Reading Schmemann, Understanding Simeon

Icon, Righteous Simeon the God-Receiver

Right now I'm reading Alexander Schmemann's book For the Life of the World. Though Schmemann was Eastern Orthodox, and he wrote to and for the Orthodox, the book has turned into something of a classic for Christians of all stripes, especially for those interested in what a "sacramental worldview" means. (One Protestant theologian even recently referred to the book as a "prose-poem.") And it is indeed a wonderful, beautiful book. I recommend it to anybody who's wishing to go deeper in the Christian faith, especially in tandem with Hans Boersma's book Heavenly Participation. Read the former to be inspired by the beauty of the liturgical and sacramental depth of the Christian tradition; read the latter to understand both the theological history of the sacramental worldview and its ramifications for evangelical Christians today. From what I understand, reading Schmemann tends to generate among young, impressionable evangelicals an intense fascination with, and occasionally even conversion to, Orthodoxy. But I think a book like Schmemann's bears its best fruit among us evangelicals if it causes us to think creatively about our own tradition rather than pine after another, even if we can learn a lot from other Christian traditions. Boersma helps us do that, in dialogue with Catholicism rather than Orthodoxy, however.

As I was reading Schmemann, I came across a passage on the place of Simeon (from Luke 2) in the liturgy. Simeon's swan song is part of evening prayer, called Vespers, or sometimes night prayer, called Compline, and is specifically referred to as the Nunc dimittis (Latin for "now let").

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.

Schmemann's observations on Simeon—how Simeon's actions become our actions in the liturgy—are beautiful, even poetic. So poetic, in fact, that I thought it would work very well as an actual poem. So, with apologies to the deceased Schmemann, and with some artistic license, I inserted line and stanza breaks, and I changed all the third-person pronouns in reference to Simeon to second-person pronouns; in other words, I changed it from a description of Simeon to an address to Simeon.

You had been waiting all your life,
And then at last the Christ Child was given to you:
You held the Life of the world in your arms.

You stood for the whole world
In its expectation and longing,
And the words you used to express your thanksgiving
Have become our own.

You could recognize the Lord
Because you expected Him;
You took Him into your arms
Because it is natural to take someone you love into your arms;
And then your life of waiting was fulfilled.

You had beheld the One you had longed for.
You had completed your purpose in life, and
You were ready to die.

But death to you was no catastrophe.
It was only a natural expression of the fulfillment of your waiting.
You were not closing your eyes to the light
You had at last seen;

Your death was only the beginning
Of a more inward vision of that light.