The Presentation of the Lord, feast day is celebrated on February 2, and ends the celebration of the Nativity with the sacrifices offered at the temple by St. Joseph and our blessed Mother Mary. Here is how Luke’s Gospel writes about this important feast:

Jesus Is Presented in the Temple

 And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord  (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”  Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.  And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And inspired by the Spirit[a] he came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,

“Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace,
according to thy word;

for mine eyes have seen thy salvation
which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples,

a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to thy people Israel.” And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him;  and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother,“Behold, this child is set for the fall[b] and rising of many in Israel,
and for a sign that is spoken against
(and a sword will pierce through your own soul also),
that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.”

All the coming events are now pointed to the Paschal mystery, when Mary suffered during her Son’s crucifixion, but followed by the great light of the resurrection at Easter. Light is a major theme of The Presentation of the Lord. Most people are familiar with the gorgeous symbolism related to light. Light means Christ and a supernatural life of grace. The church today still uses Simeon's words, “The light for the enlightenment of the Gentiles” and keeps a true “light feast.” 

The Presentation of the Lord is also known as Candlemas because of the Canticle from Luke’s Gospel. Did you know that it is one of the oldest feast days in the church? The Presentation of the Lord was when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus into the temple, where Ana and Simeon were. God allowed Ana and Simeon to see that the little baby Jesus that Mary and Joseph were presenting in the temple was the long-awaited messiah. 

This important feast day is celebrated in different places around the world in different ways. Here are a few. In France and Belgium, they leave the major scene up until Candlemas because Candlemas is the official end of the Nativity. In Puerto Rico they have festivity that finishes the Christmas season. In the festivity, they have a procession where they carry a statue of Our Lady of the Light. In Peru, the Candlemas is one of the biggest celebrations of culture, music, and dancing. It is also the end of the Christmas season and the start of the preparations for Lent. Finally, in Mexico, they celebrate Christmas by cooking a family meal of tamales. They celebrate this feast also on February second. 

How is Candlemas celebrated today? Many Catholic families make homemade beeswax candles to be blessed on the feast day of St. Blaise, which follows Candlemas. Here in Cambridge, nearby St. Paul’s celebrated a special Latin Mass liturgy on the feast day this year. Every night in monasteries around the world, people pray the Canticle of Simeon, associated with this feast [as listed above].

 I am a choir member here at St.Peter School. And I would like to say that the Lent songs are very sad. But I never knew why they had to be so sad. So I decided to interview my music teacher to ask her why she chose the songs that she chose: Glory and Praise, The Lord Hears the Cry of the Poor, Shepherd Me O God, and On Eagles Wings. Here are some thoughts that Mrs. Gaudette shared with me:

Why did you choose the Lenten songs that you chose this year? 

I was choosing songs, and I knew that Lent meant spring, and I wanted to do things that symbolized that Christ is our light.

What is your favorite Lenten song?

I want to walk as a child of the light.

What do you think are the most important Lenten songs to you?

The Responsorial Psalm and how talks about how Jesus walks with us.

What do you think is the saddest song in Lent?

"On Eagles Wings; even though it is happy, I think it is the saddest song in Lent."

On Eagles Wings is based on Psalm 91:

Assurance of God’s Protection

Psalm 91 

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High,
    who abides in the shadow of the Almighty,

2 will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress;
    my God, in whom I trust.”

3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
    and from the deadly pestilence;

4 he will cover you with his pinions,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.

5 You will not fear the terror of the night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,

6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
    nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side,
    ten thousand at your right hand;
    but it will not come near you.

8 You will only look with your eyes
    and see the recompense of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the Lord your refuge,[a]
    the Most High your habitation,

10 no evil shall befall you,
    no scourge come near your tent.

11 For he will give his angels charge of you
    to guard you in all your ways.

12 On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you dash your foot against a stone.

13 You will tread on the lion and the adder,
    the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.

14 Because he cleaves to me in love, I will deliver him;
    I will protect him, because he knows my name.

15 When he calls to me, I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble,
    I will rescue him and honor him.

16 With long life I will satisfy him,
    and show him my salvation.

 Lent is a holiday that begins on Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is a pretty strange name for a Wednesday, but I’ll tell you why it is called that strange name. When Lent ends, in church, people put ashes on their heads. These ashes are put on their heads, first, to bless them and second, to reflect on when Jesus walked into Jerusalem with the Jews praising him. You may ask, “Why put ashes on your head?” but that is easily answered because to know who somebody is, you look at their face and assume. And this kind of fits that one song that says “They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love, yes, they will know we are Christians by our love”. Ash Wednesday is also often referred to as the day of ashes because of all of the palm leaves from that day of entrance into Jerusalem Jesus made. The ashes put on our head are to also remind us that “You are dust, and dust only” to remember that Adam and Eve, being the first people, they were made from the dust. This is also recalled in the Hail Holy Queen Prayer when you say, “to thee do we cry poor banished children of Eve'', to also remember that Eve’s children were very isolated from them because Eve ate from the tree of knowledge. 

Now, let’s talk about Lent’s timespan. Lent is an event in which there are forty days you must fast from something you enjoy, just as Jesus did in the wilderness, for forty days. Now, Lent ends on Easter Day, followed by Good Friday and Mourning Saturday. Good Friday is the day Jesus was crucified on the cross, and Mourning Saturday is the day we mourn for Jesus’ death. On Easter Sunday though, we go from mourning to happiness due to Jesus’ resurrection. By the way, I highly encourage you to go to Saint Peter Parish for a Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Mourning Saturday, and an Easter Sunday Mass.

Now, people don’t usually pay attention to the terminology behind the word lent, but the word lent comes from the word 'lencten' meaning springtime in Old English. God did make lent and Easter synchronize with spring purposefully so that we could understand how everything is connected (such as the physical world and heaven.

Finally, let’s talk about the modern day Lent customs. Now, these days during an Easter Sunday Mass, there is a custom that has been performed for many years, and that custom is the palm leaves at Mass. These palm leaves resemble the leaves the Jews used to welcome Jesus into Jerusalem. I personally believe the palm leaves are used to welcome Jesus into our homes. But, the palm leaves themselves are excellent for making a cross and using that cross to decorate your home. They also have a great smell in your home.

  But, also, in Lent, you sacrifice something in the form of "almsgiving, prayer, and fasting." Sacrifices can be something you give up or develop in yourself to become more like Jesus. I spoke to some of my family, friends, and teachers about what they sacrificed for Jesus this Lent. Here's what they shared:

• Become better as a person by practicing more virtue

• Give up sweets

• Pray more

• Become more independent

• Give up screen time

• Give up soda

• Give up littering 

• Make a holy hour a day in front of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

• Add more structured prayer in your life, such as praying the Rosary.

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated all over the world for many reasons. Some people think it celebrates the day that St. Patrick vanished all the snakes in Ireland, and some people think it’s the day he died. The people who think St. Patrick’s Day is the day he died are correct. In fact, we don’t even know if St. Patrick banished the snakes in Ireland.

St. Patrick is one of the most famous saints in Ireland, which means St. Patrick’s Day is one of the most celebrated holidays there.

The History of St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick's Day was initially celebrated in Ireland with religious services and feasts in honor of St. Patrick, one of Ireland's patron saints. When Irish immigrants brought St. Patrick's Day traditions to the United States, the day became a major celebration of Irish culture.

Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Christian feast day in the 17th century. It is widely celebrated throughout the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Lutheran Church. The day symbolizes Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, and it celebrates Irish heritage and culture. Celebrations involve public parades and festivals, céilithe (a social visit), and wearing green clothes or shamrocks.

 According to Wikipedia, “Christians who belong to liturgical denominations also attend church services, and historically the Lenten restrictions on eating and drinking alcohol were lifted for the day, which has encouraged and propagated the holiday's tradition of alcohol consumption.” 

Life Timeline of St. Patrick

St. Patrick was born into a wealthy Roman-British family. His parents were Calpernius and Concessa; his father, Calpernius, was a deacon, and Patrick’s grandfather, Pontius, was a Catholic bishop. Patrick lived his childhood very well but did not practice Catholicism until he was sixteen, when he was captured by Irish raiders and was made a slave in Ireland. It wasn’t until then that he realized he needed God more than ever. He prayed 100 times a day and 100 times at night. 

One day in the field, Saint Patrick heard a voice say to him, “You are going home. Back to Britain. Look, your ship is waiting for you.” It was God. But there was no ship—at least not within 200 miles. But Patrick knew what he had to do. He walked those 200 miles until he found the ship. It was full of sailors traveling to Gaul (present-day France and other places in Europe). He boarded the ship to Gaul.

When they arrived, they were starving, and unfortunately, they were left in a place with nothing. No food, no water, no people, nothing. The sailors asked Patrick, “Why don’t you call your so-called God for help?” He replied, “From the bottom of your heart, turn trustingly to the Lord my God, for nothing is impossible for him.” Then, all of a sudden, a large herd of boars came running their way. It was the biggest food they could have hoped for. 

Patrick eventually returned to Britain, where his parents begged him to stay. But he didn’t feel at home. He had grown to love the Irish even though they had captured him and made him work as a slave. Then, one day, Patrick had a vision of a man he knew as Victorious. He handed him a letter in Latin that said, “vox hiberionacum,” or “the voice of the Irish.” Then he heard him say, “We beg you to come and walk among us once more.” Patrick thought he had to teach the people about Christianity. So, he returned to Ireland, where he became a bishop around 430 AD on March 17. He lived the rest of his life in Ireland. Patrick died in Ireland around the year 460. 

Do you notice that in his lifetime, I didn’t add the part when he banished all the snakes? Well, if you didn’t know, we don’t even know how there are no snakes in Ireland. And it’s only a legend that Saint Patrick got rid of them. But he did more important things than get rid of a few reptiles. He brought Christianity to Ireland only because he had forgiveness to help the people who mistreated him. He could have gotten really angry at the Irish and never went back again, but instead, he forgave them and taught them about his religion.

The holiday which we know today got its name from a man named Valentine. Even though a few different stories are told about what he did to inspire the holiday, many people believe he’s celebrated for his role as a Roman priest who helped couples secretly get married. As the story goes, Emperor Claudius II of Rome—who ruled from 268 A.D. to 270 A.D.—banned marriage because he thought unmarried men made good soldiers. Valentine, the patron saint of love, thought this was unfair and decided to break the rules and perform marriages anyway. He kept the ceremonies secret, but he was eventually caught and later killed on February 14 of the year 270 for disobeying the emperor. Right before he died, Valentine wrote the first-ever “Valentine” to the jailer’s daughter, with whom he had fallen in love. Later, in the 5th century, Pope Gelasius I declared the day of his death as St. Valentine’s Day. And after all that, the emperor died due to a poisoned batch of mushrooms, as we mentioned, in 270 A.D.. Saint Valentine was later martyred on February 14 in the 3rd century, around 30 years after death. He was buried in Italy. His being martyred caused his feast day to occur on February 14, but it was later removed from the calendar because there were claimed to be other saint Valentines. But later, after a few centuries there was a holiday of love named after Saint Valentine, creating the holiday, Saint Valentine’s Day.

    During the festivities, it’s said that boys drew the names of girls from a container. The pairs would stay together during the festival, and some would actually get married when the festival was over. After Pope Gelasius I created St. Valentine’s Day, the festival turned into a Christian celebration that focused on the saint. The Catholic Church does not recognize St. Valentine’s Day on its calendar anymore, but people around the world still celebrate the day. Valentine’s Day traditions have evolved a lot over the years. For example, in the Middle Ages, which lasted from the 5th to 15th centuries in Europe, people started exchanging handmade cards with love notes inside. Today, billions of dollars are spent on Valentine’s Day cards and gifts around the world each year.

   In a tradition that's also connected to the Middle Ages, South African women actually wear their hearts on their sleeves ... kind of. Girls pin the names of their crushes on their shirtsleeves, sometimes revealing themselves as secret admirers to their sweethearts.

Now, these are all very diverse and quite different ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Still, this holiday invites people worldwide to appreciate the connections between them and so many other people. No matter how you celebrate Valentine's Day, one thing's for sure: This is a really awe-some  holiday.

According to the national day calendar, February 29th is a leap day and happens every four years. For a day that is celebrated only once every 4 years, it sure has a lot going on around it. Leap Year has deceitful explorers, beloved saints, partying border towns, and proposal-popping Irish ladies. And let's not forget all the birthdays, babies. They do have some making up to do on the celebration, you know!

Since the beginning of time, man has been improving how we keep it. That has to do with calendars as well. Early Egyptians had a leap year in their calendar. The early Roman calendar had an entire leap month from time to time to keep the days in line with the astronomical year. It was Julius Caesar and astronomer Sosigenes who remade the Roman calendar, giving it twelve months with equally (almost) distributed days and adding a leap day every four years.

In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII changed the calendar once again. Because the Earth revolves around the sun once every 365.2421 days, one leap day every 4 years is slightly too much. Instead of shortening the leap day, the Gregorian calendar is designed so that leap days only happen every 4 years except years evenly divisible by 100 but not 400. There was no leap day in 1900, and there will not be one in 2100. So, a baby born on February 29, 2096, will be in the 3rd grade on his 1st birthday!

Even this adjustment doesn't keep the days perfectly aligned with the seasons. Those humans who will still be around in 10,000 years must address those issues. It's truly not a leap-day concern. 

A lunar eclipse on leap day 1504 gave Christopher Columbus the perfect foil to trick the natives into continuing to provide supplies to his deserted expedition. Aware of the upcoming lunar eclipse, Columbus told the chief that his god was angry and would take away the moon as punishment and proof of his anger.

A tradition that originated in 5th-century Ireland allows women to propose marriage to a man on leap day. According to legend, Saint Brigid complained on behalf of young maids that their men were too shy to propose. To please her, Saint Patrick announced that February 29th would be a day when women could propose.

In both Canada and the United States, there have been proposals to make Leap Day a national day that would encourage people to take the extra day to do some good in the world.

Whatever you do, be sure to make the most of your extra day.  It only comes around every four years or so!