This startlingly fresh and contemporary image is a picture by Giovanni Bellini of the presentation of Christ in the Temple. It dates from 1460, but it could have been painted yesterday.

At the beginning of February, on the Feast of the presentation (or Candlemas) we bring our celebration of Christmas to an end and we mark the moment when Jesus is brought as 'a present' to God, as were all the first born males in the tribes of Israel. Jesus is presented out of the duty that his parents owe as members of God's people, and in our minds we are asked to contrast this duty with the gracious gifting of God who gives, not because he feels duty bound, but because that is his nature; to be gracious and compassionate and steadfast in his love. The greatest gift of all, of course, is Jesus who he gave to our world. 

There's a whiff of comedy about the fact that Mary and Joseph come to the Temple to offer Jesus back to God as a present; but this moment becomes the opportunity for God, using the power of prophecy in the mouths of two elderly people, to speak about what is going to happen as Jesus grows up. It isn't all going to be roses - Jesus will have opposition and Mary will experience pain as she sees him suffer for the sake of the world.