In the Catholic Church today, we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. It is on this day that we celebrate Mary and Joseph taking Jesus to the temple and presenting him to God. A parallel in today’s Catholic tradition would be when our parents have us baptized in the Church, shortly after birth. It is there that we are presented to the Lord and to the congregation and our parents and godparents vow to raise us in the Christian tradition.

For me, I feel that the first and second readings tie in extremely well with the Gospel. The Gospel reminds me that I have committed myself to Christ, and that I continue to make that choice every day as an adult. The first reading today reminds me that the time of Christ’s return is near that that we should always be ready for it. In the second reading, I am reminded that no matter what I might face in life, I am not alone. Christ will be with me, even in my darkest hour.

These readings take me back to my two collective weeks that I spent in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I was able to meet several individuals and families who lost everything in the storm. Even after losing everything, though, they still had an extraordinary faith in Christ. Being able to listen to them talk about their convictions on how Christ was with them through the entire event and how their faith in Christ has helped them recover from their losses. When I feel sad and alone, I look back to that example and remember that no matter what, Christ is, and always will be, with me and all of us.