On the Sunday after Christmas we were asked to come to a church to preach. The pastor of the church asked us to come early and have dinner with his family. We said we would but we urged him and his wife not to go to any trouble with the dinner. He replied, "We will not be having much, just some Christmas leftovers." On the first Sunday after Christmas that is just about the way it is in various ways. Church attendance today compared with the Christmas Eve service looks like "leftovers." Christmas leftovers come in the form of bills for gifts bought for Christmas. Decorations left over from Christmas, boxes and wrapping paper need to be thrown away.
In our gospel lesson it appears as though we have leftover people, Simeon and Anna. They are aged: one is ready to die and the widow is 84 years…