Orthodox Christians celebrate Meeting of the Lord

The Orthodox Christians who follow the old calendar on February 15 observe the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or the Meeting of the Lord, which is one of the twelve Great Feasts. It falls 40 days after the Nativity. According to the Gospel, Mary and Joseph took the baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem forty days, inclusive, after his birth to complete Mary's ritual purification after childbirth, and to perform the redemption of the firstborn. Priest Pavel Borshevski, of the Chisinau church “Saint Dumitru”, has told Info-Prim Neo that nowadays the mothers bring the newborns to church 40 days after birth. A prayer is said to the mothers so that they can enter the church. On this day, they also commemorate Simeon and Anna. Upon bringing Jesus into the temple, Mary and Joseph encountered Simeon. The Gospel records that Simeon had been promised that “he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ”. Simeon prayed a prayer that prophesied the redemption of the world by Jesus: “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace; according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people: to be a light to lighten the gentiles and to be the glory of Thy people Israel.” The elderly prophetess Anna was also in the temple, and offered prayers and praise to God for Jesus, and spoke to everyone there about Jesus and his role in the redemption of Israel As the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple falls on a Friday, the faithful can eat fish and oil on this day, but are banned from eating meat and milk.