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Simeon the Righteous
 
 
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Simeon the Righteous (also Simeon the Elder, Simeon Senex, Simeon the God-Receiver, or Holy Simeon) is the "just and devout" man of Jerusalem
Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and its List of Israeli cities in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if Positions on Jerusalem East Jerusalem is included....
 who, according to , met the Virgin Mary, Joseph
Joseph

Joseph may refer to:People with the name Joseph:* Joseph , about the first name* Joseph , for people with the last name Joseph* Jose, shortened name...
, and Jesus
Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
 as they entered the Temple to fulfill the requirements of the Law of Moses
Pidyon HaBen

Pidyon HaBen, , is a ritual in Judaism whereby a firstborn son is redeemed by a Kohen in order to release him from his obligation to serve in the Temple in Jerusalem....
 on the fortieth day from Jesus' birth. On taking Jesus into his arms he uttered the prayer Nunc dimittis
Nunc dimittis

The Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Gospel of Luke named after its first words in Latin language.Simeon the Righteous was a devout Jew who, according to the book of Luke, had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour....
 which is still used liturgically
Liturgy

A liturgy is the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to their particular traditions. The word may refer to an elaborate formal ritual such as the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and Mass , or a daily activity such as the Muslim salat and Jewish Jewish services....
 in many Christian churches, and gave a prophecy alluding to the crucifixion
Crucifixion

Crucifixion is an ancient method of execution , whereby the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead....
.






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Simeon the Righteous (also Simeon the Elder, Simeon Senex, Simeon the God-Receiver, or Holy Simeon) is the "just and devout" man of Jerusalem
Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and its List of Israeli cities in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if Positions on Jerusalem East Jerusalem is included....
 who, according to , met the Virgin Mary, Joseph
Joseph

Joseph may refer to:People with the name Joseph:* Joseph , about the first name* Joseph , for people with the last name Joseph* Jose, shortened name...
, and Jesus
Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
 as they entered the Temple to fulfill the requirements of the Law of Moses
Pidyon HaBen

Pidyon HaBen, , is a ritual in Judaism whereby a firstborn son is redeemed by a Kohen in order to release him from his obligation to serve in the Temple in Jerusalem....
 on the fortieth day from Jesus' birth. On taking Jesus into his arms he uttered the prayer Nunc dimittis
Nunc dimittis

The Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Gospel of Luke named after its first words in Latin language.Simeon the Righteous was a devout Jew who, according to the book of Luke, had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour....
 which is still used liturgically
Liturgy

A liturgy is the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to their particular traditions. The word may refer to an elaborate formal ritual such as the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and Mass , or a daily activity such as the Muslim salat and Jewish Jewish services....
 in many Christian churches, and gave a prophecy alluding to the crucifixion
Crucifixion

Crucifixion is an ancient method of execution , whereby the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead....
. This meeting is commemorated on February 2 as Candlemas or more formally, the Presentation of the Lord, the Meeting of the Lord, or the Purification of the Virgin.

According to a tradition in the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
, Simeon had been one of the seventy-two translators of the Septuagint
Septuagint

The Septuagint , or simply "LXX", is the Koine Greek version of the Hebrew Bible, translated in stages between the 3rd century BC and 1st century BC in Alexandria....
 (LXX). As he hesitated over the translation of Isaiah
Book of Isaiah

The Book of Isaiah is a book of the Bible traditionally attributed to the Prophet Isaiah, who lived in the second half of the 8th century BC. In the first 39 chapters, Isaiah prophesies doom for a sinful Judah and for all the nations of the world that oppose God....
 7:14
Isaiah 7:14

Isaiah 7:14 is a verse of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament that is often a point of contention between Christians and Jews. It is one of the few Biblical references to the name Immanuel....
 "Behold, a virgin shall conceive...", and wondered how this was possible, or even that it might be a copyist's error
Textual criticism

Textual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the Writing of manuscripts....
, an angel
Ángel

?ngel is the third single from Belinda Peregr?n's debut album: Belinda. It was a massive hit in Mexico and an international hit for Belinda....
 appeared to him and told him that the prophecy was correct as it was written, and that he would not die until he had seen its fulfillment with the Christ
Christ

Christ is the English language term for the Greek meaning "the anointing", which is a title given to the Reigning Messiah in the given age of the Zodiac....
 born of a Virgin. This would make him well over two hundred years old at the time of the meeting described in Luke, and therefore miraculously longeval.

He is venerated as a saint
Saint

A saint in Christianity is a human being who has been called to holiness. The term is used differently by various denominations, with some, such as the Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans distinguishing between Saints and saints....
 in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Roman Catholic traditions. His feast day is February 3.

Festal observances

The events in the life of Saint Simeon the Righteous are observed on both 2 February and 3 February. The observances of the first day center around memorializing the act of Mary undergoing an act of ritual purification, and presenting Jesus, her child, to the Temple, a feast day known as the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
. Since this day focuses more on Jesus and Mary, the observation on February 3 is specific to St. Simeon, who was allowed to die after seeing the Christ
Christ

Christ is the English language term for the Greek meaning "the anointing", which is a title given to the Reigning Messiah in the given age of the Zodiac....
 (or Messiah
Messiah

Messiah literally means "anointed ".In Jewish messiah tradition and Jewish eschatology, messiah refers to a future monarch of United Monarchy from the Davidic line, who will rule the people of Israelite#The Twelve Tribes, and herald the Messianic Age of global peace....
) born of a virgin. In Christian tradition, the day of a saint's death is often celebrated as his feast day.

Under Mosaic law, a mother who had given birth to a man-child was considered unclean for seven days; moreover she was to remain for three and thirty days "in the blood of her purification", which makes a total of 40 days. The Christian Feast of the Purification therefore corresponds to the day on which Mary, according to Jewish law (see ), should have attended a ceremony of ritual purification. The Gospel of Luke
Gospel of Luke

The Gospel of Luke is a Synoptic Gospels, and is the third and longest of the four Biblical canonical Gospels of the New Testament. The text narrates the life of Jesus of Nazareth....
  relates that Mary was purified according to the religious law, followed by Jesus's presentation in the Jerusalem temple, and this explains the formal names given to the festival.

In the liturgy
Liturgy

A liturgy is the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to their particular traditions. The word may refer to an elaborate formal ritual such as the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and Mass , or a daily activity such as the Muslim salat and Jewish Jewish services....
 of Evening prayer
Evening Prayer (Anglican)

Evening Prayer is a liturgy in use in the Anglican Communion and celebrated in the late afternoon or evening. It is also commonly known as Evensong, especially when the office is rendered choir ....
 in the Anglican communion
Anglican Communion

The Anglican Communion is an international association of national Anglican churches. There is no single "Anglican Church" with universal juridical authority as each national or regional church has full autonomy....
, tens of millions of Anglicans recite the Nunc dimittis
Nunc dimittis

The Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Gospel of Luke named after its first words in Latin language.Simeon the Righteous was a devout Jew who, according to the book of Luke, had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour....
 - or sing it in Evensong in the canticle known as the Song of Simeon - almost every single evening. It is also used in the Roman Catholic Compline
Compline

Compline is the final church service of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. The English word Compline is derived from the Latin completorium, as Compline is the completion of the working day....
 and Orthodox Vespers
Vespers

Vespers is the evening prayer service in the Roman Catholic, Byzantine Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican, and Lutheran Liturgy of the canonical hours....
. The Nunc dimittis has been set to music by many notable composers, such as Rachmaninoff (All-Night Vigil).

The feast on 2 February is often referred to as Candlemas, as in honor of the ritual purification of the Virgin Mary, candles (of beeswax
Beeswax

Beeswax is a natural wax produced in the Beehive of honey bees of the genus Apis. Worker bees have eight wax-producing mirror glands on the inner sides of the sternites on abdominal segments 4 to 7....
) which will be used for the entire year are brought into a church and blessed. In the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church is the world's largest Christianity Ecclesia , representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world population....
, the Presentation is the fourth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary
Rosary

The Rosary is a popular traditional Roman Catholic devotion. The term denotes both a set of prayer beads and the devotional prayer itself, which combines vocal prayer and meditation....
. In the Church of England
Church of England

The Church of England is the State religion Christianity Ecclesia in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communion's thirty-eight independent national and regional churches....
, the Presentation of Christ in the Temple is a Principal Feast
Principal Feast

Principal Feasts are a type of observance in some Churches of the Anglican Communion, including the Church of England. Along with Principal Holy Days, with which they share equal status, they are considered to be the most significant type of observance, the others being Festival s, Lesser Festivals, and Commemoration s....
. In the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
, it is one of the twelve Great Feasts
Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church

The feast of the Resurrection of Jesus, called Easter , is the greatest of the feasts of the Eastern Orthodox Church. In addition, there are other days of great importance in the life of the Church - the Twelve Great Feasts....
.

February 2

This feast day has a number of different names:
  • The Meeting of Our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Eastern Orthodox Church
    Eastern Orthodox Church

    The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
    )
  • The Coming of the Son of God into the Temple
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Armenian Apostolic Church
    Armenian Apostolic Church

    The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest national church and one of the most ancient Christianity communities.The official name of the church is the One Holy Universal Apostolic Orthodox Armenian Church ....
    )
  • Feast of the Purification of the Virgin (Eastern Rite Catholic Churches
    Eastern Rite Catholic Churches

    The Eastern Catholic Churches are autonomous particular Churches in full communion Communion with the Bishop of Rome ? the Pope. They preserve the liturgical, theological and devotional traditions of the various Eastern Christianity with which they are associated, and between which doctrinal differences exist, in particular between the East...
    )
  • The Presentation of the Lord
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Latin Rite
    Latin Rite

    The Latin Rite is one of the 23 sui iuris particular Churches within the Catholic Church. This particular Church developed in western Europe and north Africa, where, from classical antiquity to the Renaissance, Latin was the principal language of education and culture, and so also of the liturgy....
     of the Roman Catholic Church
    Roman Catholic Church

    The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church is the world's largest Christianity Ecclesia , representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world population....
    )
  • The Presentation of Our Lord Jesus Christ in The Temple
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Episcopal Church of the United States)
  • Presentation of Our Lord
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
    Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

    The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestantism List of Christian denominations headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 1988 by the merging of three churches and currently having about 4.70 million baptized members, it is the largest of all the Lutheranism denominations in the Religion in the United States and t...
    )
  • The Presentation of Christ in the Temple
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Anglican Church of Canada
    Anglican Church of Canada

    The Anglican Church of Canada is the sole Canada representative of the Anglican Communion. The official French name is l'?glise Anglicane du Canada....
    )
  • The Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Anglican Church of Canada
    Anglican Church of Canada

    The Anglican Church of Canada is the sole Canada representative of the Anglican Communion. The official French name is l'?glise Anglicane du Canada....
    )
  • The Presentation of Christ in the Temple
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
     (Church of England
    Church of England

    The Church of England is the State religion Christianity Ecclesia in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communion's thirty-eight independent national and regional churches....
     and Anglican Church of Australia
    Anglican Church of Australia

    The Anglican Church of Australia, a member church of the Anglican Communion, was previously officially known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania ....
    ).


February 3

Simeon the Righteous is commemorated in his own right on 3 February. In the Anglican Communion
Anglican Communion

The Anglican Communion is an international association of national Anglican churches. There is no single "Anglican Church" with universal juridical authority as each national or regional church has full autonomy....
, Simeon is not venerated with a festal observance, and 3 February is set aside to recognize Anskar
Ansgar

Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar, was an Archbishopric of Bremen. The see of Hamburg was designated a "Mission to bring Christianity to the Northern Europe", and Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North"....
 (801–865), a missionary, Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen
Archbishopric of Bremen

The Archdiocese of Bremen was a historical Roman Catholic diocese and formed from 1180 to 1648 an ecclesiastical state , named Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen within the Holy Roman Empire....
 and first Bishop in Sweden, 864.

In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, Simeon is commemorated with Anna the Prophetess
Anna (Bible)

Anna or Anna the Prophetess was a Bible figure mentioned only in the Gospel of Luke. According to that Gospel, she was an aged Jewish prophetess who prophecy about Jesus at the Temple of Jerusalem....
 on February 3 on the Feast of the Holy and Righteous Simeon the God-Receiver and Anna the Prophetess.

February 15

As mentioned above, the Orthodox Church celebrates St. Simeon on the day after the Feast of the Presentation, that is to say, February 3. However, for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar
Julian calendar

The Julian calendar, a reform of the Roman calendar, was introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC, and came into force in 45 BC . It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year, known at least since Hipparchus....
, February 3 falls on February 15 of the modern Gregorian Calendar
Gregorian calendar

The Gregorian calendar is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was first proposed by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius, and decreed by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom it was named, on 24 February 1582 by the papal bull Inter gravissimas....
.

While both the Orthodox Church in the East and Western Christianity agree on the setting of the date of Candlemas on the 40th day after Christmas (in accordance with the Mosaic Law), the difference in the dates for Christmas—25 December in the West and 7 January in the East—results over a theological dispute related to the adoption of the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar

The Gregorian calendar is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was first proposed by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius, and decreed by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom it was named, on 24 February 1582 by the papal bull Inter gravissimas....
 over the older Julian Calendar
Julian calendar

The Julian calendar, a reform of the Roman calendar, was introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC, and came into force in 45 BC . It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year, known at least since Hipparchus....
. The Gregorian calendar was developed after the Great Schism
East-West Schism

The East-West Schism, or the Great Schism, divided medieval Christendom into Eastern and Western branches, which later became known as the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church, respectively....
 between the Eastern and Western Christian churches in 1054. As a result, many Orthodox Christians celebrate St. Simeon's feast day on 15 February.

The Armenian Apostolic Church
Armenian Apostolic Church

The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest national church and one of the most ancient Christianity communities.The official name of the church is the One Holy Universal Apostolic Orthodox Armenian Church ....
 celebrates the Nativity of Christ on 6 January, and so their celebration of the Presentation, which they call The Coming of the Son of God into the Temple
Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
 is on February 14.

See also

  • Nunc dimittis
    Nunc dimittis

    The Nunc dimittis is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Gospel of Luke named after its first words in Latin language.Simeon the Righteous was a devout Jew who, according to the book of Luke, had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour....
     otherwise known as the Canticle of Simeon.
  • Anna (Bible)
    Anna (Bible)

    Anna or Anna the Prophetess was a Bible figure mentioned only in the Gospel of Luke. According to that Gospel, she was an aged Jewish prophetess who prophecy about Jesus at the Temple of Jerusalem....
  • Baptism of the Lord
    Baptism of the Lord

    The Baptism of the Lord is the feast day commemorating the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. Originally the baptism of Christ was celebrated on Epiphany , which commemorates the coming of the Magi, the baptism of Christ, and the wedding at Cana....
  • Candlemas
  • Christmas
    Christmas

    Christmas , also referred to as Christmas Day, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus. The day marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts Twelve Days of Christmas....
  • Circumcision of Christ
    Circumcision of Christ

    The Feast of the Circumcision of Our Lord is a Christian celebration of the circumcision of Jesus, eight days after his birth of Jesus, the occasion too on which the child was formally given his name, Jesus, a name derived from Hebrew language meaning "salvation" or "saviour"....
  • Epiphany
  • Liturgical year
    Liturgical year

    The liturgical year, also known as the Christian year, consists of the cycle of liturgy seasons in Christianity churches which determines when Calendar of saints, Memorial s, Commemoration s, and Solemnity are to be observed and which portions of Scripture are to be read....
  • Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
    Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

    The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus, and falls on or around 2 February. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Rosary#The Mysteries of the Rosary....
  • Rosary
    Rosary

    The Rosary is a popular traditional Roman Catholic devotion. The term denotes both a set of prayer beads and the devotional prayer itself, which combines vocal prayer and meditation....


External links

  • from the Prologue from Ohrid
    Prologue from Ohrid

    The Prologue from Ohrid was compiled by Nikolai Velimirovic. Bishop Nikolai's work is a compilation of lives of saints, hymns, reflections, and homilies....
     with a brief hagiography of St. Simeon.
  • and from the website of the Orthodox Church in America
    Orthodox Church in America

    The Orthodox Church in America is an Autocephaly Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its Primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008....
    .