, in order to persevere in her good purpose it sufficed that she had given herself to God from the first moment of her life, without the need of leaving her father's home. She had nothing to fear, since exterior objects could never divert her. But like a good mother, she would teach us that we should neglect nothing to make permanent our calling, as St. Peter exhorts us [2 Pet. 1:10].

 

The Holy Virgin had the use of reason from the instant of her Conception,[1] and from that same instant the Divine Goodness preserved her from the precipice of Original Sin into which she would have fallen had not His all-powerful hand prevented her. In thanksgiving for this grace she dedicated and consecrated herself to His service so absolutely from that time that the promise she made to the Divine Majesty was irrevocable. But notwithstanding that, for the space of three years she kept her resolution sealed and hidden under the appearance of infancy. I say "under the appearance of infancy" because in reality she was not an infant at all. Since she had the use of reason she led a purely contemplative life. She was so wise a child that we can never imagine another such, except her well-beloved Son. When three, she was carried part of the way from Nazareth to Jerusalem, but the rest of the distance she went with her own little steps. Pious tradition reports that it was a charming picture to see how joyously she mounted the 15 steps of the Temple.

 

We are now at the second part of our discourse. St. Joachim and St. Anne brought her in order, to fulfill a vow they had made to God to offer her in His Temple. But this blest child came there motivated also by her own will. To keep herself in the bounds of infancy she had indeed not manifested this. Nevertheless, she had long waited to see herself absolutely and wholly consecrated to the Divine Majesty. With an unparalleled heart she came to give herself to God without reserve; and had she dared to speak, no doubt she would have said to the good women who brought up those maidens who were dedicated to Our Lord in the Temple: "I am here in your hands like a ball of wax. Do with me what you will. I shall make no resistance." Moreover, she was so pliable and submissive that she allowed herself to be turned by every hand without ever testifying any desire for this or that, so condescending that all were overcome with admiration.

 

From that time she began to imitate her Son, who was to be totally submissive to the will of all. Though indeed it was in His power to resist all, still He would never do so. At the beginning of His Passion He manifested His omnipotence when, as the Lion of the tribe of Judah [Rev. 5:5], He roared out: "I am He." When He asked the Jews who were seeking Him: "Who is it you want?" they answered Him: "Jesus, the Nazarean." "I am He," He said; and by this word He threw all His enemies to the ground [Jn. 18:4-6]. But immediately upon raising them up. He again concealed His omnipotence under the mantle of a holy gentleness and meekness. And from the moment they laid hold of Him until they led Him to death they never again saw in Him any resistance whatsoever. He even permitted them not only to shear Him as a trusting lamb [Is. 53:7; Jer. 12:19], but also to deprive Him of His very skin. The sacred Virgin foresaw all this and submitted herself without any reserve, giving and abandoning herself wholly to the mercy of the divine will.

 

This is the second privilege which she had above all creatures, for no one ever gave himself so perfectly and so absolutely to the Divine Majesty as she did. She was more perfectly obedient to the word of God than any other creature. Moreover, she was more submissive than anyone else ever was. Who gives all reserves nothing. But what, I ask you, is it to give all to God? It is not to reserve for oneself anything which may not be for God, not even a single one of our affections or our desires. And what does God ask of us? Listen, I beg you, to this sacred Saviour of our souls: My son, give Me your heart [Prov. 23:26]. He keeps repeating this to each one of us.

 

But, you will ask me, how can I give God my heart, so full of sins and imperfections? How could it be pleasing to Him, since it is filled with disobedience to His wishes? Alas, poor man, why afflict yourself so? Why do you refuse to give it to Him such as it is? Do you not know that He did not say: "Give Me a pure heart like that of the angels or of Our Lady," but: "Give Me your heart"? He asks for your own heart. Give it such as it is. For, ah! Are we not aware that everything that is remitted into His divine hands is convened into good? [Cf. Rom. 8:28]. Is your heart of the earth, vile and filled with filth? Still do not fear to remit it into the hands of God. When God created Adam, He took a little clay from the ground and then made of it a living being [Gen. 2:7]. Is your heart well disposed? Give it, such as it is, for that is what the Divine Goodness asks. He desires only what we are and what we have.

 

In the Old Law God ordained that everyone should visit His Temple, but He forbade anyone, either poor or rich, to come there empty-handed [Ex. 23:15; Deut. 16:16]. Moreover, He did not wish that all should make an equal offering; for He wished that the rich, the affluent, should offer according to their riches, and the poor, according to their poverty [Lev. 12:8; Deut. 16:17; Lk. 2:24]. He was not satisfied if a rich man made an offering suitable to the poor, because that manifested avarice; nor if a poor man made the offering of the rich, for that would be presumption. When the laity come to offer to the Divine Majesty their affections and the will they have to follow His commandments, God will be pleased with them and they will be very happy. For if they observe these commandments faithfully, they will be saved [Matt. 19:17]. But souls who are rich in holy aspirations to do great things for God should not come bringing the offering of the poor. For God will not be pleased with it. The Lord has enriched you with His grace and He wants you to bring Him what you have.

 

Today Our Lady makes an offering such as God desires, Besides the dignity of her person, which surpasses that of all others after her Son, she offers all that she is and all that she has, and that is what God asks. Oh, how happy are we who, by means of the vows which we have made, have dedicated ourselves wholly to Him: our bodies, our hearts, and our goods. We renounce riches by the vow of 'poverty, the pleasures of the flesh by the vow of chastity, and our own will by the vow of obedience. 0 people of the world, enjoy your goods if you wish, provided you wrong no one. Take the lawful pleasures permitted you by Holy Church. Do your own will in such and such occurrences. God allows you all that. But as for us, let us take care to reserve nothing, for God does not want any reserve. He wants all. As He gives Himself wholly to us in His Divine Sacrament, so does He want us quite entirely. Take care, for no one makes a fool of God [Gal. 6:7]. If we say that we are resolved to give all, let us do so absolutely, under pain of being chastised like Ananias and his wife Saphira, who lied to the Holy Spirit [Acts 5:1-10].

 

But it is not with us as it was with Our Lady. Having once given herself to God, she had no need of again confirming her offering. For not even for a single moment did she ever cease belonging wholly to God and being attached to and united with His divine will. We, on the contrary, because of the continual vicissitudes of life and the inconstancy of our affections and humors, must every hour, every day, every month, and every year confirm again and renew the vows and promises we made to be all God's. That is why, not only in the New Law but in the Old as well, they always made it a point of setting aside certain seasons and certain days in order to encourage the people to renew their good resolutions.

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The Israelites were the people of God. They made their renewal at each new moon, and in order to attract everyone they celebrated solemn feasts. They sounded trumpets [Lev. 23:24; Num. 10:10; 29:1; Ps. 81:4] in order to rouse the spirit, not to fanfare or vain things, but for the things of eternity. And Holy Church, like a wise mother, from time; to time throughout the year gives us special feasts in order to encourage us to renew our good purposes. On the solemn day of Easter, for instance, who does not renew himself totally by his holy affections and resolutions to do better, seeing Our Lord wholly renewed in His Resurrection? Who is the Christian who does not renew his heart on the day of Pentecost, when he considers how God sends from Heaven a new spirit upon those who love Him [Ps. 51:12; Ez. 18:31; Acts 2:17], and on All Saints Day, when Holy Church represents to us the glory and felicity of the blessed, for which we long and in which we hope? Finally, who can have so little courage as not to undergo a renewal of spirit on Christmas Day when he sees the Saviour of our souls become so lovable a baby, coming to ransom us?

 

But besides all these feasts, it has been the custom of all those who have more especially dedicated themselves to God, such as religious, to take a particular day for renewing their vows in order the better to obey the great Apostle St. Peter who counsels us to make permanent our calling [2 Pet. 1:10]. And how could we better do this than by again confirming our intention and the choice which we have made? Thus today, my dear Sisters, you have strengthened your vocation by renewing your vows in the presence of the Divine Majesty. He asks that of you in acknowledgement of the sacred gift He made to you at the same time — the gift of Himself.

 

I cannot develop the third privilege of the glorious Virgin. Let us say, however, that she was obedient to the Divine Majesty, not only to His commandments but also to His desires and good pleasure and to His inspirations. In that, my dear Sisters, we must take care to imitate her as closely as possible. I say this because very few are found who do it faithfully, though many protest that they are resolved to do so. To obey the will of God is to obey His word. Ask any Christian if he is not resolved to obey God's word. "Oh, without doubt I am." But listen to Our Lord, who says: How blest are the poor in spirit [Matt. 5:3, 5]. Yet, there are few indeed who do not desire to be rich! "As for me, I do not care to be rich at all. I love poverty." Yes, provided nothing is wanting to you.

 

And this word of the Saviour: Happy the gentle. And who takes account of this? I come from the world and J can assure you there are very few to be found who practice it. When we preach gentleness to them in light of what Our Lord has said: Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart [Matt. 11:29], there are few who do not reply: But those who are gentle do not make themselves feared enough. Ah, if you want to be feared you will not be humble, for there is nothing more contrary to humility. Note that our Divine Master desired to be feared only once in His life, upon which I have already touched.3 That is, when He said to those who wished to seize Him in the Garden of Olives: "I am He." There are fewer still who would put faith in this word: Blest are those persecuted for holiness' sake [Matt. 5:10].

 

There is no more exception from this obedience than from the offering of ourselves that God wishes us to make Him. For if Our Lady would not have been pleasing to the Divine Majesty without this absolute obedience, as Our Lord showed by the praise He gave her after that of that holy woman mentioned in our Gospel, how much less pleasing would we be? Besides, my dear Sisters, although no other than the Holy Virgin could have had this honor of being Mother of Our Lord in reality, we ought nevertheless to strive to merit the name of it by obedience to the will of God. You know that one day when the Saviour was preaching the words of eternal life [Jn. 6:68] in the Temple, Our Lady was at the door and someone came to say that His Mother and His brothers were seeking Him (for there were some of His relatives whom He called His "brothers"). He replied: Who is My mother? Who are My brothers? They who do the will of My Heavenly Father...[2]  [Matt. 12:46-50].

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[1] In describing Our Lady's great privileges and favours St. Francis de Sates is always careful to point out that they are the results of God's grace on her behalf. It is worth noting that the editor of the Annecy edition indicates that these lines, and others in this sermon, are not edited in the original manuscript.

[2] This sermon ends somewhat abruptly.

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