The figures of Simeon and Anna call to mind for me the many elderly parishioners over the decades who have witnessed to the faith especially in their attendance at daily Mass. Their presence gives great support to priests in their ministry and their prayers, petitions and personal example links us to the many people who have gone on ahead of us in the journey of faith. At the Sunday Mass, as grandparents and great grandparents or aunts and uncles, they are a core of fidelity and loving concern especially for those who have a weak sense of faith or cannot pray for themselves for whatever reason. Often, it is through their good offices that children and grandchildren are brought to the sacraments or supported in the Catholic schools. In this way Anna and Simeon are patron saints of the weekday Mass goer and all those for whom often prayer is the greatest tool in bringing about healing, tradition and unity in family and community life.
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