The story of Hannah and Samuel is extraordinary. What mother would part with her child? Like many bible stories it is symbolic in nature, like that of Abraham, who was asked to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:1-20). They serve as examples of complete trust in God. The childless Hannah, taunted by her rival Penninah, prayed for a son. God answered her prayer, and Hannah returned Samuel to him when he had been weaned. He would probably have been about three years old. It must have been a heart-wrenching decision for Hannah, for - having nursed him for that long - the bond would have been very strong. However, Hannah must have suspected, through her deep devotion to God, that her boy had a great destiny. Like Sarah, Ruth and Elizabeth, childless women conceive and give birth to sons who God has marked our for important roles.
The connection between the story of Hannah and the boy Jesus in the temple would appear to be dedication to God. Jesus was taken to the temple by his parents, in obedience to the precepts of their Jewish faith. It was there that he showed that he was becoming aware of who he was: “Did you not know I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?”
Luke tells the story of Jesus in the Temple, showing Mary and Joseph as an ordinary Jewish couple who seem to have no knowledge of the identity of their child. Jesus was to grow up as an ordinary boy in a village that was considered a backwater, and where his parents were well-known but not regarded as special. This was the formation that God chose for his son, the Word incarnate.