St Werburgh's Roman Catholic Parish, Chester
Fourth Joyful Mystery: The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
Fruits of the Mystery: Purity, Obedience
The infant Jesus is taken to the Temple in Jerusalem forty days after his birth, for the traditional rite of purification.
Luke 2:22-24 And when the day came for them to be purified in keeping with the Law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord - observing what is written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male must be consecrated to the Lord - and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is prescribed in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
The Song of Simeon
In the Temple, Joseph and Mary meet Simeon, an old man who had been promised that he would not die until he had set eyes upon the Saviour. When Simeon sees Jesus, he realises that the promise has been fulfilled, and says the prayer Nunc Dimittis (Now let thy servant depart). This Canticle of Simeon (Luke 2:29-32) is sung daily at the Church's Night Prayer.
Now, Lord, you have kept your word:
let your servant go in peace.
With my own eyes I have seen the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:
a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
AMEN
The Window
Simeon the Righteous, dressed in a sumptuous blue cloak, lifts the infant Jesus in his arms and gazes into the eyes of the young Saviour. Joseph and Mary look on. Mary, kneeling, is beside the small cage in which are the two turtle doves, brought to the Temple for the sacrificial rites.
The scroll in the bottom light reads Requiescat in Pacem (may he rest in peace), which we may take as a supplication for the aged Simeon, whose life purpose has now been fulfilled.
It may also be taken in reference to the inscription at the foot of the window, which reads: Who gave their lives in the Great War 1914-1918. "He will beautify the humble with victory".