Candlemas: Jesus is the Light of the world!

We're celebrating our first Candlemas today! I would have forgotten it again if it hadn't been for Kara's post earlier this week. Thanks, Kara!

Candlemas, or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, commemorates the presentation of Christ in the temple and the ritual purification of the Virgin Mary forty days after Jesus's birth.

  
And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, (Simeon) took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said:

"Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace,
According to Your word;
For my eyes have seen Your salvation
Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples,
A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Your people Israel.”

And Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him.


--Luke 2:27b-33

The full gospel reading for the day is Luke 2:22-39.

In some countries, such as France, people eat crepes on Candlemas, and even play crepe-throwing games. We didn't have quite enough left over to do that -- and they were way too yummy!

 

Candlemas Morning Prayer

All-powerful Father,

Christ your Son became man for us

and was presented in the temple.

May he free our hearts from sin

and bring us into your presence.

We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God for ever and ever. Amen.

The Liturgy of the Hours

Canticle of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis)

 

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace,

your word has been fulfilled:

My own eyes 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.

From Christian Prayer, commonly said at Candlemas

The Roman Legion and the Armor of the Lord

We finished reading the Narnia series a few weeks ago, and I wondered how I was going to continue that boy-inspiring literary and Bible-themed path -- or, rather, I wondered where the Spirit was going to lead us next.

Last week in our Lively Latin history, we studied the Roman legion -- how the army was organized, what the soldiers wore, etc. And it all came together...

 

We read, discussed, and began memorizing Ephesians 6:1-18, specifically the references to our spiritual armor:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

We sang...

I may never march with the infantry,
Ride with the cavalry,
Shoot the artillery,
I may never fly o'er the enemy,
But I'm in the Lord's army,
Yes, Sir!

I'm in the Lord's army,
Yes, Sir!
I'm in the Lord's army,
Yes, Sir!

I may never march with the infantry,
Ride with the cavalry,
Shoot the artillery,
I may never fly o'er the enemy,
But I'm in the Lord's army,
Yes, Sir!

And we discussed the possibility of dressing up as Roman soldiers for Halloween... but decided against it.

This site had helpful discussion questions and more activity ideas if you're interested.

Addendum:  I forgot to mention where the inspiration for this lesson came from... We got to see Go Fish perform at a local church the weekend before last, and discovered that an updated version of "Army of the Lord" was on their newest album. The boys latched onto it, and I decided to teach them the old-fashioned version with hand movements!