
A birth announcement can be one of the more joyful tasks a married couple may complete. Whether the news is published online, with an old-fashioned picture, or with a card in the mail, everyone wants to hear the details—boy or girl? How much did he weigh? How long was he? What’s the name? Who does the baby look like?
When Jesus was presented at the Temple forty days after His birth, it was no mere birth announcement for the delight of relatives and the curiosity of strangers. Rather, it was a fulfillment of God’s Law and a pronouncement of Who Jesus truly is.
The period of Jesus’ life that we refer to as the “state of humiliation”
was continuing. He had been conceived by the Holy Spirit. He spent nine months growing inside of His mother until the proper time had come for His arrival. At eight days old, Jesus had already begun to shed His innocent blood, in the rite of circumcision. Now His mother and step-father brought Him to the Temple for His mother’s purification and His own ritual redemption.Unto Us a Child Is Born