August 4, 2024 Reflection

When choosing characters to reflect on for this series I have to say that at first I nearly skipped over Anna. That’s because I have preached about Anna and her counterpart, Simeon, several times in the past, so I assumed that you would have heard everything there is to hear about her by now.  Then it occurred to me that I have only ever talked about Anna at Christmastime, specifically on the first Sunday after Christmas which happens to be the lowest attendance Sunday of the church year. So it’s highly likely that many of you have never actually even heard of Anna and Simeon which would certainly make them fit the bill for this series about the lesser known characters from the Bible.

If you haven’t heard of Anna and Simeon, you’ve been missing out, because this is actually a beautiful story about two elderly people who have dedicated their entire lives to watching and waiting for God’s promise of a new and better day. Then, as they near the end of their lives, their hopes and dreams suddenly come true when Mary and Joseph show up in the Temple with the infant Jesus.

I don’t know about you, but this week, as things heating up again in the Middle East with the assassination of one of the key leaders of Hamas, and the presidential election south of the border hit new lows in racial discrimination and our own back yard literally started heating up again with these hot, hot temperatures we’ve been having, I’ve been feeling like I too, like Anna and Simeon,  have dedicated my entire life to watching and waiting for God’s promise of a new and better day and wondering if that better day will actually ever come. Will we ever end our warring? Will we ever be able to see one another as equals without having to put each other down? Will we ever be able to reverse this global warming trend we are experiencing? Where O where are you God in the midst of it all?

 In today’s reading, we’re not told if Simeon and Anna also had times in their lives when they felt like their hopes would never be fulfilled but we are told that when a new day did arrive for them, the day they first laid eyes on the infant Jesus, their hearts were tuned in to the miracle before them and their eyes were open. They were prepared and more than ready to welcome and receive the fulfillment of peace and goodwill his presence brought.

Throughout the gospel accounts of Jesus birth and particularly in Luke’s version of the story, there’s an emphasis placed on the importance of one generation sharing with the next the faith that has been nurtured in their own lives.  The hopes that have been kept alive in one generation are passed onto the next through an affirmation of the ongoing capacity of the Spirit to bring new life to birth even out of dire circumstances.

In today’s story, Simeon, who is nearing the end of his life and Anna, an octogenarian widow, are the first to recognize Mary and Joseph as bearers of the light for the nations, the child in their arms, the fulfillment of their longed for hopes and dreams.

What always strikes me about Anna and Simeon is that they seem like the last people you would expect to be embracing this young couple.  Mary and Joseph have basically given birth to a child out of wedlock. They’ve broken long-held social conventions. It appears that they have been ostracized by their families. Anna and Simeon are clearly people who fervently follow religious tradition. It’s why they are in the temple the day that Mary and Joseph show up.

But instead of holding on to the way things have always been or putting their faith in the establishment and fearing what’s radically new, Anna and Simeon see the possibility inherent in this next generation who break tradition to carry a message of God’s love into the world in new and lasting ways.  They recognize this moment as an opportunity both to pass on their wisdom born of a lifetime of experience and as a time to bless and empower the younger set.

We all know about the timeless practice humanity seems to have of looking down on the next generation, criticizing them and lamenting the way they don’t do things like our generation did them.   How often do we say to our children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews “well in my day we did it this way.”  How often do we wallow in our inability to decipher the language of the youth and young adults in our life?  How often are we intolerant of their music, their technology and the clothes they wear?  How often do we lament the loss of cherished traditions that the next generation does not seem interested in? It’s as if this just comes naturally with aging. 

On the other hand, younger generations can often be out of touch at best and critical at worst of older generations.  We are a society that pulses at a fast pace.  We can’t wait more than a few minutes for a meal to cook or be delivered to our doorstep or for a message to travel from one computer to the next.  We busy ourselves with fitness regimes and organized sports, long commutes and jammed packed work and leisure schedules, rarely taking the time to slow down and breath, let alone to develop relationships with our elders.

Theologian Matthew Fox talks about how this breakdown between generations especially when it comes to honouring our elders, is really a two- way street.  He says that in the west we have created a culture in which we are always clamouring after the latest and greatest new thing and along the way we ignore the wisdom of our elders. At the same time however, he suggests that our elders have abdicated their responsibility to pass on the wisdom gained through their years and instead spend their days playing games.

The story of Anna and Simeon invites us to reflect on the way that we actually need each other across the generations because each generation does have something to offer the next that can’t be gained from their own.  This is the gift of growing up during different times in history.

Younger generations need the wisdom of older generations and older generations need to entrust, to nurture and bless the call of younger generations to take up the mantle of care for our planet and care for the people of the world that as followers of Jesus we would say is part of God’s vision.  We don’t get to retire and say “I’m done.” We still have a responsibility to our world and gifts to offer.

Last spring a number of us read Parker Palmer’s book On the Brink of Everything  which is about aging gracefully.  In his book he talks about the importance of intergenerational relationships and how when young and old connect it’s like joining the poles of a battery. It’s these connections he says that generate the energy for personal and social changed that an age-segregated society cuts off.

Not long ago I heard David Suzuki speak about the hope that has been instilled in him by younger generations who are carrying on the legacy he has had of working to halt and reverse climate change and live with respect in creation.  The wisdom that he continues to pass onto younger generations and his affirmation of them are a good example of this intergenerational connection that is so needed in our world.

On this Pride Sunday, when hundreds of people are gathering in downtown Vancouver to celebrate growing expressions of gender diversity and sexual orientation, we have younger generations to thank for continuing to challenge the status quo, for stretching our thinking about what it means to be inclusive and honouring of these many manifestations of humanity. 

What’s always been interesting to me about the church is that outside of our families, it’s one of the very few places where we still have intergenerational relationships. In our church, we don’t always see that on a Sunday morning but we are seeing it among volunteers in both the café and the Thrift shop.

One of the things to notice about Anna is that she is a prophet.  Right after she sees the infant Jesus coming into the temple, she speaks about him.  She witnesses to her faith. Perhaps the most important conversations that different generations can have are conversations about our life of faith.  What gives us hope? What helps us stay attentive to the Spirit? Where have we seen God at work in the past and where do we see God at work today?

When it comes to Anna, some have said that what gave her eyes to recognize the hope and promise before her in the presence of Jesus and his parents was the way that she, as a widow would have spent her days on the margins of society. Lisle Gwynn Garrity who drew the image of Anna that goes with our series talks about how Anna would have lived most of her years hiding in the shadows to keep from taking up too much space.  Notice how Anna lets Simeon take the limelight before she steps in at the right moment to share her wisdom. Luke could have easily left Anna out of the story but perhaps he knew that those on the outside seemed to have the nearest access to Jesus.  Those on the margins saw what others could not yet see. 

Garrity referenced photographs of Mother Teresa when drawing her image of Anna because Mother Teresa, like Anna, also had eyes to see the Divine especially in those on the edges of our society. She devoted her entire life to pointing out the presence of the Divine for others.

In my observation of both seniors and teenagers over the years, I have noticed the way that each of these different generations can feel unseen, unheard and marginalized.

So perhaps in those times like this week when we are wondering about the fulfillment of God’s hopes and promises for our day and age, we need to move to the margins out beyond our comfort zones to engage in cross generational conversations about things that matter, to share our faith with one another, to look into the eyes of all generations to see the face of the living Christ and to trust that God is always birthing new possibilities for healing, redemption, justice and peace in our individual lives and in our world. Perhaps we like Anna and her friend Simeon, need to keep our eyes open and our hearts tuned for the presence of God already in our midst.