Entry of the Theotokos in the Temple
Entry of the Theotokos in the Temple This is one of the 12 major feasts in the life of the Orthodox Church. We celebrate this every year on Nov. 21. Below are some notes from a previous year's Sunday School. Our original class series was focused on the Old Testament Liturgical life, but we took a pause to cover this feast because it landed on a Sunday that year. In the midst of our discussion of the temple and the sacrificial system of Israel, the significance of this feast became more apparent. Based on the Scriptural readings and the hymns used during the feast, several points can be made. 1. She becomes the Temple of God. She enters the Temple and supersedes it to become herself the living temple of God. The most pure Temple of the Saviour, the precious Chamber and Virgin, the Sacred Treasure of the Glory of God, is presented today to the house of the Lord. She brings with her the grace of the Spirit, which the angels of God do praise...