December 26: The Song of Simeon: Nunc Dimittis
♫ Music:
WEEK FIVE INTRODUCTION
TITLE: THE SONG OF SIMEON: NUNC DIMITTIS
Luke 2:29-32
December 26 - January 1
“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.”
Like the other players we have looked in on over the past few weeks, the prophet Simeon and the prophetess Anna were devout, Spirit-filled believers. They lived by faith and spent their days in prayer, fasting, praising God, and waiting with expectation for the Consolation of Israel. The Holy Spirit had indicated that Simeon would not die until he had seen the Messiah. When Mary and Joseph entered the temple with Christ, Simeon began to glorify God. He broke into song and took the infant into his hands, gazing with amazement on the one he had waited for his entire life. Anna was right there behind him, joining her voice in a duet of praise.
The contrasts found in this canticle are striking. Nunc Dimittis starts on a deeply personal note, describing the saint’s approaching death. This intimacy is contrasted with a grand vision of international salvation “prepared before the face of all peoples.” Not only is Christ’s birth meant for the glorification of Israel but as a “revelation to the Gentiles.” Mary and Joseph, the recently betrothed young couple brimming with anticipation, represent the ushering in of the new covenant, while Simeon and Anna can be seen as closing the old.
Some scholars indicate that Nunc Dimittis may have already been in use by the early Christian church when Luke wrote his gospel. It remains in wide use today, occupying a central place at or near the conclusion of evening prayer services in liturgical churches around the world. This canticle deals with the sensitive subject of death in a beautiful, holy way. It asks the question, “Will God be glorified on the day of my death?” May it be so.
Day 29 - Sunday, December 26
Title: WAITING WITH FAITH & EXPECTATION
Scripture: Hebrews 11:1,13, 33-40
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. Who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to fight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trials of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having ..provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
Poetry:
Grace
by Donald Hall
God, I know nothing, my sense is all nonsense,
And fear of You begins intelligence:
Does it end there? For sexual love, for food,
For books and birch trees I claim gratitude,
But when I griever over the unripe dead
My grief festers, corrupted into dread,
And I know nothing. Give us our daily bread.
SEEING “AFAR OFF”…AND THEN CLOSE AT HAND
As you listen to the words of Simeon in today’s music, you have to know that this moment from Simeon’s life is only one half of a set of bookends. Simeon saw the Lord’s Christ as a baby. He did see the glory of God’s people Israel—his eyes beheld it, and not another’s.
But you must also know that later there followed a moment when he saw Jesus’ face again, when he again beheld the Lord’s Christ—no longer a helpless baby, but now the exalted and triumphant king.
Simeon saw up close.
And then, after death, he saw even more.
So many saints, says our passage in Hebrews, saw the promise “afar off” and believed. They died in faith, they died in hope.
They died.
So will you. (Merry Christmas!)
But…you will. It is the last work of a Christian life, dying. And that’s not a bad thing to remember on this day, St. Stephen’s Day, when we remember the first martyr of the church—the first saint to follow in his Lord’s bloody footprints.
You may not die a martyr, but (unless you live to see the Lord’s return) you will die.
Hall is right to describe this prospect as something that “[corrupts us] into dread.” And yet… “Give us our daily bread.” Our daily bread is the literal food that sustains our bodies, and it is also the strength God gives us, moment by moment, to sustain our souls. (And Jesus is the bread of life.) The Lord gives grace to his servants as his servants need it. If you are not dying today, you do not need the grace to face death today.
And yet, it will not hurt you to consider it. If this were not so, our God would not have included so many examples of dying saints in the Scriptures he gave us for our sustenance. Look at those who have gone before: look at Stephen, look at the unnumbered martyrs referred to in Hebrews…look at the faithful Simeon. Robert Besana’s art, which accompanies this devotion, gives us a martyr without a face—but you know some of the faces of the Lord’s faithful ones. Look at your departed loved ones who loved the Lord. Look at the Old Testament saints who accepted death with faith in the Lord’s goodness, though they didn’t know exactly how the Lord’s provision would be worked out. Look at the New Testament martyr who saw the face of Christ as he died.
Look at the faithful old man who saw the face of Christ before he died.
And who thus was able to die in peace…and to behold that face again.
You are going to depart. You are.
But if you want to depart in peace, like Simeon, you are going to have to be like Simeon.
If you want to depart in peace, you’re going to have to depart as one of the Lord’s servants.
Lord, now let thy servant depart in peace.
There is no other way.
Put your faith in Christ. Follow him and believe. And then, as another servant of the Lord said, “Be at peace, and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations.”
Jesus has kept you his through this life; he will surely keep you through to the next.
Prayer:
When we come to our last day, oh Lord our Judge, have mercy on us. We plead thyself with thee; we plead thee in our utter need. Jesus, most merciful of men, have mercy on us then. Lord God of mercy and of men, show mercy on us then.
–adapted from Christina Rossetti’s poem “Sooner or Later”
Devotion Author:
Jessica Snell
Biola Class of 2003
Writer and Editor
For more information about the artwork, music, poetry, and devotional writer selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Artwork:
Prayers for Martyrs
Robert Besana
Ballpoint pen on plywood
122 x 153 cm
In artist Robert Besana’s work, he contextualizes martyrdom in a more contemporary idiom, with the dominant presence of his trademark giant roses. A unique concept seldom touched by contemporary artists, martyrdom is no longer exclusively about persecution and death of one’s religious faith. In modern times, there are political martyrs, imprisoned or put to death for espousing a political cause. However, Besana is drawn to religious themes, as evident across his oeuvre, which showcases a modern reimagining of old masters. “I’m personally overwhelmed with the amount of imagery the church has produced and how it transcends through generations and different cultures,” he explained. The artist also adopts these images as crucial elements to retell stories in a more contemporary point of view. His collection of work on the martyrs invites reflection through an appreciation of beauty, and in the scenes depicted within the borders of the canvas, audiences are privileged to partake of a story of virtue and victory, piety and persecution, and triumphs over trials.
About the Artist:
Robert Besana (b. 1976) is a painter who graduated from the Philippine Women’s University’s Fine Arts program in 2003 and completed his master’s degree in 2009. He is currently the Program Director of The School of Multimedia Arts of Asia Pacific Colleges in Makati, aside from providing consultancy advice for the Technical Committee For Multimedia Arts for CHED's Humanities Technical Panel and National Capital Region's Quality Assurance Committee. Since his student days, he has been participating in numerous local group exhibits, as well as garnering awards from various local competitions.
http://www.imagomundiart.com/artworks/robert-besana-now-where-would-i-land/
https://www.manilatimes.net/2018/05/27/weekly/the-sunday-times/robert-besanas-contemporary-martyrdom/401270/
https://artandtheology.net/articles/
About the Music:
“Nunc Dimittis” from the album Winter
Lyrics: Luke 2:29-32 (Vulgate Bible)
Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine,
secundum verbum tuum in pace:
Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum
Quod parasti ante faciem omnium populorum:
Lumen ad revelationem gentium,
et gloriam plebis tuae Israel.
English Translation: (Luke 2:29-32 (NKJV)
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.
About the Performers:
Formed in 2005, VOCES8, an a cappella octet from the United Kingdom, has a diverse repertoire ranging from early English and European Renaissance choral works to their own original arrangements. The ensemble is dedicated to supporting promising young singers and awards eight annual choral scholarships through the VOCES8 Scholars Initiative, at which amateur singers of all ages are invited to work and perform with the ensemble. VOCES8 tours extensively throughout Europe, North America, and Asia, and their artistic collaborations have included the Philharmonia Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, period ensemble Les Inventions, violinist Hugo Ticciati, and cellist Matthew Sharp.
http://www.voces8.com/
About the Composer:
Arvo Pärt (b. 1935) is an Estonian composer of classical and sacred music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt, an Orthodox Christian, has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-invented compositional technique, tintinnabuli. His music is in part inspired by Gregorian chant. Since 2013, Pärt has had the distinction of being the most performed contemporary composer in the world. Although the recipient of numerous awards and honors from nations around the globe, the humble maestro strives to keep out of the limelight, endeavoring to give God credit for his many accomplishments. The newly established International Arvo Pärt Centre, located in the Estonian village of Laulasmaa, includes a research institute, an education and music centre, a museum, a publishing facility, and an archive of Pärt's works.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arvo_P%C3%A4rt
https://www.universaledition.com/arvo-part-534
About the Lyrics:
The “Nunc Dimittis,” also known as the “Song of Simeon” or the “Canticle of Simeon,” is a canticle taken from Luke 2:29–32. Its Latin name comes from the opening words of the Vulgate Bible translation of the passage, meaning "Now let depart." Since the fourth century it has been used in services of evening worship such as Compline, Vespers, and Evensong.
About the Poet:
Donald Andrew Hall Jr. (1928–2018) was an American poet, writer, editor, and literary critic. He was the author of over fifty books across several genres, ranging from children's literature and biography to memoir and essays, and including twenty volumes of verse. Hall was considered one of the major American poets of his generation. His poetry explores the longing for a more bucolic past and reflects the poet’s abiding reverence for nature. Although Hall gained early success with his first collection, Exiles and Marriages (1955), his later poetry is generally regarded as the best of his career. Hall used simple, direct language to evoke surrealistic imagery. In addition to his accomplishments as a poet, Hall was respected as an academic who—through writing, teaching, mentoring, editing, and lecturing—made significant contributions to the study and craft of writing. He was married to the poet Jane Kenyon.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/donald-hall
About the Devotion Author:
Jessica Snell
Biola Class of 2003
Writer and Editor
Jessica Snell is a writer and editor who graduated from Biola University and the Torrey Honors College in 2003. Her work has appeared in Focus on the Family, For the Church, Mysterion, Christ and Pop Culture, Daily Science Fiction, and many more. She and her husband live in sunny Southern California with their four children. You can read more about her and her work at jessicasnell.com.