This essay first appeared in our weekly Scripture reflection newsletter on February 1, 2025.
I’ve got a confession to make. Don’t worry—nothing serious! My confession is that there is a type of response to social media posts that often makes me roll my eyes, sometimes furrow my brow and occasionally frown. Often, if I post some positive news—about the church, about women in the church or about LGBTQ people in the church—most people will say something like, “Great news!”
But even in the face of the best news, some people will inevitably write one of two things. First, “Not enough!” And second, “Too little, too late!”
Now, let’s be frank. There are many problems in our church. The biggest, to my mind, is the sexual abuse crisis, which we are still confronting. The second is the urgent need for more women in leadership roles. And the third is the inability in many parts of our church to welcome LGBTQ people.
Even in the face of the best news, some people will inevitably write one of two things. First, “Not enough!” And second, “Too little, too late!”
But in each area we have made significant strides; we are not where we were even 10 years ago. At least in the United States, anyone credibly accused of abuse is immediately removed from ministry. Pope Francis recently named Sister Simona Brambilla as the first women prefect of a Vatican Dicastery. And just this week on Outreach, Cardinal Wilton Gregory, the archbishop of Washington, issued an historic apology for the church’s treatment of LGBTQ people. There is still a long way to go in each of these areas, but this is clear progress. Still, to each of these news items a few people wrote, “Not enough!” and “Too little, too late!”
Many of us want change and we usually want it fast—myself included. I’m sometimes an impatient person. But today’s readings speak to us about the need for faithful patience and the reality of waiting.
In the story of the Presentation of the Lord, we read about two people who waited many years for the Messiah’s arrival: Simeon and Anna. Simeon is described as a pious elderly man, awaiting the “consolation of Israel.” In the Sacra Pagina commentary, Luke Timothy Johnson translates the Greek word used to describe Simeon’s stance as “expectant,” noting that this is a “term Luke uses in his narrative for those positively disposed and open to God’s visitation.” Anna, aged 84, also waits expectantly, praying “night and day” in the Temple in Jerusalem.
The notion that no change is enough, that it is always too late, or that nothing can ever satisfy us, is not the way that Christians are asked to live. That approach turns blessings into curses and steps forward into steps backward.
Both are rewarded for their piety, their prayers and their long wait, as they greet the Messiah in person. After they encounter Jesus, both also praise God for his goodness. Simeon glorifies Jesus, and Anna “spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Israel.”
Notice that neither one says, “Not enough! He’s only a baby! And I was hoping for a warrior or a king or a political revolutionary!” Nor do they say, “Too little, too late! Things are too far gone here! He should have come when I was younger!”
I’m sure that some people reading this are thinking that I don’t understand how frustrating it is to wait. Or to be disappointed. Or to seemingly not see change. But I understand these feelings, especially as someone who works within the church. At the same time, the notion that no change is enough, that it is always too late, or that nothing can ever satisfy us, is not the way that Christians are asked to live. That approach turns blessings into curses and steps forward into steps backward.
Challenging as it is, and much as it often tests our human nature, our models in Christian waiting are presented to us in today’s Gospel. Simeon and Anna both wait in faithful expectation, knowing that, in the end, God will visit his people.
