 
First Reading: 1 Samuel 1: 20-22, 24-28 The First Reading reflects the Gospel by bringing before us another mother and son, Hannah and Samuel. Hannah had longed for a child and had been praying so hard for one in the Temple that Eli thought she was drunk. Her prayers and her faith were rewarded and she conceived and bore a son. He was her firstborn and, as such, in Jewish tradition was dedicated to the Lord. Most parents took their child and offered a sacrifice of dedication - but brought the son home. Hannah sensed, however, that, once Samuel had been to the Temple, he was to be fully dedicated to God and to stay there. Consequently, she cared for him at home until he was old enough to be taken and made over to the Lord. When the time came, she re-introduced herself to Eli and showed him her son and explained what she understood his future to be. Eli accepts her son and Samuel is made over to the Lord for the rest of his life. Hannah does not abandon her son - the story continues that she brings him new clothes each year and that she goes on to have other children. We can, however, imagine the faith that enabled her to sacrifice her child in this way. Having longed for him so much, it must have been heart-rending to part with him.
Her story echoes that of
Mary - the mother of another special child. Both love their sons deeply -
and both suffer anxiety and fear and, ultimately, the loss of their son.
Both, however, were women of deep faith and trust in God. This faith opens
their hearts to the truth that their sons belong first and foremost to God.
This makes them willing to live with the mixture of joy and pain that will
bring - knowing that somehow, their son is part of the great story of God’s
promise of salvation for his people. What does it mean for me? How can we understand Hannah's choice to dedicate her much-wanted son to God and to leave him in the Temple? What might it teach us about the gift of children? |